Review of Lady with the Dog (1960) by Walter M — 27 Jul 2014

In "Lady with the Dog," Dimitri(Alexei Batalov) is content to just relax when taking his vacation alone at Yalta. That is until he hears news of a beguiling new visitor who usually appears walking her dog. After meeting Anna(Iya Savvina), her and Dimitri spend a lot of time together, often going on excursions together. After her husband fails to materialize at the expected hour, she goes to Dimitri's room with him.

"Lady with the Dog" has certain things going for it such as its beautifully evocative cinematography and the fact that criticizing the aristocracy like it is here never goes out of style. At the same time, the movie, in making a good case for the characters' yearning for each other leading to them being trapped in an existential amber of their own making, ironically ends up leaving the viewer feeling much the same. That is due to this being based on an Anton Chekhov short story that is stretched almost to its breaking point. And that's not to mention lead actors who act like they are in entirely different movies.