When you make a 98 minute movie of a play that usually clocks in at about two hours or so, a great deal of text is bound to be wasted. It's the case with this latest version of "The Seagull", and Chekhov is not an author whose lines you can simply discard.
Dorn, the doctor, has been known and remembered since the premiere of the play in 1896 for prescribing his idiotic "valerian drops" (which according to Stanislavski's memoirs was something that Chekhov himself used to do, somewhat mockingkly, since he was a doctor himself). It's not in this movie.
Trigorin's magnificent monologue to Nina about never being able to compete with Tolstoi or Turgueniev - one of Cheklovs finests - was butchered and becomes meaningless. Konstantin has a long and heartfelt conversation with Sorin at the beginning to explain his problematic relationship with his mother. It's brutally cut. Polina, Masha and Medvedenko are reduced to a useless bunch of shallow losers.
Director Michael Mayer was apparently more concerned with beautiful landscapes, lakes, boats and gardens. And a soundtrack (very sweet and nice, I might add) that reminds us constantly of Hallmark rom-com. As it's been pointed out, here, the movie is "beautifully made". But it has nothing to do with Chekhov.
The cast is very uneven and the roles are poorly developed. Director's fault. Saoirse Ronan is ok, and her smile lights up the screen. But no real depth. Corey Stoll is excellent but his role was pulverized so he doesn't have much to do with his Trigorin. Same with the brilliant Brian Dennehy's Sorin. Annette Bening is good but lacks the necessary charisma for Arkadina. The sweet, sad and loving Masha turns to a neurotic drunk by Elisabeth Moss. Mare Winningham's Polina is just a whiny and annoying matron. And Billy Howle is awful. The idea of the role created on the russian stage by Meyerhold being played by a talentless nobody is just wrong.
For people who wish to come in contact with this wonderful play, I recommend the flawless 1975 version with Blythe Danner, Frank Langella, Lee Grant and Kevin McCarthy. Or Lumet's 1968 movie. And for real aficcionados, the 1974 russian version, with great Irina Miroshnichenko as Masha.
Dorn, the doctor, has been known and remembered since the premiere of the play in 1896 for prescribing his idiotic "valerian drops" (which according to Stanislavski's memoirs was something that Chekhov himself used to do, somewhat mockingkly, since he was a doctor himself). It's not in this movie.
Trigorin's magnificent monologue to Nina about never being able to compete with Tolstoi or Turgueniev - one of Cheklovs finests - was butchered and becomes meaningless. Konstantin has a long and heartfelt conversation with Sorin at the beginning to explain his problematic relationship with his mother. It's brutally cut. Polina, Masha and Medvedenko are reduced to a useless bunch of shallow losers.
Director Michael Mayer was apparently more concerned with beautiful landscapes, lakes, boats and gardens. And a soundtrack (very sweet and nice, I might add) that reminds us constantly of Hallmark rom-com. As it's been pointed out, here, the movie is "beautifully made". But it has nothing to do with Chekhov.
The cast is very uneven and the roles are poorly developed. Director's fault. Saoirse Ronan is ok, and her smile lights up the screen. But no real depth. Corey Stoll is excellent but his role was pulverized so he doesn't have much to do with his Trigorin. Same with the brilliant Brian Dennehy's Sorin. Annette Bening is good but lacks the necessary charisma for Arkadina. The sweet, sad and loving Masha turns to a neurotic drunk by Elisabeth Moss. Mare Winningham's Polina is just a whiny and annoying matron. And Billy Howle is awful. The idea of the role created on the russian stage by Meyerhold being played by a talentless nobody is just wrong.
For people who wish to come in contact with this wonderful play, I recommend the flawless 1975 version with Blythe Danner, Frank Langella, Lee Grant and Kevin McCarthy. Or Lumet's 1968 movie. And for real aficcionados, the 1974 russian version, with great Irina Miroshnichenko as Masha.