Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 9780790731612 Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC ISBN: 0790731614 Label: Warner Home Video Manufacturer: Warner Home Video Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Warner Home Video Release Date: August 25, 1998 Running Time: 108 minutes Sales Rank: 11589 Studio: Warner Home Video Theatrical Release Date: April 04, 1997
Amazon.com: Sophie Marceau plays the title character in this 1997 version of Tolstoy's classic, set in Imperial Russia. Bernard Rose (Paperhouse) directs, but his accent is on sumptuousness instead of performance, and the result is that much of what happens--especially Anna's affair with Vronsky (Sean Bean)--is opaque and unbelievable. (Bean in particular is badly suited to his part.) A redeeming feature is Alfred Molina's role as the narrator, but he alone can't prop up Rose's façade of grand passion. --Tom Keogh
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Average Rating:
Rating: - A visual masterpiece
One of the most visualy stunning costume dramas I have ever seen! Every thing is so beautifu the actors, the costumes which deserved an oscar nomination, the authentic russian sets and a great score. Sophie Marceau is beautiful as Anna but lacks the acting ability to play such a complex character. Sean Bean as Vronsky and Sophie Marceau have great chemistry. The film has sparks of greatness but fails. Some scenes like the ball scence and Anna's death are beautifuly shot and succeed and most others just seem lukewarm. Levin story is cut to only to a few minutes they probably should have not included him and just focused on Anna's story in my opinion. It pains me to say this but the film is wort buying if only for the visuals. I watch my copy on mute most of the time listing to Air.
Rating: - Some splendid scenes, and yet...
I've seen the Greta Garbo version; the Nicola Pagett TV adaptation and the Helen McCrory TV adaptation. They all have good things about them. For one, you can't really go wrong with the story: a beautiful young woman, married to an older man for convenience, falls desperately in love for the first time with a young officer, and he with her.
Onto this version... The chemistry between Sean Bean and Sophie Marceau is there, and they both give excellent performances. James Fox also makes an excellent, not totally unsympathic Karenin (thankfully miles above Basil Rathbone's stone cold performance in the Greta Garbo version.) And Alfred Molina is, hands down, the best Levin I can ever remember. He looked great, too; very trim & handsome.
The hair, makeup, costumes and glorious St. Petersburg setting (with detours to Italy and the Russian countryside) are simply beautiful. The soundtrack ... Read More
Rating: - Sophie Marceau Spoiled It
Sorry, I just couldn't get into this version of the movie. I began watching it on TV this evening. I've read the book, which is one of the most brilliant classics ever written in my opinion. I also saw a TV series several years ago starring Nicola Paget. This series, I thought, made a pretty good attempt at being faithful to the book, and Nicola Paget portrayed the beautiful, troubled Anna in a most believable way.
Sophie Marceau, however, was too far removed from what I perceived Anna must have looked and acted like. Marceau seemed more like an ordinary present day college girl caught in a time warp. She didn't look particularly beautiful (and those straight bangs didn't help any!) and one couldn't help but wonder why Vronsky would give her a second glance.
Considering the lofty quality of the book, this movie was pretty ordinary.
Rating: - cinq étoiles
I am shocked how many people didn't like the movie. I absolutely loved it. Anyone who read the book knows that you cannot make a 2-hour movie from 969-page book without leaving many details out. It is not supposed to be a transcript of the book! I thought everything was done excellently, including the chosen cast and the acting. Perhaps being European I don't need melodramatic scenes of screaming, nudity, explicit love scenes and spilled blood - as Hollywood movies are so "good" at - to enjoy my movies. People who wrote the reviews here expected bloody ending, how sad. The movie was done with such a class, so tastefully, yet so powerfully! Sophie Marceau is one of my very favourite actresses and she, as well as others, have done a superb job! The change in languages gave the movie exotic touch and authenticity and a little taste of Russia. The fact that they mixed French is only a reflection that high class, (educated ... Read More
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- A visual masterpiece
- Some splendid scenes, and yet...
- Sophie Marceau Spoiled It
- cinq étoiles
