The Last Station is based on a novel of the same name by Jay Parini, an English professor and Leo Tolstoy scholar. It’s the story of the end of Tolstoy’s life, when he had determined to leave at least the copyright to his writings, but perhaps also more of his estate, to the Russian people. The movie looks at Tolstoy’s horde of followers, the Tolstoyans, who embrace chastity, socialism and other beliefs very much at odds with those of Tolstoy’s wife, Sofya. She rages against those who are taking her husband away from her, against her husband himself, and against her own lack of control over the circumstances.
Along with the Tolstoys’ drama is that of Tolstoy’s assistant, Valentin Bulgakov, newly appointed to the position by Tolstoy’s leading disciple (and leading manipulator, from Sofya’s viewpoint), Vladimir Chertkov. Chertkov gives Bulgakov a diary and tells him to write down everything he hears at the Tolstoy home, especially everything Sofya says. Soon after Bulgakov’s arrival, Sofya gives him a similar gift and charge.
Bulgakov worships Tolstoy, but he becomes conflicted on some of the tenets of Tolstoyanism. Soon after traveling out to the country and the Tolstoyan colony where he is to stay, Bulgakov meets Masha, a self-assured, more worldly Tolstoyan and the two embark on a love affair. The Tolstoys’ lives spiral down as the younger couple’s romance heats up, and as the long-married Tolstoys are separated at the end, Valentin and Masha are reunited.
There are many moments of profound sadness in this film, made even more poignant than they were likely written due to brilliant performances by Mirren as Sofya and McAvoy as Valentin. Plummer plays Tolstoy, and his depiction shows the great man’s magnetism as well as the conflicts he faces, caught between Sofya and Chertkov (Paul Giamatti, also excellent). Adding to the mix is the Tolstoy’s daughter, Sasha (Ann-Marie Duff), who sides with Chertkov against her mother. While Kerry Condon doesn’t get a lot of scenes as Masha, she’s a very good match for McAvoy.
The DVD includes several deleted scenes (they don’t add much to the story in the film), a blooper reel (mostly the great actors cursing as they blow lines …very cute to hear McAvoy in particular, as he curses with his native Scots accent), and an excerpt from an interview with Plummer on the occasion of his receiving an AFI award. There are also two commentary tracks, one with Plummer and Mirren and the other with the director, Michael Hoffman.
The Last Station is heavy going at times; this is dense subject matter, and I suspect it’s easier to follow if you’re already acquainted with Tolstoy’s biography (which I wasn’t). But it’s well worth viewing for the performances. I found the relationships between the Tolstoys and between both Tolstoys and Valentin intriguing; I’ve learned that Parini also wrote at book titled Last Steps that includes autobiographical excerpts from Tolstoy’s writing and letters from family and friends to look at the last year of Tolstoy’s life. That non-fiction work is what led to The Last Station, and I’m now curious to read it to learn more about this volatile, tortured couple and those around them.