Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

I read Tolstoy's WAR AND PEACE when I was fifteen, and over the years I've read it so many times that the characters are almost like friends and family. And I have to say that on the whole this BBC adaptation was exciting, romantic, and great fun to watch!Lily James is perfect as Natasha Rostov. She excels at capturing all the moods of a young girl's coming of age, from giddy excitement to tearful despair to frank curiosity about men and sex. The thing about Natasha is that she has to be as natural and exuberant in a fabulous ballgown surrounded by glittering aristocrats as she is in a log cabin making merry among the Russian peasants. That's a lot to take on and Lily James manages it all perfectly. Bravo!James Norton and Jessie Buckley are both tremendously impressive as the Bolkonsky siblings, Andrey and his sister Marya. Both of them capture how deeply spiritual their characters are, in very different ways. Prince Andrey's search for meaning leads him to a near death experience on the battlefield, but his spiritual longings come across clearly even when is acting the part of a haughty aristocrat. Jessie Buckley's longing for her father's love is beautifully expressed, as is her devotion to Christian love in general. In the book Tolstoy suggests that Princess Marya's goal is simply "to love men as Christ loved men" and that quality is evident in every scene she plays. I had a lot of trouble accepting Paul Dano as Pierre Bezukhov. So much of Pierre's stature in the novel comes from . . . well, from his stature. He's described over and over as being tall, broad shouldered, clumsy, too big to fit indoors, moving like a big bear. His childlike qualities, his kindness and trusting nature, are balanced out by a gigantic and often menacing physical presence. Now, Paul Dano gets the childish side of Pierre perfectly, but in the darker moments there's definitely something missing. Even when he's a prisoner of the French he comes across more like Billy Pilgrim in SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE than like the Pierre of the book, who is looked upon by both prisoners and guards as a natural leader. I think there's a tendency today to downplay brute male strength as a positive asset, and Paul Dano's casting is symptomatic of a kind of bizarre politically correct form of censorship. But after all, this is a very multi- faceted character, and Paul D. certainly does capture Pierre's gentleness and kindness. I don't want this to be a ten page review, so I just want to say that the rest of the very large cast is absolutely extraordinary. While Andrey, Pierre, Natasha and Marya are so complex that no actor could really capture them completely, there are dozens of lesser characters who actually come more to life in this mini-series than they do in the book itself. I just want to mention very briefly the following performances:Tom Burke as Dolohov and Thomas Arnold as Denisov . . . these two characters are like book-ends, the good guy soldier and the bad guy soldier. And the two Toms nail them perfectly!Aisling Loftus as Sonya was a true revelation. Reading the book as a kid, I always felt like Tolstoy had it in for Sonya. She's the poor relation who always gets left out in the cold, and Tolstoy does a lot of victim-blaming to rationalize how the system works. But Aisling Loftus gives Sonya a depth, strength, and courage that's actually better than what's in the book! Greta Scacchi and Adrian Edmondson as Countess Rostov her husband Count Rostov. So much of the magic of WAR AND PEACE comes from the sense of family warmth and happiness in the Rostov home. These two actors really make you understand why Nikolay and his sister Natasha are so much loved and so at home in the world, because they grew up with the most loving parents imaginable! Even their flaws are endearing and totally believable. Tuppence Middleton and Callum Turner really make an impression as the evil, deadly siblings, Helene and Anatole Kuragin. The two of them are like a perfectly matched pair of dragons, or a couple of deliciously deadly vampires set down among the unsuspecting nobility! But the actors find something sad and almost desperate about both of them, keeping them real and capturing the humanity of Tolstoy's vision even with characters he painted in very broad strokes. The highest compliment you can pay to this production is that the great characters are represented in (almost) all their complexity, and that there are minor characters who are more real here than they were on the printed page. What a fabulous achievement for the writer, the director, the fabulous cast and the BBC!

A truly beautiful depiction of a classic novel. Emotional and deeply tragic, this is the film version we have been waiting for. The characters are brought from the page to the screen perfectly. I will be seeking it out for purchase as this is a must own series. I fell in love with the characters almost right away and I think that you will do the same. Love, hate,fear, pain, sorrow, and plenty of goose bumps. This mini series will move you and bring you to tears more than once. "Do you think you could love me?""Yes, yes I do..."I need not say any more.

This is another missed opportunity.What the hell are those directors thinking, when making period dramas and especially adapting amazing literary master-peaces for the screen.It is obvious, that they do not read the books that are the subject of those adaptations and if they do, they are to stupid to comprehend the depths of the literature they are reading.Casting was simply WTF, because all of those young actors are completely out of depth. It does not mean that they are bad actors, they simply are not suited for these roles. The script is boring and does not do justice in any shape or form tho the books "War and Peace".All in all, the way I watched this mini series was simply fast forwarding to the battle scenes, which were just as badly done. It is to bad, that BBC which is way WAY better in producing period dramas that that crazy Hollywood, which I cannot stand in all honesty as anything "period" that comes from US is simply a soft pornographic series and has nothing to do with the period it is set in.I recommend you miss this peace of cow dung, and watch the old 1070's version. This is peace of horse dung.

-------SPOILERS------------ I think ,like the book,this series has to work on 4 levels.Historical,social,personal and philosophical. The historical aspect of Napoleons invasion of Russia,is always interesting,and everything, all the historical details in this series are well made.The locations,the sets ,the costumes,the horses,the carriages,all the props,the digital work in the battle scenes,its all very well done and a greatly satisfying experience.Its a visual feast.For that alone this series is well worth watching. The Social aspect of early 19th century Russian aristocracy,is also pretty well presented.Most of the Social issues still make sense to the modern viewer,as desire for Social position and wealth is still understandable today. Where this series lost me is when it comes to the lead trio.The two male lead characters never made any sense to me and the only character that looks like a real person at all is Natasha,as played by Lily JAmes. Pierre,is a very hard character to play,because as he is written by Tolstoy,he is on the borderline between a charming man and a total idiot.So any adapting writers to write him and actors struggle to play him is to make him rather interesting and less of an idiot.I don't think either Davies or Dano managed that very well.I think he is more of an idiot in this series than an interesting personality.The defining scene ,that one has to feel if Pierre is a worthy personality,is when he finally gets together with Natasha in the end.I just didn't feel that.When he kissed her i felt like ,woah the poor girl!!!If things were done correctly one should have felt satisfied they get together.They just didn't click for me in this series. The other character is of course Andrei.He never came alive for me in this series.For me here he is more of a cardboard character that never made any sense to the viewer.His motives are as obscure and perplexing as anything anyone has ever seen.Andrei is torn between duty, glory,position,ideals,family,romance,and existential values.Not exactly an easy character either.When he goes to war,or decides on his romance with Natasha,I don't think Norton managed to get through this character at all,i think he never understood him and just played him,as an incomprehensible historical figure. The only one of the lead trio that survived in this series,IMO is Natasha .As played by Lily JAmes,she looks like areal person,mainly because i think she is much simpler than the other two lead characters.She has much simpler motives to get through her life,find romance and happiness.All goes terribly wrong for her all the time,and she is a character modern audiences i believe can understand much more easily,unlike the other two leads. The rest of the cast does a pretty good job,with varying degrees of success but i didn't have much trouble with any one of them.The main supporting actors did a good job ,i think ,their job was much easier than that of the leads of course. Finally,on the philosophical level,all attempts in any series i believe or any movie,are doomed to fail.Philosophy really doesn't translate to the cinema.Its something that belongs in the written words,one has to read it ,doesnt belong in the World of visual medium.FOr most philosophical ideas ,Tolstoy used mostly Pierre as a medium character ,and all attempts to present this concept in this series sounds just ridiculous.Pierre just bursts out every now and then ,some stupid sounding ideas about life that just make him look even more idiotic.Unfortunately,its impossible not to include some notion,of Tolstoys philosophical reflections since they are a basic part of his characters.