I watched this movie after having just read the novel again, because I was told that it was "very faithful." After seeing it, I have to agree that it was very faithful to the original novel, even if certain parts were breezed over or even eliminated in the movie version. I was especially happy to see Levin, who I consider to be the character with the most complexity (perhaps because, as the film points out - and perhaps a little too heavy-handedly - he was based on Tolstoy himself,) to be the narrator. But I found the treatment of Levin in particular to be completely breezed over. Little more than a footnote in this production, Levin's book - which was one of the strongest forces behind the creation of "Anna Karenina" - was eliminated. But overall, this is possibly the most visually stunning movie I've seen in some time. Having watched "Eyes Wide Shut" just the day before I drew amazing parallels in the cinematography. Make no mistake about it, this is a great movie for anyone seeking an introduction to Russian literature.
Review of Anna Karenina
