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

Michael Hoffman read all of Chekhov's plays before beginning his screenplay to help him capture the mood.

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Goofs

When Sofya is talking to Vladimir about the new will, the right side of her face varies from being in and out of a shadow between shots.

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Quotes

Sofya Tolstaya: [to Leo] Look at me! This is who I am, *this* is what you married. We may be older, maybe we're old, but I'm still your little chicken. And you're still my big cock.

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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 The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Knight and Day/I Am Love/The Killer Inside Me (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Un bel dì vedremo"
from "Madama Butterfly"
Giacomo Puccini
Performed by Miriam Gauci (Soprano), Symfonický orchester Slovenského rozhlasu (as CSR Symphony Orchestra)
Conducted by Alexander Rahbari
Licensed courtesy of Naxos Rights International Ltd.
Libretto by Luigi Illica (uncredited) and Giuseppe Giacosa (uncredited)

User Reviews

Like Reading People Magazine Instead of War and Peace

Silly, shallow, sleepy and slow, this sumptuous costume drama about the aging Leo Tolstoy and his long-suffering wife Sophy fails to do several things well.

It fails to give you any insight into why Tolstoy was one of the greatest writers who ever lived. Or why he wanted to give all his money to the poor. Or why he was so desperate to renounce sex. Or how any of this connected to what was actually happening in Russia at the time.

The movie spends hours and hours tittering and giggling over Tolstoy's earthy appetites -- as though it's so extraordinary that older people still enjoy having sex. But we don't get even five minutes of time with the people Tolstoy wants to help -- the Russian peasants. If we can't see them suffering, then Tolstoy's ideas just seem like charming whimsicality. Which is just what this movie wants -- to keep things shallow, so we can celebrate the joys of casual sex (and the gossip and glamor surrounding celebrity couples) and not get all hung up on heavy things like poverty, justice, and human suffering.

One moment sums up the whole problem. Early in the movie, Tolstoy and his wife actually have a rather interesting conversation about the people. Tolstoy says that if they give all their wealth to the peasants the peasants will embrace them as family and they'll all live peacefully in a world without hunger or injustice. Countess Sophy replies tartly that if the peasants ever got their hands on that much money they'd just spend it on whores and drink.

Neither of them brings up a third possibility -- that the peasants HATE them and do not WANT to live in brotherhood. The truth the movie ignores is that sooner or later the peasants will make the beautiful people pay for three hundred years of stealing their food, women, and land. The laziness, corruption, greed, and callousness of the Russian aristocracy -- which the real Count Leo Tolstoy knew only too well -- is entirely absent from this film.

As a result, we entirely miss the real tragedy of a flawed but courageous nobleman trying (too late) to make amends. Instead we get melodrama, sentimentality, and a lot of schoolgirl giggling about sex.

It's like reading PEOPLE magazine instead of War and Peace.