Review: The Last Station

Review: The Last Station

Rating: **

Nonna's Rating: $

Rotten Tomatoes: 69%

A better script would have made this one of the best movies of the year. Helen Mirren as Sofya Tolstoya and Christopher Plummer as Leo Tolstoy are magnificent as these larger-than-life characters who are belittled by a dull, plodding script. The other actors deliver also: Paul Giamatti portrays Tolstoy's late life "handler," Vladimir Chertkov, a vile man if ever there was one. Giamatti's performance, however, is subtle and disturbing. James McEvoy plays Tolstoy's last secretary, Valentin Bulgakov, as a naive ingenue -- the perfect counterpoint for the rest of the world-weary ensemble.

Critic after critic has described the story as one in which the great man Tolstoy is much put upon by his "crazy" wife. I disagree. Sofya's behavior and frustration are clearly borne of years of living with a man who has tried her patience, tested her love, and behaved badly. The two of them are engaged in a dance of craziness which sustains their tempestuous relationship. Both are at fault; each is tormented by the other. If only the writing were a bit better.

Nonna's Ratings:

$$$$ = Worth paying the Friday evening price
$$$= Worth paying the Matinee price
$$= Worth a rental
$ = Wait for cable
# = Skip it