Les Possédés (1988) - film review

In 1870, a group of young Russian revolutionaries are planning to overturn the established order and rebuild their country anew.  One of the group, Sjatov, is awaiting the return of an aristocrat, Nicolas Stavroguine, who will takes his place as leader.  By the time Stavroguine arrives, the group have grown suspicious of Sjatov’s loyalty and decide that he must die.

With his film version of Dostoyevsky’s novel The Possessed (a.k.a. The Devils ), leading Polish director Andrzej Wajda attempted what was possibly the biggest challenge of his career – and with limited success.  The power of Dostoyevsky’s work resides in its literary form, perhaps more so than any author, and such writing does not translate easily to film, a fact to which several well-intended film adaptations amply testify.  In a bold project, which took a decade to realise, Wajda sought to capture the essence of the source novel without getting overwhelmed by its mass of detail and heavily intellectualised politics.  The result is in parts impressive but by no means wholly successful.

Although Wajda manages to capture – quite brilliantly – the sense of hysteria and self-deception which is so evident in Dostoyevsky’s writing, he is less successful in weaving a coherent narrative with credible characters.  Stylistically, the film merits the considerable praise – it is beautifully filmed and laden with atmosphere.  Yet the whole thing lacks humanity – surely one of the most apparent, most essential ingredients in Dostoyevsky’s work.  Whether it was the result of having a mixed French/Polish cast or just the impossibility of breathing life into Dostoyevsky’s inordinately complex creations, the characters in this film appear to be mere caricatures or abstract personifications of flawed ideals, not real living beings.  Consequently, it is scarcely surprising that the film fails to engage its audience, even with such an impressive cast (which includes Omar Sharif and Isabelle Huppert).  Nevertheless, whilst the end result is imperfect, Les Possédés is an intriguing film with some powerful messages.  At the very least, Andrzej Wajda should be commended for the vision and tenacity he displayed in adapting one of the most challenging works in Russian literature.

© James Travers 2003

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