War and Peace
by Sergei Bondarchuk
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Anatoli Ktorov, Boris Zakhava, Lyudmila Savelyeva, Sergei Bondarchuk, Vyacheslav TikhonovDirector: Sergei Bondarchuk
Writer: Sergei Bondarchuk
Writer: Leo Tolstoy
Writer: Vasili Solovyov
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); German (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Italian (Subtitled); Portuguese (Subtitled); Swedish (Subtitled); Chinese (Subtitled); Russian (Subtitled); Dutch (Subtitled); Arabic (Subtitled); Japanese (Subtitled); Greek (Subtitled); Russian (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish (Published); English (Published), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: Anamorphic, Box set, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 427 minutes
Published: 2003-06-01
DVD Release Date: 2003-06-03
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Image Entertainment
Movie Reviews of War and Peace
Movie Review: A Film Masterpiece of the Twentieth Century
Summary: 5 Stars
I would definitely recommend that one reads the original novel first, otherwise the characters and trend of the story as outlined in the movie may be confusing. A particularly good English language translation of the novel is the Oxford World's Classics paperback version. It contains maps of the battles and campaigns as well as a who's who of them main characters and families, useful chapter notes and the authors appendix "Some Words about War and Peace". All of these will add to the enjoyment of watching the film. Alternatively obtain and watch the 1956 Hollywood version first which has many fine actors such as Audrey Hepburn, Herbert Lom, John Mills and so on. A much shorter movie than the Russian epic but will help in following the Russian film it and is quite a delightful movie in its own right.
I read some of the reviews on the Amazon website where disappointment is expressed with the quality of the restoration in the DVD and the poor dubbing. I recently bought my DVD set at the local branch of the Metropolis chain in Athens. Usually Amazon has far lower prices than Metropolis even with mail charges added, but in this rare case the Metropolis price was only a third of Amazon's list price in US dollars after currency conversion. The version was the Russico four episode part disks plus 1 bonus disk one in widescreen. I found this version excellent in quality as well as the 5:1 Dolby Sound with languages available in English, French as well as Russian and a large choice of foreign subtitles. I plugged for the English language version with no subtitles and the dubbing is not the best but can be described as fairly good rather than poor, not as good as the English dubbing* in Das Boot, but much better than most. Strangely enough the dubbing is selective rather than general and often relapses into Russian with subtitles, which is slightly annoying. Yes, and it helps to understand French.
Since initially writing this review I have watched the movie again this time with Russian audio and Greek subtitles (they seem to be a better translation and more abundant than the English subtitles without the gaps). Now I realise that the English dubbing is quite annoying*. I re-read the novel along with the movie segments corresponding to the book segments and chapters and realised that the film draws one's attention to parts of the novel which one may have glanced over at first reading. It is also more evident that the original film may have been considerably longer, but for the most part the segments removed were unessential. However, in some places the cuts are too brutal. The book is too complex to allow most people to understand the movie without reading the novel first. Pierre's dabbling in freemasonry, for example, is cut out of the movie but it is important in revealing part of his character. Also the movie ends well ahead of the book. That's not altogether a bad thing because it's not the most interesting part of the novel, but some development of the romance with Natasha and Pierre and their marriage would have been a good finish, as it is their love for one another is only hinted at in this version.
The production is breathtaking with regards to sound effects, lighting, casting and beautiful indoor sets and outdoor scenes. One can only gasp at the superb cinematography. It is a very artistic film (may be the Italian touch) which does full justice to the novel. It is unlike any of the well known 1960s Hollywood epics, even including Doctor Zhivago. The angle shots must have been innovative at the time. Many shots are reminiscent of techniques more fully adopted in the 1990s,such a split screens, roving cameras and swivelling of shots to circle the characters. . The battle scenes are awesome , and - as several reviewers have already noted -the producers did not have the doubtful benefit of computerisation as used e.g. in The Lord of the Rings fantasy adventure epic. They literally used hundred of well-trained and co-ordinated extras and special effects. From the bonus material one learns that thousands of soldiers of the Soviet army participated as actors and in preparing the special effects. By the time the scenes devoted to the Battle of Austerlitz were over I could almost choke on the gritty and pungent gunpowder and felt my eyes sympathetically smarting. There are also impressive period ball room scenes on a scale I have never seen before, lovely snowscapes, particularly in the duel scene, and one beautiful spring season sequence at the Bald Hills estate when Prince Andrew drives through woods and beautiful groves of lilacs, one can almost smell the blossoms, even surpasses the daffodil scene in Dr. Zhivago.. Then there is the wolf hunting scenes which end with the hunters as seen through the eyes of the captured wolf. This is followed by the charming quiet musical interlude in the hunting lodge, with just Natasha Rostova, her uncle and the servants. This Russian epic must be regarded as one of the film masterpieces of the twentieth century.
Summary of War and Peace
Like Tolstoy's novel, this epic-length "War and Peace" is rough going, but worth the effort. Winner of the 1969 Academy Award¬Æ for Best Foreign Language Film and widely considered the most faithful adaptation of Tolstoy's classic, Sergei Bondarchuk's massive Soviet-Italian coproduction was seven years in the making, at a record-setting cost of $100 million. Bondarchuk himself plays the central role of Pierre Bezukhov, buffeted by fate during Russia's tumultuous Napoleonic Wars, serving as pawn and philosopher through some of the most astonishing set pieces ever filmed. Bondarchuk is a problematic director: interior monologues provide awkward counterpoint to intimate dramas, weaving together the many classes and characters whose lives are permanently affected by war. Infusions of '60s-styled imagery clash with the film's period detail; it's an anomalous experiment that doesn't really work. Undeniably, however, the epic battle scenes remain breathtakingly unique; to experience the sheer scale of this film is to realize that such cinematic extravagance will never be seen again. "--Jeff Shannon"Like Tolstoy's novel, this epic-length War and Peace is rough going, but worth the effort. Winner of the 1969 Academy Award® for Best Foreign Language Film and widely considered the most faithful adaptation of Tolstoy's classic, Sergei Bondarchuk's massive Soviet-Italian coproduction was seven years in the making, at a record-setting cost of $100 million. Bondarchuk himself plays the central role of Pierre Bezukhov, buffeted by fate during Russia's tumultuous Napoleonic Wars, serving as pawn and philosopher through some of the most astonishing set pieces ever filmed. Bondarchuk is a problematic director: interior monologues provide awkward counterpoint to intimate dramas, weaving together the many classes and characters whose lives are permanently affected by war. Infusions of '60s-styled imagery clash with the film's period detail; it's an anomalous experiment that doesn't really work. Undeniably, however, the epic battle scenes remain breathtakingly unique; to experience the sheer scale of this film is to realize that such cinematic extravagance will never be seen again. --Jeff Shannon
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