"War and Peace" by King Vidor is a visually stunning epic in wasteful equipment. The actors are well chosen and convince even the smallest supporting roles. Against the backdrop of the Napoleonic campaign in Russia in 1812, the film tells the moving individual stories of families Rostov, and Bezukhov Bolkonsky. We learn Countess Natasha Rostova (ravishingly played by Audrey Hepburn) as a fun-loving, yet know little naive girl who matures by beautiful and bitter experiences of a courageous, responsible young woman. Your relationship with Pierre (Henry Fonda), the thoughtful Count Bezukhov, like a red thread through the film and ends finally in a war enduring love. Pierre looks at his world from a philosophical point of view. He seeks answers to many questions of life. At his side we are experiencing pleasant, but we also often suffer with him - so under the horrors of war and captivity. Of an entirely different nature is Prince Andrei (Mel Ferrer), a straight, since his wife's death a little melancholy man with a strong will. A man makes decisions, they penetrated and also responsible. Thanks to his friend Pierre, he also meets Natasha. He loves her, can it however only on his deathbed awarded a thoughtless blunder. In addition to the more difficult and dangerous early dying, adolescent Petya Rostov Andrej is perhaps the most tragic character in the movie. These are just three of the many characters of the film, all peaceful or armed (war) live together. In K & F also historical enthusiasts get their money. The audience experiences the advance of Napoleon's troops, the soldier carnage at the battle of Borodino and the tactical retreat Kutuzov. This is followed by Napoleon's entry into a Moscow that is abandoned and destroyed by fire, is finally Bonaparte by Russian partisans flanked withdrawal and the demise of the Grande Armée in the icy cold Russian winter. In conclusion, the film indeed has a considerable length, but is consistently interesting and never long-winded. The film is excellent - you get the idea (if not already) finally read the novel Tolstoi`s times.
