History VS Hollywood: Anastasia

The Lost Princess

The mystery of Anastasia Romanov is one of the greatest mysteries of the 20th century. Although it has been almost conclusively proven that she did die along with her whole family on 17th July 1917, many to this day believe that she may indeed have survived. Perhaps it's a state of denial and hope that miracles do happen. For it is one of the greatest tragedies that leaves one wondering how such innocent lives can be cut short in the name of revolution.

Anastasia Romanova was the youngest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Alexandra. She was descended from the great houses of Europe, granddaughter to the Russian Tsar, great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria, the 'Matriarch of Europe'. She was the life of the party, so to speak, keeping her family cheerful in the last weeks in captivity. She was raised along with her sisters in virtual seclusion at Tsarskoe Selo, her parents, the Emperor and Empress of Russia, preferring the quiet life to the glamour of the court. This was one of the many things that caused a rift among their subjects, many blaming Alexandra for her lack of social etiquette. Where her parents were secretive Anastasia and her siblings desired to step into the spotlight.

Revolution

When the Great War between Germany and Russia was declared, Alexandra and the girls stepped up and underwent the training required for nursing and ran their own wards, proving themselves exceptional carers. Again, not all their subjects were happy to see their royal family among the sick but it was a testament to the characters of these women that they helped the wounded who needed care.

Sadly, just as they were just beginning to flourish in their lives they were brutally murdered in a basement in the outskirts of Siberia. It is a tragedy that has shaped a large part of 20th century history, emphasizing the end of the all powerful Imperial family. Since 1917 it has been hoped and believed by many that not all the Romanov children were murdered; that one survived the traumatic slaughter of her family: Anastasia.

Over the years many women have come forward claiming to be the lost princess, all sadly proving false. The story has become a legend of the 20th century, becoming the subject of films such as the 1956 production of Anastasia starring Ingrid Bergman and the 1997 animated feature Anastasia, released by 20th century fox. Of course Hollywood has always played fast and loose with history over the years with films such as Braveheart and Gladiator falsifying certain aspects of history to heighten the drama. The mystery of Anastasia has been no different over years.

The Film:

One of the most successful films is the animated classic Anastasia released in 1997, featuring an all star cast of voices such as Meg Ryan, Angela Lansbury, Christopher Lloyd, John Cusack, Kelsey Gramer and Hank Azaria. I remember seeing this film in the cinema and loving it from beginning to end. It was fun with entertaining characters, scary villains and catchy songs such as Journey to the Past and Rumour in St. Petersberg.

Released by 20th Century Fox on November 14 1997, this was the studio's first animated release and it grossed $120,541 in its opening weekend before being released world wide and raking in the money. Directed by Don Bluth (The Land Before Time) and Gary Goldman (All Dogs Go To Heaven),  with a screenplay written by Susan Gauthier with  Noni White and Bob Tzudiker, writers of Disney classics The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Tarzan.

The soundtrack is terrific, with a score by David Newman (Serenity), and memorable songs to sing along to at any age. It's a great treat for the whole family that can hold up against any Disney classic as a whole. What makes it stand apart is that it is based on real events, offering a musical romance that gives the kids joy and the adults a sense of hope for the real Anastasia.

Meg Ryan is wonderful as Anastasia/Anya, who leaves an orphanage after living the last 10 years of her life with no memory of her past. Anya proves a fun, sparky heroine who can hold her own against villain Rasputin. She comes to realize she is Grand Duchess and choose between her past as a royal princess and her future with Dimitri, voiced by John Cusack.

The film takes aspects of the real history, showing auditions for an Anastasia lookalike with humorous results to an actress attempting to convince the Dowager Empress herself of her validity. It's a sad reminder that at the heart was an old woman searching for hope that not all her family was lost to her.

The detail in the animation is terrific, with attention paid to the exteriors and interiors of scenes, to costumes and the characters themselves.

Fact vs Fiction:

Age difference: When the Romanov family were brutally murdered the youngest daughter, Anastasia, was 17 years old. In the Fox animation she is depicted as a child of eight when she flees the Winter Palace with her grandmother Maria Feodorovna. So when we see her again 10 years later she is 18 years old.

300 Year Anniversary: When the film begins the Tsar and his family are celebrating the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty. The voice over states that the year is 1916 when in fact the 300th anniversary was on March 6 1913, 3 years earlier than the film depicts. But the anniversary offers an excuse to display the elegance of the Russian aristocracy to the audience and make the scene much more dramatic when the villain Rasputin places his curse on the family on the anniversary of their ascension to the throne.

Rasputin: The movie's central villain is initially killed at the beginning of the film by drowning. In reality he was already dead when the revolution started. Grigori Rasputin was a mystic and a self proclaimed holy man. He was Tsarina Alexandra's confidante, becoming the main healer to her son Alexei who suffered from Hemophilia which he inherited through his mother. Through Rasputin's influence Alexandra became solitary, and many nobles found him a danger to the empire and so on 30 December 1916 he was murdered by Prince Felix Yusupov and Vladimir Purishkevich. After initially being poisoned with cyanide he was shot by Yusupov and Purishkevich before being dumped into the Malaya Nevka River. .The film does have a little nod to his assasination in the song 'Rumour in St. Petersberg' where a black marketeer tries to sell 'Count Yusupov's pajamas! Comrade, buy the pair.'

Together In Paris: One of the main aspects of the story is Anya's journey to Paris to find her family. Although a lovely setting and likely better known to audiences, Maria Feodorovna was Danish royalty, daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark. She married the future Alexander III on 9 November 1866, becoming Empress in March 1881. In 1916 she was involved in a coup d'etat to abdicate her son from the throne in hopes of saving the monarchy, resulting in a family rift. But the Tsar abdicated a year later, abolishing the monarchy and leading to the eventual murder of the entire family in July 1917. In 1919 Maria left Russia, never to return. She visited her sister in London before returning to her native Denmark where she lived out her final years. She died on 13 October 1928 having outlived four of her six children, and her sister Queen Alexandra of England. She was interred at Roskilde Cathedral on the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark.


Dressing the Part: Despite having to spend a lot of time in rags, when Anastasia finally gets to Paris her costumes are stunning. But the best is indeed her Imperial dress, which was so well researched. It has the iconic shape of Imperial Russian dress while also looking modern with beautiful neutral tones to suit Anya, with a little glitz thrown in. It's just sad it had to get ruined. But it has become her iconic dress in the same vein as Belle's yellow gown in Beauty and the Beast.

From Myth to Fairytale

Despite its inaccuracies it is clear a lot of research went into making this film, from costuming to set design to the music. They've taken a dark and tragic event in history and given the story a deeper meaning: of grief (a bold move for an animated feature) and finding yourself on the other side of that dark tunnel. Anastasia herself has become a beacon of hope over the years, that perhaps not all was lost and here they've given her a strong personality with a great sense of sass. She is a strong individual who can hold her own while still being vulnerable, giving her a relatability that perhaps is hard to find in some of Disney's own heroines. And she goes up against her own villain. She is the heroine of her own story. And the myth has become a fairytale that can be enjoyed again and again.