“A LOVING FAREWELL”
Starring: Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer, Paul Giamatti, Anne-Marie Duff, Kerry Condon and James Mcavoy
Directed/Written by: Michael Hoffman
MPAA Rating: R for scene of sexuality/nudity.
Genre: Art/Foreign, Adaptation and Biopic
Release Date: February 2010 (Wide)
By John Delia
The period piece The Last Station has garnered accolades by the Academy of Arts of Sciences with Oscar nominations for Helen Mirren and Christopher Plumber and rightly so. Their performances in this film make it more than worthwhile to see. If you like a good story of romance, beauty and great costumes, then run to catch The Last Station.
The Last Station follows the last months of Leo Tolstoy’s life and centers on his relationship with his wife, followers and ideals. A man who believed in equality in Russia, Tolstoy championed for a society that would not be ruled by the rich.
In this snippet of the man’s life we see his undying love for his wife Sofya, a deep passionate one that could not be broken by outsiders who would want the two separated for their own ill gotten gain. It also shows how he had to deal with her desire to keep the wealth that he had acquired and pass it along to the children. It becomes a task that would make an attempt to break Tolstoy’s will to spread it out amongst the Russian people. In the mix, his top disciple Valdimir Cherkov tries to keep Sofya away from her husband using trickery and deceit so he can control the Tolstoy’s destiny for greatness.
The film also infuses a love story between Tolstoy’s assistant Valentin Bulgakov and the free spirited Masha. The two find each other at a commune where sex, love and life are as passionate as the work they are doing to further Tolstoy’s work. I liked the sweetness of this story and the chemistry between the actors, Anne-Marie Duff and James Mcavoy who add a little excitement to the otherwise cheerless storyline.
The directing by Hoffman is very good, providing scene after scene of tableaus that could be hung in art galleries. His depiction of the era comes off the screen with wondrous excitement and beauty. Tolstoy’s estate and the train station where the story ends are magnificent canvases on which he paints his luminous film.
The film is rated R for scene of sexuality/nudity.
FINAL ANALYSIS:Â A tableau of historical significance and beauty. (4 of 5 Palm Trees)
FEATURED BIO FROM THE FILM:
JAMES McAVOY: Was born in Scotland in 1979 and lived with his grandparents most of his life. He graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 2000. His start in film and TV was a film called The Near Room a thriller starring Adrian Dunbar. This lead to a television career with some film in between until he landed a role in the acclaimed Bright Young Things along side Emily Mortimer playing a support role as Simon Balcaim. From there he played key roles in several television productions finally getting picked for films like Wimbledon, Atonement, The Last King of Scotland, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Penelope, and Wanted. He was one of Stephen Spielberg’s soldiers in the hit HBO series Band of Brothers.
McAvoy has been honored during his career getting nominations for many awards including a Golden Globe nom for Atonement, a Best Actor win at the BAFTA awards for The Last King of Scotland, and winning an Empire and London Critic’s Circle award for Atonement. And ladies, he was nominated for an MTV Award for ‘Best Kiss’ that he shared with Angelina Jolie in Wanted. But before you swoon too much, McAvoy is married to his co-star in The Last Station, Anne-Marie Duff. (Hmmm, so that’s why the sex scene is so realistic.)