Anna Karenina (2012)

Usually I'm a fan of Joe Wright's collaborations with Keira Knightley. Atonement and Pride & Prejudice were both beautifully directed and well thought out. This film, however, fell flat of high expectations. Adapted from Leo Tolstoy's novel of the same name, Anna Karenina was less of a theatrical feature as it was just plain theatrical.

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina. Source: E Online

With Keira Knightley as the titular character, it follows her affair with Count Vronsky (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Although her husband Alexi Karenina (Jude Law) is the reason she has become a socialite, it all goes down the drain when the other uncover her secret. In a world where reputation is everything, Anna is quickly shunned and shut out by her so-called friends. With both Vronsky and Alexi still vying for her love, Anna is unable to straighten out her mind and figure out what she really wants which ultimately results in her suicide. 

You can't really blame me for never reading the book, it's quite hefty. But I was hoping that watching the movie would make me a little bit more cultured. It didn't. The plot was not given a fighting chance to develop properly and lacked some serious substance. The only things that were good about this film were the things you typically don't think of when you want to watch a film. Costume design. No one ever goes into a movie thinking about how great the costumes are going to be. We want a good story and some great acting, and unfortunately got neither of those things. 

Rating: 4/10