Alexander Pushkin's verse novel, Evgeny Onegin, is still regarded by many Russians the very pinnacle of their country's literary achievements and, as such, has become something of a sacred cow. Many believe that it should
never even be translated. Not to be deterred by such a formidable
reputation, the family Fiennes has taken it and succeeded in
capturing the essence of this tragic tale of love and loss in a brooding
screen adaptation.
The story, set in the 1830s, is that of Evgeny Onegin (Ralph Fiennes), a
sophisticated young wastrel and libertine who abandons his city haunts in
a fit of ennui to visit his newly-inherited country estate. Here he is
befriended by his neighbour, affable young poet Vladimir Lensky (Toby
Stephens), his fiancee Olga Larin (Lena Heady) and her sister Tatyana (Liv Tyler). Of course, this being Russian literature, tragedy lurks
just around the corner and all to soon, following a disastrous turn of
events, our antihero has fled his country life. His story resumes in St.
Petersburg six years later where he resurfaces from exile a changed man,
and unexpectedly crosses paths with Tatyana once more.
Onegin is highly emotive material which, in the wrong hands, could have become overblown and histrionic, but Martha Fiennes' subtle treatment
demonstrates that playing down moments of high drama can greatly add to
their impact. Her background as a music video director seems to have stood
her in good stead, giving her the courage to allow images to speak for
themselves, and keeping dialogue to a minimum. Sometimes she even leaves
us in silence. It works. Shot on location in St. Petersburg and at
Shepperton studios, her directorial debut is a visual feast. We are
treated to frozen cityscapes, pure white vistas of snow and monumental
palaces with interiors, stark or sumptuous, depending on the mood.
Whilst the supporting cast shine a little light into Onegin's sombre
world, Ralph Fiennes excels himself in bringing out the complexities of a
character that could so easily be played as a one-dimensional,
self-pitying rogue. He plays with equal conviction the caustic wit, who
both repels and intrigues us by the inexplicability of his seemingly cruel
actions, and the pitiable, devastated man in love, on whom the tables
eventually turn. Fiennes' triumph is that he succeeds in winning our
sympathy.
Purists will no doubt find plenty to get upset about, even though this
seems to be a fairly faithful adaptation on the whole. But newcomers to
the work and those less fanatical Pushkin fans will not be disappointed by
this beautifully visualised costume drama. If you're looking for an
antidote to some of this year's more overhyped - and ultimately
disappointing - releases, this could well be it.
Reviewed by Katy Thompson
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