Where there are miniature errors or Anglicisms (depending on how generous you’re feeling), I cannot blame the production team for making the decisions they have made because they are sensible. Natasha’s brother Nikolai Rostov (Jack Lowden) would never be called “Nicki”. Nicki is not a diminutive in Russian. It would be “Kolya”. Likewise, Natasha would not be called “Tasha”. Natasha is already the diminutive because her name is Natalya. (I did promise Russian pedantry, comrades.)
But, as I say, these decisions are sensible because it would be too annoying for a non-Russian audience who would be sitting at home thinking: “Hang on, he is Niki-something. Why are they calling him Koly-something all of a sudden?”
And none of this is an error on an Elton John scale (Nikita is actually a man’s name, so the whole business with Nikita – portrayed as a woman in the video to his 1985 top 10 hit – was incredibly weird, although maybe it was all a coded message). Tolstoy would have approved of this footnote, by the way. There are 329 footnotes in War and Peace. They’re not all Elton John-themed, though.
War and Peace recap: episode three - fifty shades of Freemasons!
The Tsar’s Ball brings Andrei and Natasha together, Tuppence Middleton’s Helene devours Boris, and Ken Stott is a welcome addition to the excellent cast
Viv Groskop
@vivgroskop
Sun 17 Jan 2016 22.00 GMTLast modified on Fri 12 Oct 2018 22.11 BST
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War and Peace with Anna Pavlovna (Gillian Anderson) and Bilibin (Rory Keenan). Photograph: Laurie Sparham/BBC/Laurie Sparham
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better. It’s Ken Stott with Fifty Shades of Freemasons! “I should like to help you if I can. But if for any reason you find conversation with me unpleasant, please say so.” No, please continue, Comrade Freemason. Our hero Pierre is in dire need of spiritual sustenance. “How can I know God if all my powers of reasoning tell me he cannot exist?” “God is apprehended not by reason but by life.” Amen. Bring Richard Dawkins to Freemason Stott now.
A beautiful episode and one that did a fantastic job of piecing together lots of short, anecdotal scenes and making them seem coherent. It’s so rare to see a piece of television where new characters can suddenly appear out of nowhere (such as Freemason Stott) and it doesn’t jar. In fact, you welcome these random types and don’t question their involvement in an already complex picture. Somehow War and Peace creates an impression of a universe we know and don’t question: characters float in and out of focus without the audience losing sight of the through line.
The buildup to the Tsar’s Ball and the inevitable meeting of Andrei and Natasha was excellent. And the ball itself was a highlight of the series: wonderfully shot with a mix of intimacy and grandeur rarely seen on television. Tom Harper (director) barely needed to do anything here other than follow the face of Lily James (Natasha) who is a real delight and captures Natasha’s innocence perfectly.
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Prince Andrei (James Norton) and Natasha Rostov (Lily James). Photograph: Laurie Sparham/BBC/Laurie Sparham
I was fractionally less convinced (and I’m splitting some hairs plucked from the outer parts of Dolokhov’s moustache here) by the scenes in rural Russia. Do we really understand the nature of the friendship between Pierre and Andrei? Or does it feel like a plot device? And they could have done with messing the scenery and the costumes up a bit. I know it’s supposed to represent a breathably idyllic Tolstoyan landscsape. The bees … the icicles … the snowy fields … I felt my asthma dissipating as I watched. But there would have been at least a bit of mud spattered about.
I’ll forgive all that, though, for the performance of Thomas Arnold as Denisov. His mazurka moment was so endearing and his proposal heart-breaking. “Oh dear. I wish you hadn’t said that.” “Please. Forget about it. A moment of madness. All over now.” I loved how this represented the fatalism of the piece. Life is not about getting what you want. Everyone seems a bit Austen. But this is Russia, my friends. This idea was echoed in Pierre’s face in this week’s final scene which said it alclass="underline" happy for his friend, devastated for himself. “You’re the luckiest man on earth … don’t let her get away.”
Those all-important Mr Darcy moments
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I am tempted to put Dolokhov in this category because it seems that he is coming to the fore as an object of fascination. (OK. That’s a euphemism. I have the hots for him. I won’t be shamed.) However, we can’t rob him of his true crown as Villain of the Week. Prince Andrei is still Darcy. And he showed here what an interesting and problematic character he is: yes, he is supposed to be a classic, swoonsome hero. But it’s not that side of him that Natasha falls in love with. It’s because there’s something quiet at the heart of him. People have talked about this in the comments here. James Norton is no Aidan Turner. But he has something else: an indefinable, calm charm. No bare-chested wood-chopping or lake-swimming required. I’m still surprised at (screenwriter) Andrew Davies’ restraint in this department. But it’s true to the novel and true to the character.
Villain of the Week
This week the award (represented by a twirly moustache made of gold filigree – I have commissioned it from Putin’s jeweller) goes to Dolokhov (Tom Burke). I am wary of the use of the world “legend” in modern parlance but I think it appropriate here: both actor and character are legends. “I’m just a man who loves to fight. It’s all I know ... to my shame.” The bit where he ate the snow was extraordinary. “Missed.” Wow.
This was swiftly followed by a typical Davies moment: showing us that this is not a one-dimensional figure by making Dolokhov have a howl about his good old mum and sister, whom he loves very much. This is Tolstoyan too: in terms of humanity, Dolokhov is about as low as you can go but there’s also a grudging admiration for him and an acknowledgement that no one is all bad.
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Nikolai Rostov (Jack Lowden) and Dolokhov (Tom Burke). Photograph: Laurie Sparham/BBC/Laurie Sparham
Audrey Hepburn award for most beautiful lady acting
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The award (depicted by a lace-edged flesh-coloured negligee) must go to Tuppence Middleton for Evil Helene. Poor Boris didn’t stand a chance: “Are you hungry?” Tuppence Middelton is a fine, fine actress. (We will overlook her name. Her parents are called Nigel and Tina and she is from Bristol and it’s the nickname her grandmother gave to her mother. So leave her alone.)
She manages to capture a tiny flicker of humanity (although it truly is tiny) in Helene’s icicle-infested heart: she’s gorgeous and venal and utterly ruthless. But somewhere deep inside she is scared and doing all of this out of self-preservation. I also see a touch of Joan Collins circa 1979 (The Bitch) in this performance and that’s never a bad thing.