Review: 'War & Peace'

Even for the most dedicated lover of classic literature, reading "War & Peace" can be a difficult slog. The book is long enough to make Stephen King queasy and it's not just obtuse and confusing. It's written in a style that seems as foreign as the most confusing bit of Shakespeare.

Still, at the core Leo Tolstoy's 1889 "War & Peace" is a great epic tale about Russia during the time of its war against Napoleon. The story screams "historical scenery" and it's no wonder that the novel has been adapted a few times for the big and small screens.

The new miniseries WAR & PEACE is a co-production between the BBC and the History Channel (although it's also airing on sister networks A&E and Lifetime). As you might expect from this partnership, the four-night event is a lush and sweeping story that deserves to be called an "epic." It's also more than a little hard to follow without the assistance of a white board and a bunch of multi-colored markers.

Paul Dano plays Pierre, a man in 1805 who dreams of doing good things in the world. Instead, he inherits a fortune and is ensnared by the fortune-hunting Helene (Tuppence Middleton). Pierre's best friend is Prince Andrei (played by Jim Norton), a handsome hero with a wife and a baby on the way. But he's also soulless and empty inside in a way that becomes more evident as the story plays out. The final component of the core of WAR & PEACE is the sexy and mysterious Natasha, played by Lily James. She comes in and out of their lives in a way that's most likely to eventually crush them.

The cast is crammed with small appearances by a host of familiar names, including Gillian Anderson, Stephen Rea and Jim Broadbent. Everyone does a solid job, but given that so much of the story is compressed to fit into the four nights, it's difficult to emotionally connect with any character.

Still, there is a lot to recommend WAR & PEACE. It has a sprawling, lush look that is engaging and when all is said and done, the miniseries provides a good reminder that war has always been a futile and costly way to solve conflicts.

I'm not sure that WAR & PEACE will convince anyone to go read the original book, but it's a pleasant enough way for fans of historical television shows to pass a few hours.