Anastasia (1956)

An opportunistic Russian businessman tries to pass a mysterious impostor as the Grand Duchess Anastasia. But she is so convincing in her performance that even the biggest skeptics believe her.

Director:

Anatole Litvak

Writers:

Arthur Laurents (screenplay), Marcelle Maurette (play),

Stars:

Ingrid Bergman, Yul Brynner, Helen Hayes

Won 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ingrid Bergman	...	Anna Koreff
Yul Brynner	...	General Sergei Pavlovich Bounine
Helen Hayes	...	Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna
Akim Tamiroff	...	Boris Adreivich Chernov
Martita Hunt	...	Baroness Elena von Livenbaum
Felix Aylmer	...	Chamberlain
Sacha Pitoëff	...	Piotr Ivanovich Petrovin (as Sacha Pitoeff)
Ivan Desny	...	Prince Paul von Haraldberg
Natalie Schafer	...	Irina Lissemskaia
Grégoire Gromoff	...	Stepan (as Gregoire Gromoff)
Karel Stepanek	...	Mikhail Vlados
Ina De La Haye	...	Marusia (as Ina de la Haye)
Katherine Kath	...	Maxime

Storyline

Russian exiles in Paris plot to collect ten million pounds from the Bank of England by grooming a destitute, suicidal girl to pose as heir to the Russian throne. While Bounin is coaching her he comes to believe she is really Anastasia. In the end the Empress must decide her claim.

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Plot Keywords:

russian | exile | aristocrat | cinderella story | imperial family | 

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Taglines:

From the sensational Broadway stage success that had audiences crying its acclaim!

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Genres:

Drama | History

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

13 December 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Anastazja

Filming Locations:

Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky - 12 Rue Daru, Paris 8, Paris, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the characters mentions the 'Mad Monk'. He is referring to Grigori Rasputin, the infamous monk who worked for a time in the royal court as a healer to Alexei, Nicholas II's son and Anastasia's brother. His controversial life ended with him being murdered, supposedly by other members of the royal family.

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Quotes

[Last line of the movie]
Dowager Empress: I will tell them that the play is over, now go home.

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Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Mouth (2008)

User Reviews

Very positive about this film.

This is a film that should be re-released. I mean at the motion picture theaters besides video and DVD. Nothing changed. Ingrid Bergman, Helen Hayes and Yul Brynner do superlative acting performances and the direction, music and the cinematography just could not be duplicated, in my opinion.

Other films have been redone with contemporary actors, some successful and some not so.

It would be very difficult to improve on this one. I have seen this film a few times over the past forty years and I appreciate it more and more.

Wish we could have more quality cinema like it!