From Anna Karenina to War and Peace: Tolstoy’s Greatest (and the Not-So-Great) Screen Adaptations

Take Leo Tolstoy, for instance. The man with the legendary beard wrote novels that are long, complex, and filled with characters who’re flawed, contradictory, yet utterly human. War and Peace and Anna Karenina aren’t just stories; they’re experiences.

Some adaptations manage to capture a slice of Tolstoy’s brilliance, while others… well, let’s just say they miss the mark. And that’s why we’re here—to take a dive into the world of Tolstoy on screen. Think of this as a little exploration of film adaptations rather than a strict “must-watch” list.

So, grab your popcorn (or your favourite cuppa), and let’s see which classic novels made it to the screen with style, and which ones maybe could have used a little more Tolstoy genius.

War and Peace

War and Peace is more than what the title suggests. It’s not just about Napoleonic Wars and political drama—it’s a sprawling exploration of history, fate, free will, love, and the search for meaning among the characters from the aristocratic families. Bringing all of that to the screen is no small feat, and filmmakers have approached it in different ways. Let’s take a look:

Four Films, One Epic: Sergei Bondarchuk’s War And Peace Adaptations

“Bondarchuk, like Tolstoy himself, does not neglect the drama of minor characters: even in the midst of Borodino’s carnage, he manages to make the death of a single officer devastating.”

—Writer and reader Elyse Durham, in her article for Literary Hub

Soviet-Russian actor and filmmaker Sergei Bondarchuk released four films between 1966 and 1967, each aiming to capture the full scope of War and Peace.

With meticulously recreated Napoleonic battles and a close look at characters like Pierre, Natasha, and Prince Andrei amid the chaos of war and personal struggles, the adaptation is massive in scale. Loved by many readers and critics, such as Elyse Durham, it is a landmark attempt to bring Tolstoy’s epic vision to the screen.

King Vidor’s Take on War and Peace (1956)

In 1956, director King Vidor brought War and Peace to Hollywood screens with all the glamour you’d expect—starring Audrey Hepburn, Henry Fonda, and Mel Ferrer. The thing about this adaptation is—you really have to watch it to make up your own mind. Opinions floating around the internet are mixed.

Cinema lovers and casual viewers often praise its cinematography and the way it trims Tolstoy’s brick-sized epic into something more digestible.

But for many readers, the heart of the novel gets lost in the process—subplots vanish, characters get sidelined, and what remains sometimes feels more like a sweeping love story than Tolstoy’s layered meditation on war, fate, and society.

BBC Adaptation of War and Peace (2016)

In 2016, the BBC adapted Tolstoy’s epic for television in a six-part series, giving audiences a chance to experience the story at a more digestible pace. With lavish sets, intricate costumes, and a compelling cast, the adaptation has plenty to admire. It’s generally well-loved by viewers.

However, every reader imagines an adaptation differently. For some, this version doesn’t fully capture Tolstoy’s detailed characterisation, and many of the novel’s subtle nuances are inevitably lost in translation to the screen.

Anna Karenina

On the surface, Anna Karenina tells the story of an illicit love affair between Anna, a charismatic high-society woman, and Count Vronsky, a younger, dashing officer. But Tolstoy neither glamourises the affair nor outright condemns it—he refuses to fit it into a simple black-and-white moral box. Instead, he explores the complexities of love, duty, societal expectations, and the consequences of choices, in the backdrop of 19th-century Russian society.

Now, let’s see how filmmakers have tackled this thick, layered epic and translated it into a few hours of visual storytelling.

Anna Karenina Starring Greta Garbo (1935 Adaptation)

One of the earliest and most famous adaptations of Anna Karenina came in 1935, with Greta Garbo in the title role. Interestingly, this was actually her second time playing Anna on screen.

As a film, it leans heavily into the central romantic tragedy between Anna and Vronsky, trimming away much of Tolstoy’s philosophical depth and social commentary. For readers of the classic, that might feel like a loss. But as a Hollywood melodrama, it shines—thanks largely to Garbo’s powerful performance, which cemented the film as a classic of its own kind.

Also read: Anna Karenina vs. War and Peace: Which Tolstoy Masterpiece Should You Read First?

Aleksandr Zarkhi’s Soviet Vision of Anna Karenina

Aleksandr Zarkhi’s 1967 Soviet adaptation is often admired by critics and readers alike. Despite its flaws, this version doesn’t narrow itself down to Anna’s tragic affair with Vronsky. Instead, it gives space to the parallel story of Konstantin Levin—a character and arc frequently omitted in other adaptations.

By weaving in these layers, Zarkhi’s Anna Karenina feels closer to Tolstoy’s broader vision, offering a more nuanced portrayal of intertwined lives and the social commentary at the heart of the novel.

1977 BBC Television Adaptation

In 1977, the BBC brought Anna Karenina to TV in a ten-part mini-series starring Nicola Pagett. A major strength is its full integration of the Konstantin Levin and Kitty Shcherbatsky storyline, giving the novel’s secondary characters their due.

The series avoids turning characters into clear-cut heroes or villains. Anna isn’t just a romantic heroine—she’s a flawed woman whose passion gradually descends into paranoia and despair. Karenin combines coldness and rigidity with genuine pain and dignity, making him more human than in many other adaptations. This is one adaptation that comes close to capturing the original scope of Tolstoy’s epic.

Joe Wright’s 2012 Take on Anna Karenina

Joe Wright’s 2012 adaptation takes an unconventional approach, turning Tolstoy’s story into a theatrical, symbolic exploration of 19th-century Russian high society. Cinematically striking, it emphasises the suffocating, performative nature of the era.

Critics praised its bold visual style, production design, and performances—especially Keira Knightley as Anna and Jude Law as Karenin. Yet the film divided opinion: many felt the heavy focus on style distanced viewers from the characters’ emotions and overshadowed the novel’s deeper philosophical themes, making it more spectacle than substance.

Buy here: Anna Karenina

The Enduring Legacy of Tolstoy

And here we pause our cinematic journey through Tolstoy’s works. Of course, there are many other adaptations worth exploring—such as The Death of Ivan Ilyich (2024) by David Seymour, Resurrection (1960), and countless more—each trying, in its own way, to capture the genius of Leo Tolstoy while embracing the art of visual storytelling.

Critics, readers, and casual viewers all see these adaptations differently, and that’s part of the fun: deciding for yourself which films come close to Tolstoy’s epic vision—and which fall a little short.

As we wrap up this month’s celebration of Tolstoy, it’s clear that his stories, characters, and insights continue to spark curiosity and conversation—whether on the page or the screen. Each adaptation, each reading, offers a new way to experience his genius. So keep exploring, keep questioning, and keep immersing yourself in the worlds he created—because Tolstoy’s brilliance isn’t something we ever truly finish discovering.

Also read: Long Reads in a Fast-Scroll World: Why Gen Z Finds Leo Tolstoy Relevant