Nicholas and Alexandra – 1971
This was, without a doubt, an epic film that dramatizes the final days of the Russian monarchy. It begins with the birth of Tsar Nicholas II’s son Alexei, and ends with the execution of the Romanov family. I did the research and found that the film, while up-playing the romance story between Nicholas and Alexandra, was fairly true to history.
The film covers the key events that led to the collapse of Russia: the decimation of the military in several wars, including WWI, Bloody Sunday, the Russian Revolution of 1905, the political damage done by Rasputin, the rise of Lenin, Nicholas’ abdication of the throne, the imprisonment of the Romanovs, the rise of the Bolsheviks, and deaths of the royal family. The film was just over 3 hours long, and really covered a lot of ground. There were so many historical details that the filmmakers got right. Director, Franklin J. Schaffner ought to be commended.
The film was nominated for 6 Academy Awards, though the only two it won was Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction. And it certainly deserved those particular honors. The opulent sets and costumes were incredible. The costume designers, Yvonne Blake and Antonio Castillo, really came up with some spectacular designs. The clothes worn by the Emperor and his family were incredible, as was the palace in which they lived. In fact, they found the perfect actors to play the two leads. They looked very much like the real characters they were portraying.
Michael Jayston played Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, or “Nicky.” His wife, Alexandra, or “Sunny,” was played by South African actress, Janet Suzman. Their four daughters, Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia, were played by Ania Marson, Lynne Frederick, Candace Glendenning, and Fiona Fullerton, respectively. The heir to the throne, Alexei, was played by Roderick Noble. And finally, Tom Baker, of Doctor Who fame, played the megalomaniac monk, Rasputin. The large production also boasted a few other recognizable names like Laurence Olivier, Jack Hawkins, and Ian Holm in smaller roles.
Suzman was nominated for Best Actress, though she didn’t win, and yes, she turned in a good performance. But I though Jayston’s performance was much better, and I was surprised to learn that he was not nominated for Best Actor. I thought his character was much more complex and required a more dynamic emotional range. He is portrayed as a good man, a loving husband and father, but an incompetent ruler. The scene in which he returns home after abdicating the throne and breaks down into a sobbing emotional wreck in front of his wife was just heartbreaking to watch.
And while I’m on the subject, I learned something in my research about the real Tsar Nicholas that I round fascinating. Apparently his inability to rule Russia was not his fault. Here is what Wikipedia had to say about it. “The Russian Empire was ruled from the top by a sovereign who had but one idea of government – to preserve intact the absolute monarchy bequeathed to him by his father – and who, lacking the intellect, energy or training for his job, fell back on personal favorites, whim, simple mulishness, and other devices of the empty-headed autocrat. His father, Alexander III, who deliberately intended to keep his son uneducated in statecraft until the age of thirty, unfortunately miscalculated his own life expectancy, and died when Nicholas was twenty-six. The new Tsar had learned nothing in the interval, and the impression of imperturbability he conveyed was in reality apathy – the indifference of a mind so shallow as to be all surface. When a telegram was brought to him announcing the annihilation of the Russian fleet at Tsushima, he read it, stuffed it in his pocket, and went on playing tennis.”
But the film actually never mentioned anything like that. The film blamed his weak will as the main reason behind his failure as a Tsar, not lack of training and apathy. In fact, the film showed him as a man who passionately cared about his country but who was unable to stand up to his wife, or anyone else, for that matter. He made some very bad decisions, ruling his empire with his heart instead of his head.
I would also like to mention Tom Baker’s inspired portrayal of Rasputin. He played the character as a larger than life egomaniac. His questionable involvement with the Romanov family and his assassination scene were powerful. Baker did a great job of capturing the spirit of the infamous monk, always just on the edge of religious madness. It was his crazy eyes that really sold the character.
And finally, I have to mention the wonderfully handled final scene in which the royal family is put to death in Yekaterinburg. They are all awakened in the middle of the night and taken to a room which was completely empty except for two chairs. The family huddles together as if posing for a portrait. They seemed to know what was about to happen, and yet they waited for death with a calm serenity. The slow and silent zoom in to the door, through which their executioners would come seemed to put me in the room with them. Brilliant cinematography!