WAR AND PEACE Movie Review

1956 King Vidor

If truth in titling guidelines had been followed, this lumbering epic would have been called Peace and War. Most of the military side of the story takes place in the second half, and it seems slow to arrive. When the subject does turn to Napoleon's (Herbert Lom) disastrous invasion of Russia, however, the action becomes more impressive and interesting. But before the battle of Borodino can be fought and Moscow can burn, other matters must be settled. More to the point, who marries Natasha Rostov (Audrey Hepburn)?

Natasha has been friends with Pierre Bezukhov (Henry Fonda), whose “heart is pure and good,” forever, but after Pierre's father dies, he falls under the spell of the buxom Helene (Anita Ekberg) and marries her even though everybody knows that she's fooling around on him with Dolokhov (Helmut Dantine) and they fight a duel while Pierre's friend Prince Andrei (Mel Ferrer) is worried that his wife Lise (Milly Vitale) won't have a doctor when their baby is due because he (Pierre) will be off at the battle of Austerlitz and then when Lise does die, he's heartbroken and doesn't come around until he meets Natasha and she likes him too but his nasty old dad (Wilfrid Lawson) says they should wait a year before they get married and they do, but then Helene's creepy brother Anatole (Vittorio Gassman) gloms onto Natasha and she's swept off her feet until Pierre tries to straighten her out but by then it's too late because Natasha has told Prince Andrei that she doesn't love him anymore and he sends back all her letters and she's heartbroken and Pierre would step in but he's still married to Helene and all of that is just so unfair.

By that point, Tolstoy's novel has been reduced to a soap opera by seven writers (including an uncredited Irwin Shaw), but Audrey Hepburn is so fetching and Fonda is so earnest that the breathless folderol is more fun than it ought to be. The film picks up energy whenever Gen. Kutuzov (Oscar Homolka) appears on screen. As Napoleon's adversary, he is a realist who understands that he has to take the long view against an opponent who has a larger, more efficient force. The battle of Borodino is fairly well handled by second unit director Mario Soldati and directors of photography Jack Cardiff and Aldo Tonti. They focus on one part of the battle as observed by Pierre and make it seem real and explosive enough. Later, the filmmakers do good work with long shots of the invading and retreating French troops over Kutuzov's famous “scorched earth,” particularly the latter stages which, again, are seen through Pierre's eyes.

Though War and Peace is faithful to the larger historical events, its heart is really with the romantic side and so it's most successful as a period melodrama.

Cast: Audrey Hepburn (Natasha Rostov), Mel Ferrer (Prince Andrei Bolkonsky), Henry Fonda (Pierre Bezukhov), Anita Ekberg (Helene), Vittorio Gassman (Anatole), John Mills (Platon Karatsev), Oscar Homolka (Gen. Kutuzov), Herbert Lom (Napoleon), Helmut Dantine (Dolokhov), Tullio Carminati (Kuragine), Barry Jones (Count Rostov), Milly Vitale (Lise), Maria Ferrero (Mary Bolkonsky), Wilfred Lawson (Prince Bolkonsky), May Britt (Sonya), Jeremy Brett (Nicholas Rostov), Lea Seidl (Countess Rostov), Patrick Crean (Denisov), Sean Barrett (Petya Rostov), Richard Dawson; Written by: King Vidor, Bridget Boland, Mario Camerini, Ennio de Concini, Ivo Perilli, Irwin Shaw, Robert Westerby; Cinematography by: Jack Cardiff, Aldo Tonti; Music by: Nino Rota. Producer: Dino De Laurentiis, Paramount Pictures. Awards: Golden Globe Awards ‘57: Best Foreign Film; Nominations: Academy Awards ‘56: Best Color Cinematography, Best Costume Design (Color), Best Director (Vidor). Running Time: 208 minutes. Format: VHS, Beta, LV.