Anna Karenina (1935)
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Movie Reviews of Anna Karenina (1935)
Movie Review: Love in an Age of Appearances
Summary: 3 Stars
As I plow my way through this Great Garbo Signature Collection a few things are becoming somewhat apparent. One, as Garbo got older she grew into her beauty and out of that ghostly look she had in his early films. And two, she is a movie star not a serious actress. As a result this adaptation of "Anna Karenina" is much more a Garbo vehicle than a serious take on a serious piece of Russian literature. Like most of her film entrances this one is marked by an extreme close up, lighting that is way too bright, and actual fanfare that today would just seem silly. The main problem I had was that it was just not very literary. The vocab is at a second grade reading level and the ideas are bold and unambiguous. The book and even the movie are old old old so I will forgive the story for feeling familiar, and you have to appreciate the message they are trying to spread. Here we have Anna, who fought for love, but was crushed under an avalanche of honor and careers, and who died for the sins of the men in her life.
The first 30 minutes of the film are a waste (sorry, sacrifice) as we visit an upscale party where Anna meets Count Vronsky (Fredric March). We get so much dancing and costuming that I started having flashbacks to "Marie Antoinette". From there the film turns its attention to the role of adultery and the repressive nature of marriage. Anna and Vronsky are besotted, but Anna is married to Karenin, a tough military type who marches around all day scolding her for spoiling their (obnoxious) son. He doesn't really care if she loves him or not, just so long as she stays with him so that they can keep up appearances. She eventually caves to passion and he resorts to the old "Your mother is dead," trick to explain her absence to their son. The film takes a stand against all things that are rotten about our dealings with relationships. Marriage is presented as an evil force that is thrust upon us to quash free love, free sex, and freedom. The rules are blasted for being arbitrary and the fact that sometimes there is a better option out there than marriage is stated. Those who sit around all day imploring others to focus on their careers are dismissed as stuffy bougie folk with nothing better to do. Of course there is a lot of Hollywood hokum mixed in here, what with the rousing tale of how you should crawl out from under your oppressors boot and find true happiness, but still this movie rocks philosophically.
Soon after running off together Anna and Vronsky realize that there is a difference between love making and love maintaining. Her son beckons her and the Serbian/Turkish War beckons him. These desires dominate their lives until the film moves towards a decent climax and the anti-climatic resolution. I would also like to say that in light of the Barbaro tragedy the horse racing scene is especially tough to watch. Not so much for the image of a horse being euthanized, but for those that involved real horses taking truly scary tumbles. This film may depict old school Russia but the message is still relevant. We are all too eager to slap on the shackles of jobs and relationships just so that we can bemoan the ball and chain. And the sooner we realize that our government is squarely on the side of Karenin, the better off we will be. **3/4
Movie Review: The Story of a Russian Love Triangle
Summary: 3 Stars
+++++
This movie is based on the very long 1877 Russian novel "Anna Karenina" by Count Leo Tolstoy (1828 to 1910).
The thick novel is really two novels: a powerful drama of a woman trapped in a loveless marriage seeking love and happiness and Tolstoy's spiritual confessions of his lifelong meditations on birth, death, and God.
This movie focuses out of necessity for time constraints on the first aspect mentioned above.
Thus this movie is about Anna Karenina (Greta Garbo), a woman who has beauty, social position, wealth, a husband (Basil Rathbone), and a son (Freddie Bartholomew) who adores her but her existence seems empty. When she meets the dashing officer Count Vronsky (Fredric March), she rejects her marriage and turns to him to fulfill her passionate nature.
Greta Garbo along with Fredric March carry the movie and they both give fine performances. Even Freddie Bartholomew (who was then a child star) does a good job. In my opinion though, Basil Rathbone gives a very convincing performance as the husband who is concerned with his career and social position above everything else.
The Russian music that occasionally plays is fantastic. The costumes are a sight to behold. All scenery and cinematography are breathtaking.
Unfortunately, the movie seems rushed and doesn't do justice to the rich supporting cast of Tolstoy's novel. There is a sub-plot with two other characters that seems to go nowhere. The forming of the relationship (that's central to the movie) between Garbo and March seems somewhat unbelievable since not enough time is given for it to develop. Worse still, as the movie proceeds it doesn't seem to gain momentum and becomes more-or-less predictable (even though I did not see the last scene coming).
Finally, the DVD itself (the one released in Sept. 2005) has good sound quality. The picture quality is also surprisingly good (especially when you consider that this movie was made so long ago) but there are faint streaks or lines that occasionally occur in the last scene. There is one extra: a theatrical trailer.
In conclusion, I think Greta Garbo fans will appreciate this movie despite its problems much more than non-Garbo fans.
(1935; 95 min; black and white; 27 scenes; full screen)
+++++
Movie Review: Overated missed opportunity
Summary: 2 Stars
In the Garbo canon, this film surely must rate as the biggest missed opportunity of her career. All the ingredients should have contributed to a memorable film but after a good start, it just doesn't happen.
Maybe it is the short running time. A sweeping novel has been understandably truncated but Anna's relationship with Vronsky is not sufficiently developed so their passion is unconvincing. A number of scenes don't lead anywhere e.g. Kitty's marriage scene.
Maybe it's the cast. Basil Rathbone as her husband rises to Garbo's level, superbly generating some sympathy within a stern and cold character and Reginald Owen is excellent as her brother. Freddie Bartholomew is awful with his acting school diction and delivery. Fredric March starts well, dashing and magnetic, but becomes mechanical and unconvincing as the film develops. Maureen O'Sullivan, no one's idea of a Russian or Garbo's sister, overacts in a simpering and cloying manner.
Maybe it's the script and direction. The first 20 minutes are by far the best with a terrific scene when March and his colleagues drink and eat and as the film moves to the memorable introduction of Garbo through the steam of a train and shows her empathy and warmth as she deals with her errant brother. From there, it is a gradual downhill slide plodding along lugubriously and generating little passion. It is as if everyone ran out of interest, even Garbo.
Maybe it was the censorship which caused so many of these problems. Anna Karenina is an adulteress so it is likely that any scenes of real passion would have been curtailed.
The print of the film has not been restored and is dirty with white lines appearing often. At least one scene is missing as noted by another reviewer and there are no extras except the original trailer. Unless the film is purchased as part of one of the Garbo collections, it is not good value.
Movie Review: Really Skimpy
Summary: 2 Stars
I kept waiting for Anna to have Vronsky's baby, I guess they just didn't do that back in those (Hollywood) days...but that's what made her split from Russian society permanent. Garbo is excellent, you can see the thoughts passing through her head cross over her face, in her eyes. You can see that she thinks it's ironic that it's okay for her brother to cheat on his wife, and the world accepts it, but it's not okay for her, a woman. The film is superficial, there is no "great love" portrayed, it seems that Anna merely ran away with Vronsky because he bugged her to, and she's a very weak-minded woman. She loves her son so much, why did she leave him? For boring Vronsky? He's a count in the regiment, and what they do there is, have horse races....very important. Also get drunk, and crawl over each other underneath a table. And what does he love about Anna so much that he can't live without her? That's she's married and hard to get? Let's just say, that the movie isn't as deep as the book, would be an understatement.Movie Review: a classics illustrated comic book would give you a better impression of tolstoy
Summary: 2 Stars
garbo is radiant but there is no other reason to watch this highly abridged telling of tolstoys novel. while im used to hollywood (by necessityt) removing whole sections of a loooong book, this is incomprehensible to anyone who hasnt some previous acquaintance with the story. even the usually reliable fredric march and basil rathbone (one of the greatest hams ever) cant save it.