Customer Reviews

Anastasia

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I was so disappointed when I viewed the DVD. The color was restored and the results are outstanding. The audio is terrible! I was constantly adjusting the volume. On balance, if you own the VHS version hang onto it. The extras are what caused me to give the DVD a second star. They're well done and include Biography's Anastasia... a good historical piece.

Great Movie - Horrible DVD! I'm rating this one star because the DVD quality is so bad. For the first time, I'm in the process of returning an item to Amazon. This makes me sad because I love this film and wanted to add this to my growing collection of classic films in my DVD Library. The sound is not always in synch and the volume goes up and down. The sound is absolutely terrible!

The DVD versionÕs special features of this classic film is jammed pack with historical information, not only about early 20th century Russian aristocracy, but also about the Ôbehind the scenesÕ making of this wonderful movie. For this humble DVD collector, I prefer as much expert commentary as can possibly fit into the format. Does anyone know more about the industry than Sylvia Stoddard? I donÕt think so.

I bought this DVD when it came out 2 months ago when it first came out. And I love this movie more than Any other movie that Ingrid Bergman played in. I especially liked it because they had an interview with Hellen Hayes (The Grandmother) son James MacArthur. I have been corresponding with him and i just really liked that.

Here Is A brief Description:

Anastasie (Ingird Bergman) is a woman who has no clue about who she is and where she comes from, she then meets (Yul Brynner) who thinks that if he can train her to act like the Real Annastasia he can pass her off and get the huge reward for her return. Well when they get to St. petersburg they find out that The Arch Duchess (Hellen Hayes) has lost hope of ever finding her Annastasia and refuses to see Ingrid Bergman. Well she finally visits Ingrid Bergman and realizes that she really is her grand daughter. And it ends happily.

Great Movie. 5 Star Rating.

Let me start off by saying that I find Ingrid Bergman a goddess among actresses, and Yul Brynner is always interesting to watch. But I discovered to my surprise (and disappointment) that Bergman and Brynner had very little chemistry...I have always found the story of Anastasia to be extremely fascinating, and this production was fine in many details, but when all was said and done, "Anastasia" was remarkably overdone and underwhelming because of some very shallow writing and the miscasting of the two stars.

Helen Hayes easily stole the movie as Anastasia's grandmother. She had the best lines.

A critical scene: When Anastasia appeals to her grandmother to open her eyes to the truth, the words seem artificial. I saw the grandmother, an elderly woman who has lost everything, as the victim and never Anastasia. There is no doubt that Bergman poored her heart into the scene, but her words rang false every time she tried to convince Hayes she was her niece. And even after Anastasia's acceptance by her grandmother, the ending seems artificial and rushed, as if the director ran out of patience and yelled 'cut' prematurely.

Brynner always seems to be more interested in himself than Anastasia or his friends. And when he DOES finally show a little compassion when he asks for a meeting with Hayes near the end, it is too little too late because we still don't see what Anastasia would see in this selfish man who has not once been nice to her in the whole time he has known her (maybe he was nice to her at one point, but that ended up on the cutting room floor).

And we are to believe that the grandmother is okay with this? That Anastasia loves him? That this man and Anastasia will live happily ever after? Wrong.

Some of you might be suggesting right about now that I should get a life, that "Anastasia" is a classic. It's true. It is a classic. And Bergman never looked more beautiful, and Brynner more dashing.

A bigger annoyance was the DVD's poor restoration. The audio quality is clearly out of synch with the rest of the movie. A better effort should have been done by all.

I have waited forever for the release of this magnificent movie. Amazing performances by Bergman, Brynner, Hayes (incredible) and Hunt. Unfortunately, there was a glitch in the brand new, out of the box DVD AND, the sound in the middle of the film was out of synch. How Fox could have let this go is a total mystery to me. I am very upset about it considering the amount of money that must have gone into the restoration. DVDs' are becoming worse all the time with quality slipping down the drain. Worth seeing and seeing again if Fox could fix their problems. Unfortunately I must return it.

The 1956 version of "Anastasia" is the rapturous fairytale that attempts to answer the question surrounding the mystery of what became of the youngest daughter belonging to Tsar Nicholas II, the last Imperial ruler of Russia. Arthur Lawrence happily distances his screenplay from anything even remotely associated with the tragic historical record to focus instead on a troupe of militant loyalist exiles wallowing in their pasts in Paris. Ingrid Bergman stars as the mysterious woman with no past who is plucked from obscurity by con man, General Bounine (Yul Brynner). Bounine wants to get his hands on Anastasia's ten million dollar inheritance. Engaging two former masters from Russia's imperial court, the conniving Chernov (Akim Tamaroff) and the nervous Petrovan (Sasha Pitoeff) Bounine begins to educate his find in a crash course of social graces and royal protocol. However, somewhere between the lesson and the past, the protégé begins to recall places and people that she hasn't been taught about, leaving Bounine with more curiosity and questions than ever before. Can it be that the woman with no past is in fact the actual heir to the Russian throne? Helen Hayes costars as the impeccable Dowager Empress. Her initial reaction to Bounine is one of bitter disdain. But when the woman being groomed as Anastasia suddenly recalls for the Empress a memory that no one but she could have known, the Dowager's heart melts and she accepts the woman as her grand daughter. As a mere supporting player, Martita Hunt, as the Baroness Von Livenbaum, is a genuine scene stealer. This is a film of immense emotional undercurrents made all the more poignant by a stellar cast of performers.

Fox DVD has done a very nice job remastering this film for DVD. Previous editions on laserdisc and VHS had been plagued by orangy flesh tones and excessive amounts of film grain. This DVD corrects and properly balances the colors. Though at times flesh tones can appear a little on the pasty side, over all the color, black levels and fine detail are impeccably rendered. A slight amount of edge enhancement and some very minute aliasing crops up in a few scenes but nothing that will distract. The audio is a 4.0 remastering effort that brings back the early grandeur of Cinemascope stereophonic recording to its original glory.
Extras include a Biography Special on the real Anastasia, a Movie-tones trailer, a restoration comparison and the film's original theatrical trailer - plus an insightful audio commentary running throughout the film's presentation.
This is a handsomely mounted production that really lives up to its subject matter. What became of the real Anastasia remains secret to this day. The film, rather than offer closure, presents more questions than answers - a fitting end to one of the 20th century's most tragic and compelling vanishing acts.

This is a real classic. It has color, mystery, and romance It is a film that would probably appeal to anyone, who likes a good story. Ingrid Bergman and Yul Brynner make a very lovely and romantic couple.

The settings, scenery, costumes, and acting are all very wonderful. It was a well made and directed film, and has been loved through the years.

Yul Brynner plays a former Russian general who is looking for a young woman to impersonate Anastasia, the late Czar's daughter. He hopes to convince the Grand Duchess, the head of the royal family in exile, that she is the true hieress, and collect a large reward. He chooses Anna (Ingrid Bergman), recently released from a mental asylum and ready to commit suicide. He trains her in the royal ways, and they prepare for the important meeting with the Grand Duchess, played by Helen Hayes. Anna becomes fond of a Prince whom Anatasia once knew, but she is even more powerfully drawn to the General.

Ingrid Bergman played the helpless waif character in many films, and does so wonderfully. She is fragile and confused, and only wants to be loved. Helen Hayes is marvelous as the Grand Duchess, who likewise wants love. She is majestic as well as vulnerable, and the scene where she meets "Anastasia" is quite tender and touching. Yul Brynner's macho presence dominates the film, even when he's off-screen: The scene where we hear, but do not see, a drunken Annastasia flirting with a smoldering General is hot, hot, hot. The theme music is haunting and bittersweet, as is the story. Truth or fiction, it doesn't really matter. It's simply outstanding film making.

The acting is superb, but too often hurried. Scenes come without support from the previous scenes. Except for four characters, nothing is developed into something meaningful. The performance of Ingrid saves this movie from the "B" heap. The surprising ending is masterfully though vaguely achieved.
You all too much find yourself trying to understand who is doing what and why as situation after situation flashes by in a flurry of activity.
Brenner shows that he is stuck in the role of "The King and I", except here he is a former Russian general. Commanding the stage like a director in disguise, he orders everyone about like a true King would.
I found myself disappointed in the overall lack of substance to this movie, except for the role Ingrid played. She is given the most screen time.
This classic should have been given another half hour to play out, to develop character in the players. I would never watch it again, it is too insubstantial. This is one video that gets stored away, rather than kept in my collection. Nice, but where's the beef?