Onegin Reviews

Strange & Intense

If you're looking for an easy going movie then look again, this film is intense from the outset. As with most of Ralph Fiennes' films it is rather dark and brooding. The acting is all top form, however the plot isn't, it continually jumps from place to place and backward and forward in time. If you take your eyes from the screen for more than a minute you'll be lost!

If you are not a staunch Ralph Fiennes fan then I wouldn't recommend it. However, if you are into dark, brooding, melodramas with great cinematography then this is the film for you.

This atmospheric film captures the mood of a bored, affected aristocrat whose vanity motivates him to reject the love of an idealistic girl.

This film does a sterling job of conveying the ennui and decadence of the upper class in Russia and also depicts the shattering effect of rejecting and then realising love.

The biggest surprise of the film is Liv Tyler who is a revelation in her role.

Bittersweet and ultimately devastating in its cruel reality this film is a must see for all period drama lovers and hopeless romantics.

Good acting

Ralph Fiennes' portrayal of a bored chap was so good I, in turn, became very bored...a film best left for a rainy Sunday afternoon when everyone else is away; you'll end up looking forward to work the next day.

So very slow.

I hardly expect period drama to be fast paced, but Onegin must surely be one of the slowest paced movies I have ever experienced. A pity, because the scenery and acting were both superb. I quickly became bored with it and it was a struggle to reach the end.

wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

wow is all i can say this film is brilliant is sad and funny they are parts in it where you will cry but very enjoyable

Brilliant

We saw this in the cinema a few years ago and rented the DVD to see if we were fooling ourselves. No, it really is one of the best films we ever seen. Acting, direction, photography and the original story simply amazing. Awaiting more work from the Fiennes.

Well, I didn't like it...

So many others have told me how magnificient it would be, but I don't agree...

Beautiful but distant

Beautifully shot film set in Russia. Rather torturous and well trodden "country girls falls in love with urbane sophisticated stranger from city but is spurned, waits for years, then marries another, then of course the object of her love then realises his love for her but it is too late".

A storyline which did not seem particularly believable, and a very annoying ending where everything just stops with no real satisfactory conclusion to the characters story.

Love and loss

Beautifully shot. An achingly romantic story executed by very fine actors. Subtle and chilling. Perfect for when you're in a reflective mood.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Admirable

Of course, much of original Pushkin's amazing witticism and flow of the language is lost given that the film is adapted in prose and for English speaking audience. Nevertheless, it is done in good taste, very well acted and with cleverly placed accents such as Pushkin's house in the background in the final scene on the balcony, Russian melancholy (although the music was definitely 'made up'), St. Petersburg is so magnificent and Martha Fiennes is an outstanding director.