Anastasia
by Anatole Litvak
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Akim Tamiroff, Helen Hayes, Ingrid Bergman, Martita Hunt, Yul BrynnerDirector: Anatole Litvak
Brand: Fox
Cinematographer: Jack Hildyard
Editor: Bert Bates
Producer: Buddy Adler
Writer: Agnes Nixon
Writer: Arthur Laurents
Writer: Guy Bolton
Writer: Marcelle Maurette
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 4.0; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 4.0; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 105 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-07-01
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Movie Reviews of Anastasia
Movie Review: "You know I'll go...you always know"
Summary: 5 Stars
Swapping what was one of the most horrifying political crimes of the Twentieth Century with a fluffy fairytale concoction, 1956's ANASTASIA resurrected Ingrid Bergman's screen career, netted her an Academy Award; and, most importantly, finally silenced the backlash she endured after running away from her young family to marry Roberto Rossellini.
Rescued from trying to throw herself into the River Seine, Anna Koreff (Ingrid Bergman), a destitute young escapee from an asylum, becomes the pawn in a scheme by a group of White Russian emigrees to impersonate the Grand Duchess Anastasia, presumed murdered along with the rest of her family during the Russian Revolution in 1918. Capturing the imagination of sentimental loyalists in Paris, Anna and her mentor, General Bounine (Yul Brynner) travel on to Copenhagen in a bid to seal the deal - the acceptance of Anastasia's grandmother, the Dowager Empress (Helen Hayes). But the Empress has grown weary of the game. She's seen several pretenders and cannot endure another heartbreak. Still, Bounine persists, until the fateful afternoon when Anna and the Empress finally come face-to-face...
ANASTASIA, originally presented on the Broadway stage by Guy Bolton (translated from an earlier Paris hit penned by Marcelle Maurette) is partly based on truth. In 1920, a confused young woman was rescued from an attempted suicide and placed in a mental asylum. She refused to offer her name to the authorities, but rumours started swirling that she was a member of the Russian royal family, who had been assassinated in 1918. Anna Anderson, whom she would later call herself, spent the rest of her life campaiging for the recognition that she was, in fact, Grand Duchess Anastasia, the youngest daughter of the Tsar. Court cases continued for years, but in the end, the fact of Anastasia's death (and therefore Anna Anderson's identity) could not be proved or disproved. The bones of the royal family were finally unearthed several years after Anderson's death, and DNA from Anderson tested against it closed the case once and for all, when scientists announced that Anderson didn't share a common bloodline with the Imperial family.
By swapping the ghastly truth for a romantic fantasy, ANASTASIA's screenwriter Arthur Laurents fulfils the audiences' need for a happy ending. Whilst Anna Anderson never found comfort in the outstretched arms of her beloved grandmother, Bergman's Anna does ultimately find her true birthright. Audiences have always held a certain fascination for this story - part of the appeal in this 1956 version especially is the "Pygmalion" slant of the plot. Anna is groomed, Eliza Doolittle-style, into becoming the lost princess, but in the end, the edges blur so bewitchingly that we cannot tell where Anna ends and Anastasia begins - or more pointedly, whether the girl really is Anastasia or not.
The gallery of supporting players is simply delicious, my favourite being the estimable Martita Hunt as the Baroness von Livenbaum, the Empress' giddy lady-in-waiting ("Oh, this is madness without the moon!"). Akim Tamiroff plays another of the White Russian con artists. Natalie (Lovey Howell) Schafer is a hammy Parisian emigree.
The DVD includes the highly-recommended A&E Biography on the real Anastasia, countless newsreels with Ingrid Bergman hitting the publicity trail for the film; plus an excellent audio commentary hosted by Sylvia Stoddard. Truly a class act. Also available as part of Fox's Classic Quad Set 7 (Anastasia / Gentleman's Agreement / The Ox-Bow Incident / The Snake Pit).
Summary of Anastasia
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