War & Peace is simply a triumph. I did try to read the book once, the word 'try' being operative, so I'm not considering it as an interpretation of the printed page. I've never been compelled to write a review for a TV series before, but as a piece of celluloid art this was spellbinding.
The performances were universally perfect, from the central characters to the more periphery. Paul Dano as Pierre Bezukhov gave us a wonderfully human portrayal of intelligence and humanism struggling against the barbarity of war and the debauchery of peace. Lily James was enchanting as Natasha Rostova, painting her journey from a carefree, inexperienced girl to a fallen woman in delicate colours. The scenes of her reunited with Andrei Bolkonsky (an excellent James Norton) were heart wrenching, as was the ending. I'm not sure a TV series has ever elicited tears from this viewer before, but this one certainly did during the final episode, and three times!
The other particularly emotional scene was between Marya Bolkonskaya (the lovely Jessie Buckley) and Nikolai Rostov (Jack Lowden).
Also brilliant were Jim Broadbent as the cantankerous Prince Bolkonsky and Adrian Edmondson as the affable Count Ilya Rostov, being the two bookends of the piece. Every performance was pitch perfect and I should now list every cast member with a superlative attached, but...
Of course, a great performance needs a great script as it's foundation stone. Andrew Davies had a string of wonderful adaptations to his name already (including Pride & Prejudice, 1995) and this one might just have topped the lot. Tom Harper, the director, has definitely given us his best work to date allowing the performances to shine yet also giving us spectacle and drama on a breathtaking scale. It will be interesting to see what he does next.
I cannot recommend this highly enough. If you haven't yet seen it, please don't miss it. You will be amply rewarded.
The performances were universally perfect, from the central characters to the more periphery. Paul Dano as Pierre Bezukhov gave us a wonderfully human portrayal of intelligence and humanism struggling against the barbarity of war and the debauchery of peace. Lily James was enchanting as Natasha Rostova, painting her journey from a carefree, inexperienced girl to a fallen woman in delicate colours. The scenes of her reunited with Andrei Bolkonsky (an excellent James Norton) were heart wrenching, as was the ending. I'm not sure a TV series has ever elicited tears from this viewer before, but this one certainly did during the final episode, and three times!
The other particularly emotional scene was between Marya Bolkonskaya (the lovely Jessie Buckley) and Nikolai Rostov (Jack Lowden).
Also brilliant were Jim Broadbent as the cantankerous Prince Bolkonsky and Adrian Edmondson as the affable Count Ilya Rostov, being the two bookends of the piece. Every performance was pitch perfect and I should now list every cast member with a superlative attached, but...
Of course, a great performance needs a great script as it's foundation stone. Andrew Davies had a string of wonderful adaptations to his name already (including Pride & Prejudice, 1995) and this one might just have topped the lot. Tom Harper, the director, has definitely given us his best work to date allowing the performances to shine yet also giving us spectacle and drama on a breathtaking scale. It will be interesting to see what he does next.
I cannot recommend this highly enough. If you haven't yet seen it, please don't miss it. You will be amply rewarded.