Voyna i mir (1967)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Sergei Bondarchuk

Writers:

Sergei Bondarchuk (writer)
Vasili Solovyov (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

28 April 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Romance | War

Plot:

War and Peace (1968) is an eight-hour epic film based on the eponymous book by Leo Tolstoy. Two main story-lines are complex and intertwined...

Plot Keywords:

Russia | Love | Peace | Battle | Marriage

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Sergei Bondarchuk	...	Pierre Bezukhov
Lyudmila Savelyeva	...	Natasha Rostova
Vyacheslav Tikhonov	...	Prince Andrei Bolkonsky
Boris Zakhava	...	Field Marshal Kutuzov
Anatoli Ktorov	...	Prince Nikolai Andreevich Bolkonsky
Anastasiya Vertinskaya	...	Pricess Lisa Bolkonskaya
Antonina Shuranova	...	Princess Maria Bolkonskaya
Oleg Tabakov	...	Nikolai Rostov
Viktor Stanitsyn	...	Ilya Andreyevich Rostov
Irina Skobtseva	...	Hélène Bezukhova
Boris Smirnov	...	Prince Vasili Kuragin
Vasili Lanovoy	...	Anatol Kuragin
Kira Golovko	...	Countess Rostova
Irina Gubanova	...	Sonia Rostova
Aleksandr Borisov	...	Uncle Rostov
Oleg Yefremov	...	Dolokhov
Giuli Chokhonelidze	...	Prince Bagration
Vladislav Strzhelchik	...	Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte
Angelina Stepanova	...	Anna Pavlovna Sherer (as A. Stepanova)
Nikolai Trofimov	...	Tushin
Jean-Claude Ballard	...	Rambal
Nikolai Rybnikov	...	Denisov
Eduard Martsevich	...	Boris Drubetskoi
Nikolai Tolkachyov	...	Count Bezukhov (as N. Tolkachyov)
Yelena Tyapkina	...	Maria Dmitrevna Akhrosimova
Sergei Yermilov	...	Petya Rostov (as S. Yermilov)
Nonna Mordyukova	...	Anisya Fyodorovna
Mikhail Khrabrov	...	Platon Karataev
V. Badayev	...	Regimental Commander
Pyotr Savin	...	Timoshin
Semyon Svashenko	...	Old Russian Soldier
Viktor Murganov	...	Tsar Alexander I
Sergei Nikonenko	...	Russian Officer
Daniil Netrebin	...	Russian Soldier
Aleksei Glazyrin	...	Logistics Commander
Nikolai Khryashchikov	...	Russian Soldier
Vladimir Prikhodko	...	Russian Soldier
D. Sivakov	...	Russian Soldier
N. Sorokin	...	Russian Soldier
A. Boldyrev	...	Russian Soldier
Anatoli Degtyar	...	Russian Soldier
Aleksei Bakhar	...	Russian Soldier
Ivan Zhevago	...	Russian Soldier
Galina Kravchenko	...	Maria Lvovna Karagina
Nikolai Grinko	...	Desale
Stanislav Chekan	...	Tikhon Cherbaty (as S. Chekan)
V. Sofronov	...	Emperor Franz II
Janis Grantins	...	Wolzogen
Lev Polyakov	...	Lauriston
Dzhemma Firsova	...	Katish Mamontova
Klavdiya Polovikova	...	Princess Anna Drubetskaya
Helmut Zommer	...	Count von Benningsen (as G. Zommer)
Ervin Knausmyuller	...	Gen. Franz von Weyrother (as E. Knausmyuller)
Andrei Smirnov	...	Staff Officer
D. Eizental	...	Clausewitz
Aleksandr Smirnov	...	Officer Kozlovsky
Nikolai Bubnov	...	Gen. Mack (as N. Bubnov)
Georgi Millyar	...	Morel (as Yu. Millar)
Boris Molchanov	...	Davout (as B. Molchanov)
Lyudmila Davydova	...	Pricess Bezukhova
Andrei Syomin	...	Nikolushka Bolkonsky
Yuri Leonidov	...	Nesvitsky
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
N. Afrikyants
V. Alakhverdova
Rodion Aleksandrov
Igor Alekseyev
N. Aparin
Iya Arepina	...	Dame
N. Avetisova
Aleksandr Barushnoy		(as A. Barushnoy)
B. Batashov
A. Begak
D. Begak
Mikhail Bocharov	...	Craftsman
Larisa Borisenko		(as L. Borisenko)
Yuri Chekulayev	...	Kesvitsky
R. Chumak
Yu. Chyuveleva
Yu. Dioshi
M. Dobrovolskaya
Z. Dvizhkova
G. Edzhubov
Aleksandr Fadeyev		(as A. Fadeyev)
N. Fogel
V. Fromgoldt
Yuri Grigoryev
Aleksandr Gruzinsky
V. Islavin
Mariya Kapnist	...	Dame
T. Kazankova
B. Khovanskaya
A. Kin
Pyotr Kiryutkin
Nikolai Kodin
I. Kolin
N. Kollen
Svetlana Konovalova	...	Cameo
V. Kosarikhin
Lyudmila Kramarevskaya
Yu. Kryuchkov
G. Kurovsky
Nikolai Kutuzov
Labina		(as I. Labina)
Vladimir Lapin
Aleksandr Lebedev
Nikolai Lebedev
Vladimir Levchenko
Vladimir Likhachyov
V. Lutsekovich
Ye. Lyutsau
Tatyana Makhova		(as T. Makhova)
S. Makovskaya
Vladimir Mashchenko
V. Maslatsov
V. Matisen
V. Matov
O. Mikhajlova
G. Mityakov
A. Mombelli
Leonid Nedovich		(as L. Nedovich)
Korio Odkhava
Yu. Ovsyannikov
K. Petrova-Sokovskaya
Veronika Polonskaya
A. Ponomarenko
Angel Rebane
V. Renin
Norman Rose	...	English Narrator
Yu. Rossinol
Georgi Rybakov
Vladimir Seleznyov
A. Sezemann
Ye. Shalamov
Georgi Shapovalov
Galina Shostko
N. Sibeikin
Aleksei Smirnov	...	Officer
Zoya Smirnova-Nemirovich		(as Z. Smirnova-Nemirovich)
Vladimir Smirnov
Nikolai Smorchkov
Ivan Solovyov
Ye. Stroyeva		(as Stroyeva)
Georgi Svetlani
Ivan Turchenkov
S. Uspenskaya
R. Vagina
Elena Vanke
I. Vasilenko
Yu. Vetrov
L. Vidavsky
M. Vorobyov
Apollon Yachnitsky
Ye. Yelina
V. Yermilova
Z. Zaks
Gennadi Ivanov	...	(uncredited)
Boris Khmelnitsky	...	Cameo (uncredited)
Nikita Mikhalkov	...	cameo (uncredited)
Levon Sharafyan	...	Russian soldier in a war scene (uncredited)

Directed by
Sergei Bondarchuk

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Sergei Bondarchuk		writer
Vasili Solovyov		writer
Leo Tolstoy		novel (as Lev Tolstoy)

Original Music by
Vyacheslav Ovchinnikov

Cinematography by
Yu-Lan Chen		(as Iolanda Chen)
Anatoli Petritsky
Aleksandr Shelenkov

Film Editing by
Tatyana Likhachyova

Production Design by
Mikhail Bogdanov
Aleksandr Dikhtyar
Said Menyalshchikov
Gennadi Myasnikov

Set Decoration by
Georgi Koshelev		(as G. Koshelyov)
V. Uvarov

Costume Design by
Vladimir Burmeister
Nadezhda Buzina
Mikhail Chikovani		(as M. Chikovani)
V. Vavra

Makeup Department
Mikhail Chikiryov	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Vladimir Dostal	....	second unit director

Music Department
Vyacheslav Ovchinnikov	....	conductor

Production Companies

• Mosfilm

Distributors

• Continental Distributing (1968) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1972) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Divisa Home Video (2005) (Spain) (DVD)
• Empresa Hispanoamericana de Video (EHV) (19??) (Argentina) (VHS)
• General Video (2005) (Italy) (DVD) (uncut)
• Kultur International Films (USA) (DVD)
• Kultur International Films (USA) (VHS)
• Seagull Films (2007-2008) (USA) (all media)
• Sovexportfilm (19??) (Argentina) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Kinostudiya "Mosfilm"  production unit

Also Known As:

Война и мир (Soviet Union: Russian title)
War and Peace (USA)
Guerra e Paz (Brazil) [pt]
Harp ve sulh (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Krieg und Frieden (West Germany) [de]
Krig och fred (Sweden) [sv]
La guerra y la paz (Argentina) [es]
Natascia - L'incendio di Mosca (Italy) (recut version) [it]

Runtime:

UK:401 min (video version) | USA:414 min (4 parts) | Soviet Union:427 min | Italy:263 min (2 parts) | Argentina:453 min (4 parts)

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

Russian | German | French

Color:

Color (Sovcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Mono (RCA Sound System) (35 mm prints) | Dolby Digital (Restored version)

Certification:

Australia:G | Argentina:Atp | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Arkhangelskoe, Moscow, Russia

Company:

Mosfilm

Trivia:

The US' première was held at the DeMille Theater, Seventh Avenue and 47th Street, New York. The screening for this seven-hour epic was shown in two parts, and the cost of a ticket was a staggering $7.50, for the best seats.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Towards the end of the Battle of Borodino sequence (Part III - 1812), there are a few seconds where the shadow of the camera can be seen clearly. This is when the camera is moving along a trench, and a cannon falls nearby it.

Quotes:

Narrator: A moral victory which compels the enemy to recognize the moral superiority of his opponent and his own impotence was won by the Russians at Borodino. The direct consequence of the Battle of Borodino was Napoleon's flight from Moscow, the destruction of the invading army of 500,000 men, and the destruction of Napoleonic France, on which was laid for the first time, at Borodino, the hand of an opponent stronger in spirit!

Movie Connections:

Edited from Voyna i mir II: Natasha Rostova (1966)

Soundtrack:

Prologue

Collossus

War and Peace, to many, is synonymous with a colossus of a book. The ultimate door-stopper. It is among the most complex and epic works of literature ever written. In 19th century Moscow and St-Petersburg, youths grow, make their mistakes… hearts are bound and then broken… and then the great war against Napoleon tears all these lives apart. Leo Tolstoy created intimate portrayals, compelling characters and epic action, telling the story of an entire country and an entire era effortlessly and elegantly. So if books are often difficult to adapt, this one should be completely impossible (witness the shallow King Vidor adaptation).

This film is the stuff of legends. Reportedly one of the most expensive productions ever created, Sergei Bondarchuk's "War and Peace" benefited from the Red Army's involvement and the Soviet Government's financing, and clocks in at about 7 hours. It is as faithful to its source as could be imaginable. In fact, it almost transcends its source.

Admirably cast (the angelic Liudmila Savelieva is ideal as Natasha Rostova and the director was unbelievably wise in casting himself as Pierre Besukhov), elegantly transcribed into a witty screenplay and enacted with class and conviction by its immense cast, "War and Peace" is not just a good adaptation. Its merits as a film are colossal. The cinematography defies any other film, particularly during the battle scenes: rejecting the painterly staticism of Barry Lyndon and the simple charging and distant shots of older films, the violence in Sergei Bondarchuk's epic mirrors that of Kingdom of Heaven (2005!!!), as the camera flies over a never-ending battlefield at full speed, glides aver frantic canons and divisions, crashes into mêlées and follows haunting stampedes of riderless horsemen (a potent metaphor for how the great leaders of the time lost all control over the conflict's proportions). All this without a pixel of CGI in sight (and all the better for it as it presents shots that the eye would simply refuse to believe if generated by a computer) The epic battle of before the sack of Moscow is so colossal and devastating, that even Napoleon looks confused at how to feel before the ocean of corpses sprawled before him. This is the greatest display of cinematic warfare ever committed to the screen. That the calmer scenes manage to sustain that level of excellence is a testament to how grandiose an effort this film is. The display of repressed emotions and overt tenderness are heart-breaking and many episodic scenes stand out magnificently, such as the wolf hunt, the opening balls (easily rivaling anything in "Il Gattopardo") and the duel. This is a film to which the fantastic "Dr Zhivago" feels like a small appetizer… Bondarchuk's "War and Peace" reaches beyond the book and in doing so successfully is one of the greatest motion pictures of all time. It is cinematic poetry and entertainment of the highest order. And to sum things up in an overused – but never more appropriate than here – they'll never make'em like this again.