Anna Karénina (1935)

 Second viewing; previously viewed on September 10, 2000.

In 19th century Russia, a married woman with a young son meets an officer and starts an affair with him. Since her husband will not give her a divorce, she faces a difficult decision.

The novel -- or its plot anyway -- is so well-known that it is perhaps futile to dwell on it; this concise adaptation is very well-filmed -- the ball sequence is a particularly remarkable highlight, well filmed and well staged. One curious aspect is that with every passing day this story becomes more dated, and yet interest from audiences lingers on, as successive adaptations attest to.

Rating: 64 (unchanged)