a mystery remains

Anastasia.

Five stars. This film was highly watchable, very enjoyable, and left me with a collection of different feelings, most of which were pleasant. Although it was based on a stage play the film was not caged by simple sets and ranged widely with indoor and outdoor scenes. The settings were very well chosen and the furnishings and extras fitted the time exactly. Acting was of a very high quality throughout ? Ingrid Bergmann (Anastasia) especially, but also Yul Brynner and Helen Hayes (Dowager Empress). Bergmann changed completely believably from fright and total uncertainty to aristocratic poise , and back again. But in addition to the performances and the surroundings there were constant echoes and whispers of ideas which filled out the basic story: the middle class refugees hoped for return to the good old days in Petersburg, the Dowager Empress lived in the past but knew it had all gone. Millions in the Bank of England vaults gave hope of extending the fantasy life of old Russia, but the attractions of a real life for two people overcame that temptation. Of course it was all based just on a rumour, but the film provides a very satisfying account which dissolves into thin air without leaving a sense of anti-climax or disappointment.

RR Cirencester