Dostoevskii in Movies

*warning, this post contains several movies spoilers-if you haven't seen "The Machinist", "Offret" or "Match Point" and intend to see them, then DO NOT read this post.


"The Machinist", starring Christian Bale, has several Dostoevskiian themes-the lead character is reading a copy of "The Idiot" and the character also shares some common traits with characters in other Dostoevskii novels-he falls in love with and tries to redeem a prostitute (Notes from the Underground, Crime and Punishment)-his sense of guilt over killing another person also drives him to brink of insanity, it certainly, like Raskolnikov, serves to alienate him from most of society and his friends, and he is eventually redeemed (can sleep again) when he admits to his guilt.

Tarkovsky's movie "Offret" (The Sacrifice) also mentions "The Idiot"-the leading character is an actor who once played Prince Myshkin in a stage-performanced of the book, who eventually burns down his house (and pretends to be insane) in order to "save the world".

In Woody Allen's "Match Point", the lead character is reading "Crime and Punishment" close to the start of the book-although outwardly he is nothing like Raskolnikov, his story begins to mirror Raskolnikov's own murder story.

Kurosawa also made an adaptation of "The Idiot", which I have yet to see.

There's a pretty decent BBC miniseries of Crime and Punishment.

Luchino Visconti made a movie of White Nights, called Le notti bianche, it's not in St. Petersburg but Venice and it differs from the book a little bit more, but it's pretty good.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dr. Hill

There's a pretty decent BBC miniseries of Crime and Punishment.

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I could not get past the thirty five year old, English, Raskolnikov.

The Brothers Karamazov. This film took away a lot of the trepiation I felt in starting to read the book. SAnd it was remarkably well cast with Yul. Brynner, Richard Basehart, and illiam

I never managed to find torrent for that movie :(

Here are some more Dostoevskys on celluloid:

Robert Bresson's "Pickpocket" is a loose adaptation of Crime and Punishment, and a very good film in its own right.



Going back to Tarkovsky, you'll find references to Dostoevsky in some of his other films. "Stalker" refers to the Grand Inquisitor both implicitely and explicitely, and "Mirror" contains two references, one of which can only be caught if you've read and remember "Devils".

Tarkovsky and Kurosowa, especially the former, are the closest there is to Dostoevsky in film.

Whether it be the distinct references,
for example,

the three remaining samurai in 'the seven samurai' detailing their angst at never finding the simple peace that the farmers have.

the levels one can go to in moments of desperation when without, and searching for, faith, in 'offret' ( the sacrifice).

or the opaque,

these are two directors who understood and were influenced absolutely, absolutely, by Dostoevsky.

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Tarkovsky says as much in his book 'sculpting in time'.
Kurosowa said as much in various interviews, explaining how his brothers insistence on him reading Dostoevsky and his brothers suicide allowed him to 'understand life', to paraphrase.

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