The Last Station
The Last Station | |
---|---|
Directed by | Michael Hoffman |
Screenplay by | Michael Hoffman |
Based on | The Last Station by Jay Parini |
Produced by | Bonnie Arnold Chris Curling Jens Meurer |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Sebastian Edschmid |
Edited by | Patricia Rommel |
Music by | Sergey Yevtushenko |
Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures (Germany)[1][2] Nashe Kino (Russia)[2] Optimum Releasing (United Kingdom)[3][2] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 112 minutes[4] |
Countries | Germany Russia United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Budget | $18 million[1] |
Box office | $20.6 million[1] |
The Last Station is a 2009 English-language German
Plot
In 1910, the last year of Leo Tolstoy's life, his disciples, led by Vladimir Chertkov, manoeuvre against his wife, Sofya, for control over Tolstoy's works after his death. The main setting is the Tolstoy country estate of Yasnaya Polyana. Tolstoy and Sofya have had a long, passionate marriage, but his spiritual ideals and asceticism (he is opposed, for example, to private property) are at odds with her more aristocratic and conventionally religious views.
Contention focuses on a new will that the "
Ultimately, Tolstoy signs the new will and travels to an undisclosed location where he can continue his work undisturbed. After his departure, Sofya unsuccessfully attempts suicide. During the journey, Tolstoy falls ill. The film ends with his death near the
Cast
- Helen Mirren as Sofya, Tolstoy's wife
- Christopher Plummer as Tolstoy
- Paul Giamatti as Chertkov, the leader of Tolstoy's devoted disciples
- Valentin, Tolstoy's private secretary
- John Sessions as Dushan, Tolstoy's personal doctor
- Patrick Kennedy as Sergeyenko
- Kerry Condon as Masha, a fictional member of the Tolstoyans
- Anne-Marie Duff as Sasha, Tolstoy's daughter
Production
Filming took place in the German federal states of
Release and reception
Sony Pictures Classics acquired distribution rights and gave the film an awards-qualifying limited release[8] on 23 December 2009, with a wide release on 15 January 2010. It was released in Germany on 28 January 2010.
On the
Critic Philip French praised McAvoy for bringing "the same amiable diffidence he brought to the role of Idi Amin's confidant in The Last King of Scotland".[6] Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times called Hoffman's direction "accomplished", and the film's centerpiece "the spectacular back and forth between Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren...For those who enjoy actors who can play it up without ever overplaying their hands, "The Last Station" is the destination of choice."[11] On the negative side, critic Xan Brooks characterized the film as a "genteel domestic farce" and faulted the director for "pander[ing] to the worst impulses of the cast".[12]
Accolades
Mirren won the Best Actress award at the 2009
Home media
The film was released on DVD and
References
- ^ a b c "The Last Station". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
- ^ Lumiere. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- BBFC. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ "THE LAST STATION (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 19 October 2009. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ a b Ed Meza (31 March 2008). "Mirren, Plummer to star in 'Station'". Variety. Retrieved 21 June 2008.
- ^ a b Philip French (21 February 2010). "The Last Station". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
- ^ "Part of Germany Becomes Russian Territory for a Film", M&C Movies Archived 25 December 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Confirmed: 'The Last Station' goes to Sony Classics". incontention.com. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
- ^ "The Last Station". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
- Fandom, Inc.Retrieved 13 January 2023.
- ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
- ^ Brooks, Xan (18 February 2010). "Film review: The Last Station". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
- ^ "Gay romance Brotherhood wins top Rome film fest prize | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
- ^ "AARP Magazine announces Movies for Grownups Awards". 15 February 2010.
- The Last Year of Leo Tolstoy, by Valentin Fedorovich Bulgakov, Ann Dunnigan, 1971, Penguin Books, ISBN 0-241-02061-1.
External links
- Official website
- The Last Station at IMDb