Young Prince Nechljudov is summoned as a judge in a murder trial. A rich merchant was found dead in the room of the inn where he was staying and the prostitute Maslova was accused of the crime. Nechljudov recognizes in the woman the maid of the aunts he had seduced and abandoned years before and tries to convince the authorities of her of his innocence but to no avail. Convinced that he is responsible for her moral fall, he follows her to Siberia where she must serve her sentence.
Acting
Buchholz makes privilege look exhausting in the best way.
Cinematography
Siberian landscapes that judge you silently.
Costume
Prince to penal colony — the ultimate wardrobe downgrade.
Director
Rolf Hansen
Horst Buchholz
Iwanowitsch Nechljudoff
Myriam Bru
Katjuscha
Ruth Niehaus
Missy
Edith Mill
Fedosia
Lea Massari
Maria Pawlowa
Günther Lüders
Postbote
Elisabeth Flickenschildt
Agrafena
Lina Carstens
Matrjona
Marisa Merlini
Bockowa
Gabrielle Dorziat
Kitajewa
Jean Murat
Gerichtsvollzieher
Robert Freitag
Simonson
Rudolf Rhomberg
Smjelkoff
Karl Lieffen
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Tolstoy's final novel, published 1899, was so critical of the Russian Orthodox Church and legal system that it was banned domestically. Hansen's West German adaptation arrived during Cold War tensions, making its Siberia-set condemnation of Tsarist justice politically loaded.
Horst Buchholz was 25 playing the guilt-wracked prince — his 'too pretty to suffer' energy reportedly frustrated Hansen, who kept demanding 'more shame, less cheekbones.'
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