Anna Karenina--Where the F**K am I?

"Forgive me"
I do not own the copyright for this image

            I would give this film a six out of ten. This film is all about chaos and trying to wrap the audience’s head around setting, storyline and symbolism. Originally a novel by Leo Tolstoy and made into a screenplay by Tom Stoppard and directed by Joe Wright displays the tragic story of Anna Karenina. Anna (Knightley) is married to Alexi Karenin (Jude Law) a statesman and they have a son together. She a socialite of St. Petersburg but rushes to Moscow on a train to save her brother’s marriage (he was caught cheating) at the playhouse he owns and tries to tell his wife Dolly (Kelly Macdonald) to forgive her brother, which she does but not without letting Anna reflect on her own marriage. Most likely a not very happy one, she seems to be the more involved and lavish trophy wife while Karenin, a Russian statesman is quiet even with his demands, and a man of power and of God. Anna always wears dark colors around her husband, dark blues and reds. She shows a more reserved side being a statesman’s wife. Also their home is full of dark furniture and dark colored walls, even his statesmen outfit was black. He holds the duty of husband and wife to be sacred so when Anna’s scandal comes to life we see a quiet demanding side of Karenin that we as an audience know we don’t want to mess with him.

Setting wise, we start off in a playhouse (which belongs to Anna’s brother, Oblonsky played by Matthew Macfayden). As we zoom in on the stage, which states it is ‘Imperial Russia 1874’ we are then caught in the whirlwind of play to movie to play to movie then play then finally to movie where Anna says she must leave to Moscow to visit her brother. At first the setting seems intriguing but then it gets rather lost. You go in a circle where the work place and workers becomes a restaurant and waiters and it takes you out of the moment. If it was a play made into a movie I could appreciate the compliments of trying to make it look like one but it was a novel, therefore I found the changes in scenery and sets distracting. Also, sometimes the scenes would change like a normal movie then back into a play like set change, which made me go ‘what the f…where am I?’  There are certain more symbolic moments where it turns from play to movie to play like the horseracing and the train scenes. However, one of the most stunning moments on screen was the dance of the Count Vronsky (Aaron Johnson) and Anna.

Symbolically, she is dressed all in black and the Count in all white. To me is screamed, he will be the beginning of her end. They immediately take to the floor where at first all the dancers freeze as they gracefully waltz by, then the dancers disappear and the world is only of Anna and the Count. It is then we know Anna’s fate is sealed and the rest of the movie is going to be a chaotic dance between Anna and the Count and the world around them they wish to ignore. With the Count (who is always seen in white or white and pale blue) she is always wearing white as well, as if she is pure and new again with this new love. It is only at the end where she is caught between the world of her husband and her love the Count she wears red, for she will commit the ultimate sacrifice of her love.  The symbolism of the train is rather strong too. On trains does Anna go between Moscow and St. Petersburg, from one love/life to another and ultimately becomes her demise.

Besides Anna Karenina’s storyline we have one with Konstatin Dimitrivich Levin (Dornhnall Gleeson) and Kitty Shcherbatsky (Alicia Vikander) who at first start off on a bad note, when Kitty rejects his wedding offer because she secretly loves the Count. I didn’t care much for this storyline but the end through a rather touching scene of using children’s spelling blocks the characters rekindle the flame that was dying and their storyline of love flourishes and blooms, while Anna’s storyline slowly spirals out of control. Thankfully with that one couple, even though it takes away from the major characters and storyline (hello, the movie is called Anna Karenina for a reason) it gave the audience something and someone to root for when Anna’s love life was beyond repair.

Overall, the acting was superb. Jude Law is barely recognizable as Alexi Karenin with how silent but deadly his character could be. Keira Knightley as Anna was very well done; she plays the part of a slowly detraining woman very well and knows how to captivate the audience in her life and struggles. The rest of the cast wasn’t all too memberable for me, besides Anna’s brother who clearly was a sarcastic, comedic relief of the story in a way. The storylines were intricate and very well developed and I never was lost, which is a plus for such a heavy loaded cast such as this one. Setting, I did enjoy the ornate and elaborate scenes of the playhouse, opera, home of Anna and Alexi and the home of Anna and the Count, the dance hall, trains and the meadows but starting off the movie as a play was confusing and jutting back to the ‘play within a movie’ style was distracting and didn’t strike me as intriguing.