Anna Karenina

This post was supposed to be up on Sunday, but I've been really busy so I didn't get around to writing it until now. It is therefore more than two weeks (almost three I think) since I saw Anna Karenina, the movie based on the novel by Leo Tolstoy.

It is done as if everything took place at a theatre stage, with changing scenery and change of outfits being done "behind the scene", and this is brought to its extreme in the beginning of the movie, making it difficult to get through the first half hour of the movie without turning off the TV. I actually had to see the movie in two sittings, 'cause I grew tired of it after an hour. However, while the first part was confusing and a bit tiring to watch, the second half turned out to be really to my liking. That's not to say it didn't grow even more confusing.

If you've managed to miss what the story is about: Anna Karenina is a married woman in Russia during the 1800s. During a trip to Moscow she meets Vronsky, a cavalry officer who falls in love with her. She is fighting her feelings for him (for about half the movíe) but they eventually become lovers. The story is about love and fidelity, about how one can do anything for the person that they love. Not only between Vronsky and Anna, but also between many other characters in the story. It takes a rather dramatic turn when Anna finds out she is expecting Vronsky's child, and from there it feels as if there is nothing but a downward spiral.

I think Keira Knightley fits in the role of Anna, and Jude Law does a terrific job as her husband, Count Alexei Karenin. However, I am very torn in my feelings towards Matthew Macfadyen as Stiva, Anna's brother. He does a great job portraying the character, but I just can't get it out of my head that he is our beloved Mr Darcy with a ridiculous mustache. The rest of the cast also does a very good job (great job casting director!), and my only problem is that it is soooo obvious that Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Vronsky) is not a natural blond.. It just looks wrong.

I might have not cared too much for the film (which gets a 2/5 from me, I think), but it made me want to read the novel. I think the story is good, the movie adaption is just very confusing, and I'm hoping the book will bring some clarity.

xoxo
Frida