Anna Karenina: Anna and Vronsky meet

Part two of the Anna Karenina series! I'm very excited about this because I've been able to find almost all the major versions online—and I felt that all of them did a pretty good job of depicting this scene! Sadly, the 1948 version was blocked by YouTube, so it isn't included here :( As usual, turn on captions for subtitles (I've translated the Russian versions into English) and my commentary. The relevant passage from the book will be posted in the comments. I hope you enjoy the comparison!

0:00-0:12 Intro
0:12-2:14 Anna Karenina (1935) with Greta Garbo and Fredric March
2:14-5:36 Anna Karenina (1967) with Tatyana Samoylova and Vasily Lanovoy
5:36-10:47 Anna Karenina (1977) with Nicola Paget and Stuart Wilson
10:47-13:28 Anna Karenina (1997) with Sophie Marceau and Sean Bean
13:28-15:11 Anna Karenina (2012) with Keira Knightley and Aaron-Taylor Johnson
15:11-16:14 Anna Karenina (2013) with Vittoria Puccini and Santiago Cabrera
16:14-20:51 Anna Karenina (2017) with Elizaveta Boyarskaya and Maksim Matveyev
20:51-21:00 Outro

Also, I added a disclaimer in the video; I edited out the accident that occurs right after Anna and Vronsky meet at the station. This is mostly because the accident is so gory in the 2012 version that I didn't feel comfortable including it in the compilation, and once I had taken it out of the 2012 version, I thought I might as well cut it out of all the others, for consistency's sake. Frustratingly, the accident isn't upsetting or gory in any of the other versions, but I feel that it's better this way. Apologies about this and thank you for understanding.

Lastly, since there's more dialogue in these scenes, there isn't as much space for me to put any commentary. So just in case you're curious, here are some of my thoughts about the various versions.

1935 — The cinema purists are probably going to hate me for this, but I actually found this version very awkward. Fredric March looks like a bandleader and Greta Garbo looks far too mannish to be compelling as the feminine Anna. Also, it feels very of its time, something that I dislike in period dramas. Countess Vronskaya, for example, is reduced to a comic, bumbling old lady, when in the book, she's a complex, interesting, and almost sinister figure, serving to highlight Vronsky's lack of familial love. This one just wasn't for me.

1967 — YURI YAKOVLEV AS OBLONSKY!! Almost too good to be true. Tatyana Samoylova is not my favorite Anna, but there's no denying that she gives a great performance. And Vasily Lanovoy definitely has that puppy-dog look that Tolstoy is so fond of describing. I like the costumes, though they're a little plain. All in all I think this version is very faithful to the book and very enjoyable to watch.

1977 — I absolutely hate this version. I've seen the whole first episode but just could not bring myself to watch any more. It is faithful to the book, but the cinematography is God-awful and I LOATHE Stuart Wilson as Vronsky. He looks okay with the cap on, but with the cap off... it's not pretty. Nicola Paget is tolerable as Anna (but not handsome enough to tempt me... no, just kidding, she's very beautiful!) but I really don't like how they portrayed Countess Vronskaya. Also, the butchering of the Russian names is painful ('Countess Vronsky'...). Just not my cup of tea.

1997 — I've said it before and I will absolutely say it again: Sophie Marceau IS Anna Karenina for me. She is radiant like Vivien Leigh, and has a delicate grace. Sean Bean is a passable Vronsky, albeit a little awkward, and I think the actress who portrays Countess Vronskaya is well cast. And the cinematography and costumes are so, so lovely.

2012 — It's a known fact that I dislike the 2012 version. However, as I was editing it this time, I tried to see it as a comedy, and that helped me to enjoy it a bit more. Keira Knightley is possibly my least favorite Anna, and Matthew MacFadyen is ridiculous as Stiva, but Olivia Williams is amazing as Countess Vronskaya and Aaron Taylor-Johnson is quite a good Vronsky (he's very vapid and his face is made up to look very 1870s). The uniforms suck, but oh well, c'est la vie, apparently.

2013 — This version is personally not my favorite (the costumes feel much more 2013 than 1878 to me), BUT Santiago Cabrera and Vittoria Puccini are the best-looking Vronsky and Anna. Points for that!

2017 — I have mixed feelings about this one. On the one hand, the cinematography is amazing, and Maksim Matveyev is a wonderful Vronsky. On the other hand, I don't like Elizaveta Boyarskaya as Anna. The costumes are pretty, though (the uniforms especially), and the acting is decent. That first shot of Vronsky at the station in the sun is glorious; you really can't get much better than that. But Elizaveta Boyarskaya... I don't know, her Anna just isn't my cup of tea.

Made in September of 2022 :)

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