Always in my dream,
l'm clinging to a branch,
Knowing full well that death inevitably awaits me.
The fear of dying without ever having Known love was greater than the fear
of death itself l Know now l was not alone in the horror of this darKness.
So, too, was the fear of Anna Karenina.
lt was then that a drop of honey sweet enough to divert my eyes
from the cruel truth came into my llfe.
She was the princess
EKaterina ScherbatsKy.
Thank you, Constantine Dmitrich.
l didnīt know that you were in Moscow.
l arrived yesterday.
l mean, today.
l was going to come to see you.
l didnīt know you could skate so well.
līm awful.
But the rumor is that
you are a superlative skater.
Oh, years ago. lt used to be my passion.
Skate with me.
Must be dull in the country in the winter.
Not at all. līm very busy.
Mama said that you live like a barbarian out there
and wear peasant clothes.
Thereīs a lot more to it than you think.
ltīs very scientific.
Are you here for long?
l donīt know. That depends on you.
Mamaīs waiting for me.
-May l call on you? -Weīre at home on Thursday as usual.
Today, then.
Au revoir!
You said you wanted my advice on a delicate matter?
Yes, Stiva.
l think līm in love...
but līm plain and too old.
She may be able to love me as a friend, but l wouldīve to be handsome
and more remarkable to make her love me as a husband.
Who is the lucky girl?
Canīt you guess?
līd be your brother-in-law.
Kitty.
Do you think thereīs any possibility?
Oh, why shouldnīt there be?
For Godīs sake, be absolutely frank with me.
līll tell you something.
My wife Dolly is a most wonderful woman.
-She can see through people. -What do you mean?
Well, l mean, not only that she likes you,
but she says Kitty is certain to be your wife.
They are sisters, after all.
She... she said that?
Constantine Dmitrich Levin.
Oh, God.
Heīs come early.
l donīt think līve come at the right time.
-līm too early. -Oh, no.
This is what l wanted...
to find you alone.
The guests should be here in a moment.
l told you that l didnīt know whether l would be here long...
that it depended on you.
l meant...
l meant do say...
be my wife.
l cannot be.
Forgive me.
lt was not meant to be.
Why, Constantine Dmitrich.
Do stay. Have some tea.
Ah, Constantine Dmitrich.
Back in our corrupt Babylon.
Well, is Babylon reformed, or have you been corrupted?
That you remembered my words so well. They must have made an impression on you.
Of course. l note down everything you say.
Whatīs the matter with Levin today?Why doesnīt he launch into one of his tirades?
Please.
Constantine Dmitrich.
Howīs it that at home in our village of Kaluga, the peasants have spent their all
on drink and now pay us nothing?
What is the meaning of that?
Youīre always so full of praise for peasants.
Do let me introduce you.
Constantine Dmitrich Levin,
Count Alexei Kirillovich VronsKy.
Constantine Dmitrich despises and hates town and us townspeople.
Do you live in the country all year round?
l should think it must be rather dull in winter.
Not at all if one has work to do. Besides, you canīt...
-be dull in your own company. -l like the country.
l'd be bored to tears.
One simply can't live without sophisticated conversation.
Countess Nordston was telling me
about a demonstration of table rapping and spiritualism she attended.
Oh, that would be fascinating.
līve never seen anything supernatural.
Do you believe in spirits, Constantine Dmitrich?
Whyīd you ask me that? You know perfectly well what my answer will be.
But l want to hear you opinion.
My opinionīs that table rapping merely proves
that the so-called educated classes are no better than the peasants.
They, too, believe in the evil eyes and spirits.
But līve witnessed it myself.
But donīt you think thereīs something in it?
lf we admit to the existence of electricity
of which we know nothing,
Why shouldnīt there exist some newforces yet unknown to us?
Because with electricity when you rub wool and resin together,
you invariably produce a recognizable phenomenon.
But with this hocus-pocus...
Suppose we try now.
Do let us try, Princess Kitty.
Ah, Stiva.
Who are you meeting?
My mother.
-You were missed last night. -Where?
The Chateau des Fleurs, of course.
My God, there was this wonderful little girl doing the cancan.
l went home. l felt in such an agreeable frame of mind when l left the Scherbatskysī,
l didnīt want to go anywhere else.
īīBy the mark of your steed, l can tell your fine breed
and a young man in love by his eyes.īī
-And who are you meeting? -līve come to meet a pretty woman.
-Oh, indeed. -Shame on you.
My sister Anna.
Kareninīs wife?
Yes, well, you must know her.
l donīt think so. l know Karenin by sight and by repute.
Youīve a very illustrious brother-in-law. Very high up in the Ministry.
Yes, a remarkable man.
But not our kind.
Like your friend Levin. l met him last night, an insufferable fellow.
Oh, you donīt appreciate my Levin.
But yesterday there was a reason for him being out of sorts.
You donīt mean he, uh...
Levin has been in love with Kitty for so long,
and l feel so very sorry for him.
So thatīs it.
Excuse me.
You got my telegram?
How are you?Well?
-Have a good journey, mama? -Anna Arkadyevna!
Canīt youfind your brother?
Stiva, here!
Sheīs very charming, isnīt she?
Poor girl. Her husband refuses to travel with her. He says heīs too busy.
Well, Countess, youīve met your son, līve met my brother.
Pardon me for not recognizing you, but l donīt think weīve ever met before.
Anna Arkadyevna
has a little boy of 8, Seriozha.
Theyīve never been parted before, and sheīs fretting
at having left him behind. Really, Anna, you canīt expect never to leave him.
Well, good-bye, countess.
Good-bye, my dear.
Very charming.
Horrible.
Heīs dead.
lt is a bad omen.
Nonsense. Youīve come.
That is the chief thing.
You cannot imagine how much līm counting on you.
Stiva, l know youīre to blame. Donīt deny it.
9 years... my children...
all to be thrown away because of a...
momentary lapse.
True. lt was not nice
that she was the childrenīs governess.
What can l do?
Drop me at your house and go bacK to the court.
ls this Grisha?
How heīs grown!
How happy and well you look.
He told me.
He met me at the station.
Grisha, go and find Tanya.
of course sheīs young,
and sheīs pretty.
My youth and looks are gone,
taken by him and his children.
l hate him.
l donīt want to speak up for him,
but what is the best thing to do in this dreadful situation, Dolly?
Stiva is ashamed.
But he made love to her.
l donīt excuse him, but...
thatīs how it is.
Anna's mission to heal the rift in her brother's family
was not unliKe my own desire to restore the ties with my brother,
so desperate were we both to feel love.
Good evening.
Excuse me. ls Nikolai Levin here?
There is a gentleman here, Nikolai Dmitrich.
Nikolai.
Kostya.
What is it? What do you want?
l donīt want anything.
l came to see you.
Youīre my brother.
This woman is my lifeīs companion.
Maria Nikolayevna.
l took her out of a brothel.
But anyone who wants to know me must respect her, too.
All right, then, Masha,
supper for 3, then.
with vodka and wine.
Your brother drinks too much.
Take no notice of her. Sheīs a whore.
You are a gentleman.
Nikolai, donīt drink.
Leave me a... Leave me alone.
līll beat you.
How about supper, then?
Have a drink.
Tell me how you do it.
Why arenīt you married yet?
Oh, no luck.
l think there must be something about me that repels people.
Why?
For me, everythingīs over.
For you...
Come back with me...
to the country.
For the sake of your health.
No. Too much to do. līve become a communist.
Nikolai, the police.
Theyīll persecute me like they do anyone whoīs not a scoundrel.
Here.
You want to fell magnanimous...
feel righteous.
līll let you have that satisfaction.
Donī t think too badly of me, Kostya.
Mama, please.
Princess Kitty, may l ask you for the quadrille?
līm sorry, but līm promised to count Vronsky,
but you may have the second quadrille.
An honor, princess.
The master of ceremonies can never be refused.
lt was nice of you to come in good time.
Such a bad habit to be late.
-Where may l take you? -Madame Kareninaīs over there, l think.
Will you take me to her, please?
Pardon, mesdames, monsieurs, pardon.
You even dance into the room.
Princess Kittyīs one of my most faithful helpers.
She adorns the ballroom and makes the ball gay.
-May l have the pleasure? -No. l never dance if l can help it.
Oh, but you must tonight.
Well, but if itīs impossible not to dance, let us dance, then.
Well?
Nothing.
Princess, you are such a delight.
ls your card free for the mazurka?
l should withdraw.
This is turning out absurdly.
Will you stay to supper? l have a wonderful cotillion in mind.
No, l wonīt stay. līve danced more at this ball
than l have in a whole winter in Petersburg.
These few brief moments intoxicated Anna
liKe a light pouring into the darK room that was her llfe.
Weīve stopped, mistress.
l want a breath of air.
What are you doing here?
You know that l have come to be where you are.
l cannot help myself.
Forgive me if what l say offends you.
You shouldnīt say that.
And l beg you, if youīre a gentleman, to forget this as l willforget it.
Not one word...
not one gesture of yours...
Shall l...
could l ever forget.
Stop it.
Yes, as you see, here is your devoted husband
burning with impatience to see you.
ls Seriozha all right?
ls that all the reward l get for my ardor?
Yes, heīs quite all right.
Did you have a good night?
Excellent. Thank you.
Ah, weīve met before, l believe. Count Vronsky.
You set off with the mother and return with the son. Back from furlough, l presume.
So, my dear, how was Moscow?
l hope l may have the honor of calling on you.
Delighted. Weīre at home on Mondays.
l told you it was mama! l knew!
Oh, my pet.
Gifts from Tanya and Grisha.
Tanya can read now, you know? Sheīs even teaching Grisha.
ls she nicer than me?
To me youīre nicer than anyone else in the world.
l know l am.
On the whole, then, your visit was a success?
l cannot see how a man like that can be exonerated,
even if he is your brother.
But līm glad it all ended satisfactorily and that youīre back again.
You wouldnīt believe how irksome it is to dine alone.
l missed you, too.
Time for bed.
Betsy,
-līm beginning to lose hope. -Whatever hope could you have?
None.
Excuse me. līm afraid līve become ridiculous.
Oh, my dear, you're in no danger of that.
A man pursuing a young girl might be ridiculous,
but a man in love with a married woman,
that has something fine and grand about it.
lt could never be ridiculous. Next you'll be telling me
that young girls should be virtuous, women chaste,
men virile, and children should be brought up
to pay their debts and earn their bread and all the other nonsense.
But look at them...
Karenin,
that awful Lydia lvanovna.
So old-fashioned,
so stuffy. They surround her.
When l am old and ugly,
līll become like them.
For a beautiful woman like Anna, it is too soon
for her spirit to be crushed by such boredom.
We must rescue her
before it is too late.
Come to my house on Saturday.
ls it true that the younger Vlassiev girl is going to marry Topov?
Yes, they say itīs quite settled.
l am surprised at her parents. l heard it was a love match.
A love match?What antediluvian ideas you have.
Who talks of love nowadays?
That foolish old customīs not left us yet.
The only happy marriages are marriages of convenience
where both parties have sown their wild oats.
ln my young days, l was in love with a deacon.
l didnīt know that it did me any good.
No, but joking apart. l believe that
before one can know what love really is,
one must have a fall and pick oneself up again.
Even after marriage?
ltīs never too late.
līve been wanting to tell you that you behaved badly, very badly, indeed.
You think l donīt know that l behaved badly?
But who made me?
How can you say that?
You know why.
That only shows you have no heart.
l came here tonight knowing that l would meet you
to make it perfectly clear this must stop.
You make me feel as if l was guilty of something.
What do you want me to do?
l want you to go to Moscow and...
You donīt want that.
Then do this for me.
Never utter those words again.
And let us be good friends.
Friends we shall never be.
You know that.
There is only one way we can be happy.
l have nothing left but you. Remember that.
Nothing matters anymore...
Not even life...
for one moment of happiness like this.
Happiness?
Donīt ever speak of it again.
l have to warn you.
Warn me? What about?
That by thoughtlessness and indiscretion, you may cause yourself
to be talked about in society.
Youīre beginning to attract attention.
līm sure theyīre only rumors.
You are always like that.
You donīt like me to be dull, and then you donīt like it
when l go out and enjoy myself.
Stop it. You Know l canīt stand it.
And l would like to know what all this is about.
Your feelings are the affair of your own conscience,
but l am duty-bound to point out to you your duties.
Our lives have been joined not by man but by God.
Only a crime can sever that union.
A crime of that nature brings its own heavy punishment.
l donīt understand a thing you are saying.
And besides, līm desperately sleepy.
Anna, for Godīs sake, donīt speak like that. Perhaps l am mistaken.
But believe me, what l say l say as much for my sake as for yours.
l am your husband, and l love you, but if
-there are the slightest grounds... -l have nothing to say.
lt is really bedtime.
Here it is.
Stupid miss with the right barrel.
Stiva?
Whenīs Kitty getting married?
She isnīt thinking about marriage.
Sheīs very ill.
The doctors have sent her abroad.
Whereīs Vronsky now?
Heīs in Petersburg.
He left shortly after you did. And heīs not been in Moscow once since then.
Do you know, Kostya,
līll be frank with you. lt was your own fault.
You took fright at the sight of your rival. Why didnīt youfight it out?
Kitty was never serious about him.
She was just attracted by his good looks.
l tell you candidly
that when she returns from her cure,
sheīll be going to Yergushovo for some quiet country life.
And thatīs not too far from here, Kostya, is it?
l donīt know if you know,
but l donīt care. līll tell you.
l did make an offer...
but l was rejected.
Now Kittyīs nothing more than a painful, humiliating memory. ltīs over.
l was hanging down that darK well,
but the one thing l held onto
was worK.
l clutched it and clung to it with all my might.
once l lost my temper with a bailiff
and in a fit of anger tooK a scythe and began mowing.
lt calmed me,
So l resolved to mow with them... all day long.
As l mowed,
l lost all count of time.
l had no idea whether it was late or early.
A change came about my worK, which gave me intense satisfaction.
When l forgot what l was doing and mowed without effort,
My line was almost as smooth and good as Titus'.
More and more often now came those moments of oblivion.
When it was not my arms which swung the scythe,
the scythe seemed to mow by itself.
Some externalforce seemed to propel me on,
as though by magic...
the worK did itself regularly and carefully.
These were the most blessed moments.
lt was she.
lt was Kitty...
on her way to Yergushovo.
Quiet, sweet.
Loot at her face, mama.
So spirited and yet so gentle. l feel she could almost speak.
A fine horse.
Everybodyīs betting on you. Not entirely for the right reasons.
What are you implying, mama?
Donīt be coy with me.
You must know how youīve become the center of gossip.
An affair in the highest society
puts a finishing touch to a brilliant young man.
Lord knows l shouldnīt preach, but there are those
who are becoming displeased with you, Alexei. l want you to break it off.
l will not have anyone cast doubt on the honor of my...
Her honor is nonexistent. So is yours.
līve been told youīve refused a post in Moscow.
A promotion.
Mother, l would ask you respectfully not to pry.
You only get one chance at a career.
Why throw it all away on some passion?
A brilliant, worldly liaison l would approve of,
but not this desperate...
Oh, if my love were some ordinary,
vulgar society intrigue,
you would leave me alone.
You have not the remotest idea what l feel.
l find the lying, the deceit, the scheming intolerable.
Then give her up.
l wasnīt expecting you.
Gracious, what cold hands.
You startled me.
līm waiting for Seriozha. l...he went out for a walk. Theyīll come back this way.
Forgive me. l couldnīt go the day without seeing you.
But shouldnīt you be preparing for the race?
What were you thinking of?
Please tell me.
Anna, whatīs the matter? l can see that somethingīs wrong.
līm going to have your baby.
Tell him everything and leave him.
-Oh, my son. -You must be free of him!
Free to become your mistress?
When can l see you?When?
Tonight. 1:00.
Well, l must be at the races.
Do you like horse racing?
Good-bye.
Seriozha, there is no need to be so rude.
Papa told me always to be truthful.
Save your strength for the finish.
Fine.
Watch out for the water jump.
Are you riding today?
Here we are!
There is so much splendors here. oneīs eyes are dazzled.
l will be staying the night.
l am sure you are glad we can be together.
We can go if you like.
l again offer you my arm
if you want to be going.
līm obliged to tell you that your behavior...
What about my behavior?
Be careful.
The despair you were unable to hide when one of the riders fell.
Possibly l am mistaken.
in that case, l beg your pardon.
l listen to you, but līm thinking of him.
l love him and līm his mistress.
l canīt endure you,
and līm desperately unhappy.
You can do what you like with me.
ls everything all right maīam?
What time is it?
Almost midnight maīam.
l've told my husband everything. l must see you. Come at once to the house.
Count Vronsky!
Ah, General Serpuhovsky!
Brooding on your misfortune? lt wonīt do at all.
Come on. Letīs go and have something to drink.
l heard news of your promotion. l was delighted and not a bit surprised.
l heard you refused an important post. Men like you are wanted.
-By whom? -By Russia.
Russia needs men.
-The communists are gathering force. -Thereīre no such things as communists.
Scheming people always have to invent some dangerous, noxious party.
-ltīs an old trick. -Oh, well, l wonīt fight you.
Shall we go outside? l heard Therese is going to perform as lady Eve.
l like to see that kind of show with a gypsy girl on my knee.
-līm afraid līve an assignation. -Assignation? No, you donīt Vronsky, old boy.
Karenin arrived this afternoon. Saw him at the races.
l wouldnīt keep that appointment.
l took the liberty of ordering you some brandy and cucumbers.
Drink the brandy.
Oh, and, this came for you.
Bad news?
Sheīs told him everything.
l must go to her.
What do you want?!
Sit down! l have something to say to you.
l know l... līve done wrong and līm...
Whatever your conduct may have been, l donīt consider myself justified
in severing the ties through which a higher power has bound us.
l shall ignore it
as long as the world knows nothing of it, as long as my name is not disgraced.
And therefore l simply warn you that our relations
must remain as theyīve always been.
-l canīt be your wife while l... -So you see nothing wrong with
your infidelity yet refuse to perform the same duties for your husband!
What do you want from me?
l want you to never see him again!
l want you to be a dutiful wife!
l canīt change what has happened.
Well, understand this.
līll go to Moscow. l will not return to this house again.
līll divorce you on the grounds of adultery.
My son will go to my sisterīs.
No. You must leave me Seriozha. You donīt love him.
līve even lost affection for my son
because he is associated with my loathing for you!
But all the same, l shall take him.
You are a whore. You have no legal rights.
Alexei Alexandrovitch, leave me Seriozha.
You know l canīt live without him.
lf youīll conduct yourself so that neither society
nor the servants can find anything to say against you,
you can enjoy all the privileges of a respectable wife
without fulfilling the duties of one.
and you may keep your son.
Late as usual.
-You have a lot of people here. -Whoīs here?
Is Kitty here?
I never did quite believe that there was anything wrong with my lungs,
but the secluslon and quiet of Karlsbad were all helpful to me.
I learned how to help care for the other patients,
those with serious ailments,
and the work suited me.
I learned that there are so many more important...
I saw you last summer.
Oh, you didnīt see me, but I saw you.
Where?
You were driving to Yergushovo. My estateīs on the way.
It was very early in the morning. You were probably only just awake.
You had a splendid team of horses with bells.
You flashed by in a second.
I saw you through the window. Your head was like this.
And you were playing
with the ribbons of your cap,
thinKing about something very deeply.
I wish I knew what you were thinKing then.
Really?
I donīt remember.
Don't go.
Iīve a question Iīve been wanting to ask you for a long time.
What is it?
Here.
Thatīs the first letters of the words.
What is that word?
-Never. -Is it something I once sald?
I know what it is.
īīWhen you told me it could not be...
...did that mean never...
...or then?''
I donīt know.
īīThen I could not answer differently.īī
Only then?
He will have reached the church any moment now.
Word will come.
Oh! This is impossible!
Donīt worry. Youīll just have to wear mine.
Yes, well, if I was going to do that, I shouldīve done it a long time ago!
Everything will turn out just fine.
Donīt you worry.
I went out to buy a new shirt. all the shops were shut...
I was beginning to think that you had made up your mind to run away.
What happened to me was so silly, I was...
Iīm ashamed to tell you.
Kitty should have stepped on the mat first.
Whoever does runs the household.
I did.
What about you, Dolly?
I donīt remember.
Why on earth not?
I was so in love.
Sir, Madame Karenin miscarried last night.
My God, how is she?l
Very bad. The doctor is with her now.
Who is here?
Is... is she...
She has a very high fever.
Ana Arkadyevna, he has come.
Has Seriozha had his dinner? I know they will all forget.
I am entirely in your hands.
He must be moved into the corner room...
Maria told to sleep with him.
Iīm not afraid of you.
I know Iīm dying now. You ask him.
I feel it already.
I want only one thing...
for you to forgive me.
Forgive me completely..
There is some hope..
I must stay.
She may ask for me..
Iīve long wanted to be revenged on you and her.
When I got the telegram. I came here with the same sentiments.
But I saw her...
and forgave her.
And the happiness of forgiving her revealed to me
my duty.
I will not forsake her,
and I will never utter a word of reproach to you.
Should she want to see you, I will let you know.
Now I think youīd better leave.
Idiot!
You had the misfortune to fall in love with man whoīs not your husband.
This is a misfortune, but this is a fact.
Your husband has forgiven you.
Also a fact.
The question is,
can you go on living with your husband?
Do you want to? And what does he want?
I donīt know.
I donīt know at all.
I feeI Iīm flying headlong over a precipice.
Weīll catch you,
and we wonīt let you fall.
There is nothing left for me,
except for it to be all over.
Look at you.
I hardly know you with this short hair.
Youīve grown so pretty, but how pale you are.
Iīm still very weak.
Weīll go to Italy.
Youīll soon get well.
Weīll live together as husband and wife.
Youīll be ruined.
I resigned my commission.
Now all I want is you.
My dear friend,
you must not give way to your grief.
You will find support,
but seek it not in me,
though I beg you
to believe in our friendship.
I will set to work..
I will be your housekeeper. Donīt thank me.
I do it not of myself.
How can I help thanKing you?
You must
thank Him,
and ask for His help.
In Him alone can we find peace.
My dear, dear boy.
How unhappy you must be.
Iīm quite well, countess.
Your poor father is...
to distraughted
to tell you himself,.
so heīs left it to me.
He is... a saint,
you know?
Your mother...
is dead.
Letters have arrived from town, Constantine Dmitrich.
You see, your ladyīs settled me here, told me to sit a little with her.
Here.
I opened your letter, too.
I think itīs from that woman, your brotherīs,
and this is a letter from home.
Dolly took Grisha and Tanya to a childrenīs party at the Sarmatskysī.
Tanya went as a French marquise..
Whatīs... whatīs the matter?
My... my brother Nikolai is dying.
I... I must go to him Iīll leave tomorrow.
Letīs go.
Why didnīt you let me know sooner?
What is so awful for me...
is that I canīt help...
remembering him as he was when he was young.
you canīt imagine what a charming boy he was.
But I didnīt understand him then.
In infinite time...
in infinite matter...
in infinite space...
an organic cell stands out,
will hold together a while...
and then bursts.
And that cell is me.
I cannot live without knowing.
what I am and why I am here, and that I cannot know.
So, therefore, I have no reason to live.
What?
Iīm pregnant.
Well, donīt spare me now.
Itīs going to be perfection.
-Iīm not going to finish it. -Why?Why ever not?
Because its defects will become more and more obvious.
I canīt fool myself that I am an artist.
I am going to give it up.
I confess I hardly miss Seriozha at all.
But you do.
Yes.
Letīs go back to Russia.
Karenin will grant us a divorce.
Weīll get married, and weīll be together.
Oh, I was afraid youīd say that. Iīm so unpardonable happy here,
away from all of them, all of that.
I thought you were, too.
Being with you
is the realization of all my deepest desires,
but there is nothing I can do here.
I need a purpose.
Thatīs what I like so much, having you all to myself.
Seriozha needs his mother.
Dear Lydia Ivanovna,
Forgive me for reminding you of myself.
Count Vronsky and I are returning to St. Petersburg.
I am unhappy at being parted from my son.
I beg to be allowed to see him.
Will you send Seriozha to me, or should I come to the house at some fixed hour?
You cannot conceive the yearning I have to see him
and so can not conceive the gratitude your help will arouse in me.
Anna.
I donīt think I can refuse her.
My dear friend, You never see evil in anybody..
Her love for her son exacts...
But is it love?
My friend, is it sincere?
Have we the right to toy with the feelings of that little angel?
He thinks sheīs dead,
and he prays for her
and besieges God have mercy on her sins,
and it is...
better.
Madame,
to remind your son of you
Might lead to questions on his part which it would be impossible to answer.
I beg you to interpret your husband's refusal
in the spirit of Christian love.
I am here to tell you that I look upon my union with Madame Karenina as marriage.
If you wish to be on good terms with me then you must be on good terms with her.
Our intimate friends
can and must look at it in the proper light.
I for one am so glad you are back.
I can imagine how horrible our Petersburg must seem to you
after your delightful travels.
-How about the divorce? Is that all settled? -Iīm only waiting for Karenin.
People will throw stones at me, I know,
but I shall come and see Anna.
I will ignore the conventions,
but other starchy people will give you the cold shoulder
until you are married,
and thatīs so simple nowadays.
Of course, I cannot invite her to my home. I have daughters growing up.
How can you say that..
When everyone knows you were Tushkevichīs mistress?
How dare you make comparisons?
Aliosha, darling,
You hardly have the moral high ground.
The doctor. Itīs time.
Are you all right?
Get out of here, Kostya! Go!
Lord have mercy on us and help us.
A boy too!
You may ease your mind.
all is well.
Show him to his Papa!
Thatīs how they are when they come out.
This one is a beauty.
Seriozha...
my darling.
They told me you were dead.
You didnīt believe it, my precious.
I never believed it!
Oh no, youīd never have let her in!
Ten yearīs service and nothing but Kindness from her,
and youīd have got up and shown her the door.
Heīll get up presently and you will be out on the streets.
Donīt go. He wonīt come just yet.
Seriozha, my darling, you must love him.
Heīs better than I am, and I have been wicked to him.
When youīre grown up, you will understand.
Donīt go. Mama!
Get out! Our door is closed to you!
You're not welcome here! You deserted your son!
The laudanum prescribed for Ana after the loss of her child
Now became the opiate used to deaden the pain of Seriozha's loss.
Why shouldnīt I go?
You are going.
Oh, of course, thereīs no reason whatever.
Thatīs exactly what I say.
Anna, for heavenīs sake, what has come over you?
I donīt understand what you mean.
You know you canīt go into the opera.
Why not?
Iīm not going alone.
Iīm... Iīm going with princess Varvara.
Princess Varvara...
Is little more than a courtesan.
Sheīs no worse than the others.
Besides, I am not ashamed of what I have done.
Iīm not ashamed of my love for you.
And whom are you accompanying?
Youīve been out with your mother quite a bit lately.
Anna, she is my mother.
I hear your mother has taken on princess SoroKina as a companion.
Why donīt you make your mother happy and marry her?
Anna, I have not the slightest interest
in princess SoroKina.
How do you think that makes me feel?
What?
How am I supposed to feel?.
You spend your evenings with a pretty young girl.
What do I know? Only what you tell me.
Oh, you donīt trust me?
Why canīt I go out?
I love you, and nothing else matters to me..
So long as you havenīt changed....
As long as you still love me.
Oh, look at me.
all we need is the divorce.
I know how difficult your situation must be until then,
but, please, donīt make matters worse. Please, please, donīt go.
Oh, Iīll stay, as you wish..
Princess SoroKina.
Your mama is asKing for you.
Good evening, mama.
Iīm sorry to be late.
Well, youīre here now, and thatīs all that matters.
You're not worthy of him. You've lost your child! You're a whore.
You're a whore!
You deserted him!.
Excuse me. You seem to be putting me in the position of defendant. I was given
to understand that Anna declines a divorce if I insist on keeping the boy.
I replied to her in that sense and considered the matter closed.
Alexei Alexandrovich, you are a good man.
Put yourself in her position for a moment.
Sheīs moved to Moscow.
Sheīs been there 6 months now, each day expecting your decision.
Iīm a believer now. I canīt go against the teachings of Christianity in such a matter.
Why, divorce is sanctioned, even by the church.
I must think it over.
I must seek guidance.
What do I see?
Ah, Yes. Thatīs right.
We must go away. I long to be in the country,
and thereīs nothing to keep you here, is there?
-My one wish is to get away. -You know, it came over me like an
absolute inspiration. Why should we go on waiting here for the divorce?
Iīve made up my mind that it shanīt influence my life anymore.
-Do you agree? -Oh, yes..
Well, how was your dinner party?l
Oh, the dinner was first-rate
and the boat race and all that quite enjoyable.
Well, when are we off?
The sooner the better.
We canīt get off tomorrow, Iīm afraid,
but we could be ready the day after.
Oh, no. Wait a moment.
The day after tomorrow is Sunday, and I have to see mama.
-You could go there tomorrow. - No, Iīm going there on business
to do with the power of attorney, and the money wonīt be ready tomorrow.
In that case, then, we wonīt go at all.
I wonīt go any later! Monday or not at all!
Why? Thereīs no sense in that..
You see no sense in it because...
because you care nothing for me.
You seem unable to see my position.
How do you think I feel cooped up in these rooms?
But you are free. Yes, you are free,
and if you donīt love me anymore, that would be better and more honest to say so.
Oh, really! This is becoming unbearable!
Why do you try my patience? It has it's limits.
What do you mean by that?
I mean...
I mean, well, what do you want of me?
What I want is that you should not desert me as you are thinKing of doing.
No. I donīt want that. what I want is your love,
but it has gone, so it is all over.
Wait. Wait. Wait!
What is this all about?
I said that me must put off our departure for a matter of 3 days,
and you, Anna, sit by accusing me of lying and being dishonorable.
It is a matter of complete indifference to me what your mother thinks and whom she
wants to marry you to.
But weīre not talKing about that.
Precisely about that!
I know all about that little princess SoroKina,
and let me tell you, a heartless woman..
Be she old or not old, your mother or anyone else is of no consequence to me,
and I do not want to have anything to do with her.
I will not have you speak disrespectfully of my mother.
Thereīs a limit to my endurance.
Why didnīt I die?
Mashka is going to eat your banana!
Who is that telegram from?
-Itīs from Stiva. -Can I see it?
It is addressed to me.
What secrets can Stiva have from me?
I donīt want you to see it because Stiva has a passion for wiring.
Why telegraph when nothing is settled?
He wires:
could get nothing out of him. Promises definite answer soon.
Read it yourself.
Little hope, and I'll do everything possible and impossible.
I donīt care about the divorce anymore,
And there was not the slightest necessity to hide this from me.
I just want things to be definite.
I am sure your irritabliity is due to the uncertainty of your positlon.
And why did princess SoroKina deliver this telegram?!
She did not.
This arrived earlier while you were sleeping.
Princess SoroKina came with the money and the documents from my mother.
I couldnīt get them yesterday.
I didnīt want anything to delay our departure.
By the way,
we are definitely going tomorrow, arenīt we?
You are...
but not me.
Ana, we canīt go on like this.
You are, but not I!
This is intolerable!
You will be sorry for this.
God, forgive me everything.
I have here...
the latest dispatch... from the front!
The infidel muslims have been driven back!
We russians...
have flown to help
our Serbian Slavonic brothers,
our fellow Christians!
Count Vronsky.
Perhaps youīd rather not have seen me. If so, please donīt hesitate to say.
I can always find another compartment.
No. Please.
The Serbian war is a blessing for me.
As a man I have the merit that my life is of no value to me.
Iīm glad thereīs something for which I may lay down the life which isnīt simply useless,
but loathsome to me.
Anyone is welcome to it.
I know the dreadful thing you have suffered,
But I beg you not to continue on this course you are following.
I am doing my duty as a Russian...
and a Christian.
Please, hear me out.
I saw your lady only once.
l wish I'd spoken up then, but I did not.
which is why I cannot remain silent now.
Ever since the death of my brother,
all I have been searching for are answers to questions like,
īīwhat am I?īī , īīwhy am I here?īī
"What am I living for?"
When, suddenly, it all became clear to me.
I'd been living on spiritual truths that I'd drunk in with my mother's milk,
but I'd never acknowledged them.
I know what is right and wrong. I wasnīt taught this..
It was given to me, as it is to everyone. I discovered nothing.
I merely opened my eyes to what I knew.
For me it is too late.
As a man, I am finished. As a weapon, I may be of some use.
Donīt think ill of me.
I have lost too much.
all I ask is to be able to remember Anna as she once was...
when I first met her.
I try to bring back those moments, but I cannot.
I cannot see her face.
I can only see her laid out
in the railway shed where they took her.
She was...
This new feeling has not changed me.
It has not made me happy and enlightened all of a sudden
as I dreamed it would.
just like the way it was with my feeling for my son.
-Come to the nursery at once. -Is something wrong with Mitya?
There was no surprise about this, either.
-Whatīs going on? -Mitya wants to see you.
But be it faith or not. I don't know what it is.
Through suffering, this feeling has crept just as imperceptibly into my heart.
He knows me.
and has lodged itself firmly there.
l shall still be unable to understand with my reason why I pray,
and I shall still go on praying.
But my life now...
my whole life... independent of anything that can happen to me,
every minute of it is no longer meaningless as it was before,
but has a positive meaning of goodness
with which I have the power to invest it.
Lev Tolstoy.