War and Peace (1956 film)

War and Peace
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	King Vidor
Produced by	Dino De Laurentiis Carlo Ponti
Screenplay by	Bridget Boland Mario Camerini Ennio De Concini Gian Gaspare Napolitano Ivo Perilli Mario Soldati King Vidor Robert Westerby
Based on	War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Starring	Audrey Hepburn Henry Fonda Mel Ferrer Oskar Homolka Anita Ekberg Herbert Lom
Music by	Nino Rota
Cinematography	Jack Cardiff
Edited by	Leo Cattozzo
Production company	Ponti-De Laurentiis Cinematografica
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures (US) Dino de Laurentiis Cinematografica (Italy)
Release dates	August 21, 1956 (1956-08-21) (United States) December 29, 1956 (1956-12-29) (Italy)
Running time	208 minutes
Country	United States Italy
Language	English Italian Russian
Budget	$6 million
Box office	$6.25 million (Rentals)[1]

War and Peace is a 1956 American-Italian war drama film directed by King Vidor and written by Vidor, Bridget Boland, Mario Camerini, Ennio De Concini, Gian Gaspare Napolitano, Ivo Perilli, Mario Soldati, and Robert Westerby based on Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel of the same name. The film, released by Paramount Pictures, was produced by Dino De Laurentiis and Carlo Ponti with a music score by Nino Rota and cinematography by Jack Cardiff.

The film stars Audrey Hepburn, Henry Fonda, and Mel Ferrer, along with Vittorio Gassman, Herbert Lom, John Mills and Anita Ekberg, in one of her first breakthrough roles. It had Academy Awards nominations for Best Director (King Vidor), Best Cinematography, Color (Jack Cardiff) and Best Costume Design, Color (Maria De Matteis).

Cast

Differences from the novel

The film script had to condense the extensive original. It is primarily focused on Natasha, Pierre, and Andrei, their complex relationship and personal maturation on the backdrop of the historical events of the Napoleonic invasion.

• In Moscow, most of the scenes take place at the Rostov residence, and episodes at the country estates are curtailed, with some exceptions such as the hunt where Natasha first meets Andrei. This is a condensation of two scenes at the Rostov country estate, since in the novel Andrei, who by then is already Natasha's fiancé, is not present at the hunt.
• There are no scenes in St. Petersburg.
• The relationship between Nicholas, Sonya and Maria is toned down.
• Historical figures retained are General Kutuzov and Napoleon.
• Minor battles are omitted, while Napoleon's crossing of the Berezina is added.
• The concept of the inner dialogue is retained, notably in regard to Natasha, but the extensive use of French is not retained in the film.
• Events of the epilogue are not included, nor are Tolstoy's discourses about history.

Reception

The film received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reports that 33% of 6 reviews were positive, with an average rating of 4.8/10.^[2]

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

• 2005: AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores – Nominated^[3]
• 2008: AFI's 10 Top 10:
  • Nominated Epic Film^[4]

Gallery

• 
  Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer on the set of War and Peace in 1955
• 
  Screenshot of Audrey Hepburn in the role of Natasha and Mel Ferrer as Prince Andrei

See also

• List of American films of 1956
• War and Peace - 1941 opera composed by Sergei Prokofiev
• War and Peace - 1966-67 film series directed by Sergei Bondarchuk
• War and Peace - 1972 TV 20-part BBC Production
• War and Peace - 2007 TV 4-Part French-Italian mini series
• War & Peace - 2016 British-American TV mini series, BBC and A&E Production

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to War and Peace (1956 film).

• War and Peace at the Internet Movie Database
• War and Peace at Rotten Tomatoes