IMDb > Anna Karenina (1935)
Anna Karenina
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Anna Karenina (1935) More at IMDbPro »

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Anna Karenina (1935) -- Trailerfan.com - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
7.2/10   1,681 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Clarence Brown
Writers:
S.N. Behrman (dialogue adaptation)
Clemence Dane (writer)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Anna Karenina on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
25 December 1935 (Italy) more
Genre:
Drama | Romance more
Plot:
The married Anna Karenina falls in love with Count Vronsky despite her husband's refusal to grant a divorce, and both must contend with the social repercussions. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
2 wins more
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
TV Review: ABC's 'Modern Family'
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tMF Fast Forward: Finally, we'll get to see The Last Station!
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User Comments:
Sexist Old Mother Russia more (22 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

Runtime:
95 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Certification:
UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (re-rating) (1990) | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | New Zealand:PG | Sweden:11 (re-release) | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved
Filming Locations:
California, USA more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Aware that her co-star Fredric March was notorious for seducing his leading ladies, Greta Garbo reportedly wore garlic under her clothes and purposely had bad breath in order to stave off his advances. more
Goofs:
Crew or equipment visible: Shadows of equipment are visible in the scene where Karenin confronts Anna. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Only Love (1998) (TV) more

FAQ

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8 out of 12 people found the following comment useful.
Sexist Old Mother Russia, 18 July 2006
9/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

I'm willing to bet that Anna Karenina was something that Greta Garbo agreed to remake because she thought she might have her same leading man again. She had done Tolstoy's troubled countess in an acclaimed silent version with John Gilbert. When Gilbert's career wouldn't rebound after Queen Christina the year before, Garbo took on Fredric March as a second choice.

It's not a bad choice, March makes a very good love 'em and leave 'em Count Vronsky. The book is nicely edited down to an acceptable movie length although it surely is better suited for a mini-series. But true to the Production Code and March's own image, he doesn't leave Anna for another woman and MGM tacks on a cop out scene at the very end where he expresses his profound regrets over the whole business.

Greta Garbo is trapped in a marriage to a career minded Basil Rathbone and is bored with the lack of romance. Along comes the dashing Count Fredric March and she leaves husband and child Freddie Bartholomew.

The whole point here is the difference in what happens. Tolstoy recognized full well the sexist frame his society operated under, but he thought it was a good thing. Women ought to know their place was his idea.

When Garbo runs off to Italy with March and then is seen publicly with him in St. Petersburg, she is shunned from polite society. March can be shed of her and his return back to his regiment is welcomed, Garbo has nowhere to go and her fate is inevitable.

Garbo captures the air of tragedy surrounding poor Anna so well, you're in tears practically the whole film. You KNOW what her fate must be yet you still watch her entranced. No wonder Anna Karenina is such an acclaimed role for her, both silent and sound versions.

Basil Rathbone is a proud member of the sexist society of Old Russia, yet his performance is also good in that you both feel his pain and hate him for not having an ounce of forgiveness for her.

Of the supporting cast, my favorite is Reginald Owen who is Garbo's brother. He's cheating on his wife with anyone in sight and then in the end HE lectures Garbo on what her duties are.

No wonder there were so many Bolshevik women.

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