The Last Station (2009)

A historical drama that illustrates Russian author Leo Tolstoy's struggle to balance fame and wealth with his commitment to a life devoid of material things.

Director:

Michael Hoffman

Writers:

Michael Hoffman (screenplay), Jay Parini (based on the novel by)

Stars:

Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer, Paul Giamatti

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Helen Mirren	...	Sofya
Christopher Plummer	...	Tolstoy
Paul Giamatti	...	Chertkov
James McAvoy	...	Valentin
John Sessions	...	Dushan
Patrick Kennedy	...	Sergeyenko
Kerry Condon	...	Masha
Anne-Marie Duff	...	Sasha
Tomas Spencer	...	Andrey
Christian Gaul	...	Ivan
Wolfgang Häntsch	...	Priest
David Masterson	...	Reporter
Anastasia Tolstoy	...	Mourning Girl

Storyline

The Countess Sofya, wife and muse to Leo Tolstoy, uses every trick of seduction on her husband's loyal disciple, whom she believes was the person responsible for Tolstoy signing a new will that leaves his work and property to the Russian people.

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Plot Keywords:

russian | countess | leo tolstoy | writing | wealth | 

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Taglines:

Intoxicating. Infuriating. Impossible. Love.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for a scene of sexuality/nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [jp]

Country:

Germany Russia UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 January 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

La última estación

Filming Locations:

Duebener Heide, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

€13,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£135,368 (UK) (19 February 2010)

Gross:

$6,615,578 (USA) (11 June 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Egoli Tossell Film, Zephyr Films, Egoli Tossell Film Halle

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Marks the first joint venture of real-life spouses James McAvoy and Anne-Marie Duff on a feature film.

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Goofs

Early in the film one of the characters refers to "flashbulbs," when there was no such thing in 1910 and in fact later in the film photographers are shown using trays of flash powder.

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Quotes

Leo Tolstoy: "Your youth and your desire for happiness reminds me cruelly of my age and the impossibility of happiness for me." When I was courting Sofya, she was so young and pure, it seemed impossible that I'd ever have her. I didn't want to tell her how I felt and I wanted to tell her nothing else. So I wrote down a string of letters and asked her if she could decipher them. She looked completely confused, thinking it was a game or... I gave her one clue. The firs two Y's, I said, stand for "your youth" ...

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Crazy Credits

Anthony Quinn is thanked in the end credits. Quinn was the first to purchase rights to Jay Parini novel.

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Connections

Featured in Live from Studio Five: Episode #1.83 (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Gente, gente, all'armi, all'armi"
from "Le nozze di Figaro"
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performed by Mariano Stabile (as Stabile), Ezio Pinza (as Pinza), Aulikki Rautawaara (as Rautawaara), Esther Rethy (as Rethy), Jarmila Novotna (as Novotna), Virgilio Lazzari (as Lazzari), Angelica Cravcenko (as Cravcenko), Chor der Wiener Staatsoper (as Chorus of the Vienna State Opera)/Wiener Philharmoniker (as Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra)
Conducted by Bruno Walter
Licensed Courtesy of Istituto Discografico Italiano.
Libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte (uncredited)

User Reviews

Excellent Historical Drama

This was an excellent historical film based on the relationship between Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer) and his wife, Sofya (Helen Mirren), during Tolstoy's final years. The film also explores Tolstoy's relationship with his Assistant, Valentin (James McAvoy) and his cabal of acolytes, lead by Vladimir Chertkov (Paul Giamatti). The main tension comes between Vladimir, who wants Tolstoy to bequeath his copyrights to "The Russian People" and Sofya, who naturally would like the copyrights reserved for herself and family.

Mirren earned an Oscar nomination for Lead Actress and Plummer received one for Supporting Actor. I believe both were well earned. I liked the performance from the entire cast, particularly McAvoy as the adoring Assistant to Tolstoy. The screenplay was excellent and the Director, Michael Hoffman, did an outstanding job bringing pre-Communist Russia to life. The time period is 1910 and the cinematography beautifully captured the era. During the closing credits, actual film of Tolstoy and his Wife was run, underscoring what a great job the Director did in filming this.

A great movie and well worth seeing or renting.