I didn’t really enjoy Anna Karenina. I loved Joe Wright’s earlier movies – I thought Atonement was absolutely superb and I even enjoyed Keira Knightley and her lazy eye in Pride and Prejudice. But he’s just too busy here. The entire plot is played out on one great big theatre-like set (and actually filmed on a single soundstage at Shepperton) where the constantly shifting scenery is just kind of distracting. The costumes, the music, the delicious decor, the performances – all excellent – but it feels like a case of over-reach. On the plus side, it’s certainly a novel approach for a movie. It wasn’t for me, that’s all.
