War and Peace
The love story of young Countess Natasha Rostova and Count Pierre Bezukhov is interwoven with the Great Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon's invading army.
Critics Sentiment
Napoleon's forces retreat from Russia through brutal winter conditions
Anatole Kuragin persuades naive Natasha to plan an elopement
The film rises dramatically from the melodramatic Anatole seduction subplot to Pierre's transformative battlefield experience, gaining over 2.5 points.
The film starts strong with battle spectacle and Hepburn's performance, dips significantly during the romantic melodrama involving Anatole, then builds to its acclaimed climax with the French retreat from Russia. While praised for visual splendor and war scenes, it's criticized for Hollywood simplification of Tolstoy's themes and Fonda's miscasting, resulting in a respectable but flawed epic.
Full cast
Audrey Hepburn
Natasha Rostova
Henry Fonda
Pierre Bezukhov
Mel Ferrer
Prince Andrei Bolkonsky
Vittorio Gassman
Anatol Kuragin
Herbert Lom
Napoleon
Oskar Homolka
Field Marshal Kutuzov
Anita Ekberg
Helene Kuragina
Barry Jones
Prince Mikhail Andreevich Rostov
May Britt
Sonia Rostova
Jeremy Brett
Nikolai Rostov
John Mills
Platon Karataev
Helmut Dantine
Dolokhov
Tullio Carminati
Prince Vasili Kuragin
Milly Vitale
Lisa Bolkonskaya
Lea Seidl
Countess Rostov
Anna Maria Ferrero
Maria Bolkonskaya
Wilfrid Lawson
Prince Bolkonsky (as Wilfred Lawson)
Patrick Crean
Denisov
Sean Barrett
Petya Rostov
Gertrude Flynn
Mariya Peronskaya
Crew
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