Simply A Masterpiece

Memorable, crazy movie

Just perfect...

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Previous to seeing this, the best version was Greta Garbo's with Vivien Leigh's close behind, while the Joe Wright-directed adapted fared least. Tolstoy's Anna Karenina is one of the greats of all Russian literature, and while this 1967 Russian version is not quite perfect and not for all tastes it does a great job with the story and gets closer than most of the other adaptations in capturing the detail and the spirit of the work, rather than just being the basic details in Cliff Notes version.Some of the editing is a little abrupt in places and Anna and Vronsky seemed to fall in love too quickly, as if there was intended to be a few scenes in the film explaining Vronsky's infatuation that was cut out when it shouldn't have been. The print that the film comes in on the DVD is rather questionable, the constant colour shifts, the fading in and out, the washed out look and compression indicating a print that was badly damaged in the transfer.Anna Karenina (1967) is, generally, visually well-made. The film contains some really striking cinematography, especially in the wonderfully delirious horse race scene and the tracking shots that allows one to admire all those splendid rooms and interiors in all their glory, haunting use of colour and 1860s Russia is evoked brilliantly in the truly sumptuous period detail. Rodion Shchedrin's music score is not for all tastes admittedly (with a few of the more dissonant parts a touch shrill), but this viewer found it beautiful and effectively chilling, the horse race and ballroom scenes being particularly well-scored.The script is very literate and remarkably nuanced, capturing the spirit of Tolstoy's prose better than the other filmed versions. In terms of faithfulness, there could have been more with Anna and Vronsky's infatuation and descent into love, Levin is present but we don't get a sense of why he is so important a character and Levin and Kitty's subplot deserved better than being mentioned briefly. Other than those things though, this film is one of the more faithful, in detail and spirit, treatments of the book and despite the somewhat short length it has more depth than most of the other adaptations. There are some unforgettable scenes here, the horse race certainly is one but one cannot mention the very romantic ballroom scene, the scene in the theatre and the heart-wrenching suicide scene. The characters are still interesting, and the important parts of the story covered well, not just being a genuinely poignant love story but also a tense and unbearably tragic social drama too (one of the few Anna Karenina adaptations to achieve that balance).The performances are uniformly good, with Tatyana Samoylova making for a very heartfelt Anna and bringing many nuances to the part in a way that was achieved by Garbo and not quite as much by the others. Vasily Lanovoy is a dashing Vronsky, but manages to bring depth to him, instead of being just a handsome heroic figure he is pretty un-heroic and unsympathetic actually. And there has unlikely been a more haunting Karenin on film than that of Nikolai Gritsenko. Yuri Yakovlev is amusing as Stiva, and Maya Plisetskaya (one of the greatest ballerinas of her day and of all time and wife of the film's composer Rodion Shchedrin) is a terrific Betsy.In conclusion, imperfect but very good film, and compares extremely favourably with the rest of the Anna Karenina adaptations. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Leave it to Tolstoy's people to get it right !!! Of the three versions I have now seen,and will not see any others till I read the novel,this is by far the best.It plays like a Shakespearian tragedy,but in this case its Imperial Russia instead of England.Ah,all unknown Russians to me but they all fit so very well and truly make the triangle believable.Old rich and powerful husband,middle aged beautiful wife,we would today call a MILF, and dashing young military officer.Bad news for love but great for us.Released in 1967 and running 145 minutes,it may be hard to find this film,in fact,since it was made during our cold war,I don't even remember it from back in the day. Unlike the other versions,1935 and 2012,this one does more then lip service to the other characters.Anna's cheating brother,his wife and younger sister,of which Anna stole the dashing young officer from,and later she fears is trying to steal her now husband. All wounded love affairs that perhaps are metaphors for the brutal future ahead,Set in 1876 they are but under 40 years from the end of Imperial Russia. Anyhow,I now see the selfishness of Anna,but also the child in her.Married to a much older man at 18,she never lived and now is experiencing what men call a midlife crises.The real victim here is her honorable husband that she now hates because he's so perfect.But he did "steal from the cradle"and with all the religious references,for me,he reaped what he sowed.The dashing young officer ?? Hot headed at both ends due to his flaming youth. The only sound couple was the young sister in law,but she suffered her own loss lover and "settled"on a man that she later learned to love,and he??Well he suffered doubt and the pain of rejection but his perseverance finally paid off.Anna's brother and his wife,sadly making the best of a bad situation as most do.Sad,but also sadly true to most of us.I can see the attraction to this story despite it being so aristocratic.Look for it if doomed love is your thing.

Anna Karenina by Leon Tolstoy is the best novel I have ever read. I have seen a few movies based on it, but the best one on my opinion is that old version with Samoilova, Lanovoy, Vertinskaya and of course the amazing Maya Plissetskaya. What a wonderful cast! For me, Samoilova is the closest physically to Anna's character and for that, I can forgive the gossips about the influence of her father in obtaining this role. The movie is great and until now, 2005, nobody can beat it. Even taking into account the dark ages when this movie was done, it it regretful that it is not known enough throughout the world. I just keep hoping that it will be screened again at least on TV.

Alexander Zarkhy's "Anna Karenina" is the best Karenina in the world. May be it's even better then Leo Tolstoy's romance :)) I've seen a lot of films on this romance, but no one of them, IMHO, compares to this one.Anyway, Tatyana Samoylova is great actress, and Anna's meeting with her son Serezha is one of the most touching and heartbreaking cinema episode I've ever seen.Tatyana Evgenyevna, ya ochen' Vas lublu :))