The Brothers Karamazov (1958)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Richard Brooks

Writers:

Fyodor Dostoyevsky (novel)
Julius J. Epstein (adaptation) ...
(more)

Release Date:

26 February 1958 (Japan)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Ryevsk, Russia, 1870. Tensions abound in the Karamazov family. Fyodor is a wealthy libertine who holds his purse strings tightly...

Plot Keywords:

Russia | Foreign Language Adaptation | Remake | Murder | Patricide

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Yul Brynner	...	Dmitri Karamazov
Maria Schell	...	Grushenka
Claire Bloom	...	Katya
Lee J. Cobb	...	Father Karamazov
Albert Salmi	...	Smerdjakov
William Shatner	...	Alexi Karamazov
Richard Basehart	...	Ivan Karamazov
Judith Evelyn	...	Mme. Anna Hohlakov
Edgar Stehli	...	Grigory
Harry Townes	...	Ippoli Kirillov
Miko Oscard	...	Ilyusha Snegiryov
David Opatoshu	...	Capt. Snegiryov
Simon Oakland	...	Mavrayek
Frank DeKova	...	Capt. Vrublevski (as Frank de Kova)
Jay Adler	...	Pawnbroker
Gage Clarke	...	Defense Counsel
Ann Morrison	...	Marya
Mel Welles	...	Trifon Borissovitch
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George Barrows	...	MP (uncredited)
Sam Buffington	...	Tipsy Merchant (uncredited)
Giselle D'Arc	...	Party Girl (uncredited)
Mollie Glessing	...	Mother (uncredited)
Leonard Graves	...	Third Court Officer (uncredited)
Clare Higgins	...	(uncredited)
Harry Hines	...	Moronic Prisoner (uncredited)
Charles Horvath	...	Polish Officer's Bodyguard (uncredited)
Len Lesser	...	Jailer (uncredited)
Michael Mark	...	Juror (uncredited)
Gregg Martell	...	Juror (uncredited)
Shepard Menken	...	Peter (uncredited)
Dorothy Neumann	...	Old Crone (uncredited)
Gloria Pall	...	Girl (uncredited)
Guy Prescott	...	Friend (uncredited)
Diana Quick	...	(uncredited)
Stafford Repp	...	Innkeeper (uncredited)
Jerry Riggio	...	Second Court Officer (uncredited)
Stephen Roberts	...	Michael (uncredited)
Ziva Rodann	...	Gypsy Singer (uncredited)
William Vedder	...	Father Zossima (uncredited)
Friedrich von Ledebur	...	Chief Judge (uncredited)
Than Wyenn	...	Waiter (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Brooks

Writing credits
Fyodor Dostoyevsky		(novel "The Brothers Karamazov")
Julius J. Epstein		(adaptation) &
Philip G. Epstein		(adaptation)
Richard Brooks		(writer)
Constance Garnett		English translation

Produced by
Pandro S. Berman	....	producer
Kathryn Hereford	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Bronislau Kaper

Cinematography by
John Alton		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
John D. Dunning		(as John Dunning)

Art Direction by
Paul Groesse
William A. Horning

Set Decoration by
Henry Grace
Robert Priestley

Costume Design by
Walter Plunkett

Makeup Department
Sydney Guilaroff	....	hair stylist
William Tuttle	....	makeup creator

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
William Shanks	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Wesley C. Miller	....	recording supervisor (as Dr. Wesley C. Miller)
John Speak	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Lee LeBlanc	....	special effects

Editorial Department
Charles K. Hagedon	....	color consultant

Other crew
Andrei Tolstoy	....	technical advisor (as Andrey Tolstoy)
Wayne Fitzgerald	....	title designer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Avon Productions (II)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1958) (USA) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1965) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1958) (France) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (????) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

The Murderer Dmitri Karamazov

Runtime:

145 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:TV-PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Company:

Avon Productions (II)

Trivia:

Debut of Simon Oakland.

Quotes:

Smerdjakov: If you'll permit a comment, sir, you're not at all like your brother Dmitri.
Ivan Karamazov: Half-brother.
Smerdjakov: You're different from all of them. I could see that the first minute you arrived yesterday. Intelligence, audacity, cleverness...
Ivan Karamazov: You've just never met anyone who lives in Moscow.
Smerdjakov: No sir, it's those magazine articles you wrote, the ones about crime.
Ivan Karamazov: [pauses] You enjoyed them.
Smerdjakov: [takes out a magazine clipping, reads it] There is nothing in the world to make man love their neighbours. If there is no God, then nothing can be immoral. Everything becomes lawful, even crime. Crime becomes not only lawful, but inevitable.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Murphy Brown: The Brothers Silverberg (#2.1)" (1989)

Worthy Effort

Novels and movies are separate disciplines and each has its own requirements. People who want to read Dostoevsky and people who want to know what one of his books is about also have separate needs. I am a Dostoevsky lover, and have read THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV in several translations (no, I don't know Russian). This film hits all the necessary high notes to cover the book's plot, and so the screenplay serves the film well. The brothers themselves (Yul Brynner, Richard Basehart, Albert Salmi and William Shatner) turn in variable performances. Basehart comes in first place, with Brynner smoldering not far behind. A young William Shatner shows promise, while Salmi's inexplicable whine is almost unbearable, which is a shame because Salmi was a good, though underused, actor. Stealing the show from the brothers in every scene he's in is the wonderful Lee J. Cobb. Fans of the book will be disappointed at the excisions, but they were necessary to pare the story down to a workable movie. And, though I love the book and think it may be the world's great novel, I prefer the ending of the movie! Dostoevsky's book is open-ended as he intended it to be an introduction to characters he intended to use in further book -- but he died before it was written. So the movie wraps everything up nicely. Ivan's end scene is much preferable (no spoilers, though! See the movie and read the book!). Although Alexei is the main character in the book, he's basically an observer. Dmitri (perfectly captured by Brynner) is the powerhouse of the book and should be the focus in a dramatic adaptation, as he is here. A worthy effort in making an unfilmable novel filmable. If you want to know what the book is about but a thick novel is daunting, this film tells you everything you need to know.