Anna Karenina

This weekend, I saw the film Anna Karenina at Cinemopolis. There have been numerous adaptations of the classic novel and I was eager to see how director Joe Wright's would differ from others. The novel Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy is one of my favorite novels - everything about it from the romance, to the social commentary, and to the psychological thrill has been one of the most emotionally gripping, though somewhat convoluted books I've ever put the time into reading. I was very excited to see how Wright would break up the rather lengthy novel and how he would interpret it. I ended up being pleasantly surprised. The entire film is set as though it is "staged" in a theater - almost like an Opera. This seemed fitting to me as the novel is very melodramatic. Visually, the film is a wonder. Everything is so crafted, and seems to flow as though it is one fluid movement. Of course, the story of Anna Karenina is one we've heard before on several different levels - scandalous women who become outcasts in their society's structures, an adulterous wife, and an entangling love triangle. In that sense, Anna Karenina may seem somewhat tired to some people, but I thought that Wright did a good job of portraying the depth and emotions of the characters in order to set it apart.