jamesrupert2014 Review of Nicholas and Alexandra

Nicholas and Alexandra (1971)

Well-made but overly-long and somewhat lackluster biopic

[7/10 · 13 April 2020]

The film follows the last years of the reign of Tsar Nicholas II from the birth of his son and heir, the Tsesarevich Alexei, to the execution of the Royal family by the Communists in 1918, during the Russian civil war. While epic in scale, with some opulent court scenes and nice wide-angle images of the Russian countryside, the film is slow-moving and not overly interesting. This may be due to the titular characters, while living in interesting times, themselves not being all that interesting. Nicholas (Michael Jayston) is portrayed as a weak leader who ignores his counsellors and refuses to recognise that changes are going to occur, with or without his approval, and Alexandra, the Tsarina (Janet Suzman) does little but fret about her hemophilic son. The actors playing the royal couple are very good (Jayston especially looks the part) as are the rest of the cast including Tom Baker (the soon to be 'Fourth Doctor') as the famously durable Rasputin, who is shown as a reluctant hedonist-holyman in whom the Tsarina has inordinate faith. The film is reputed to be reasonably historically accurate (the death of Stolypin is time-shifted and the portrayal of Rasputin's murder is inaccurate (and a bit silly and incongruous)). The film ends abruptly and some 'what happened to' epilogue would have been interesting although the actual events surrounding the last days of the Romanovs and the disposition of their bodies were unknown (or not as yet released by the Soviet government) at the time the film was made. The cinematography is quite good, as are the sets and costumes but the film is overlong (especially the 'third act', after the Nicholas abdicates) and music sometimes sounds more like something from a 1960's TV mystery than the score for an epic period-piece. Given that the tragic fate of the Romanovs is well known, the film might have benefited by spending more time on the tumult swirling around them. The film has its fans but I just didn't find it particularly interesting or engaging, despite the great cast, excellent production values, and fascinating historical context.