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Life and Fate: The Complete Series (Dramatised)
- Narrated by: Kenneth Branagh, David Tennant
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
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Life and Fate: The Complete Series (Dramatised)
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Summary
Kenneth Branagh stars in BBC Radio 4's ambitious eight-hour dramatisation of Life and Fate, Vasily Grossman's epic masterpiece set during the Battle of Stalingrad. This powerful work, completed in 1960, charts the fate of both a nation and a family in the turmoil of war. Its comparison of Stalinism with Nazism was considered by Soviet authorities to be so dangerous that the KGB placed the manuscript under arrest and Grossman was informed his book would not be published for at least 200 years.
Having been a household name as one of Russia's most distinguished war correspondents, Grossman died aged 58 - the banning of his book hastening the end of his life - and he would never know the fate of his masterpiece: smuggled out of the Soviet Union on microfilm, to freedom and eventual publication in the West. Today it is increasingly hailed as the most important Russian novel of the 20th century.
What listeners say about Life and Fate: The Complete Series (Dramatised)
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 11-09-22
Brilliant cast
I have rarely been so moved. This is acting at its highest level and about the most profound questions of human life and dignity. Several scenes reduced me to weeping: human suffering and fear are so palpable, one forgets this is ‘acting’ at all. The highest compliment I can pay is that, as soon as I finished , I felt ‘compelled’ to purchase the novel and began reading it that day. I am so grateful to the whole team behind this remarkable production.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
Close your eyes and enjoy
Some of the chapters were sensational! I loved this dramatisation; it gives you a real insight into Russian life (and fate).
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rachel
- 02-04-15
Wonderful writing and superb cast
Wonderful writing and superb cast.
A true and frightening account of a terrible chapter in Russian history brought to life in an expertly written and brilliantly performed radio drama.
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11 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- clare haley
- 06-03-21
Now to read the book !
This was amazing - l have ordered the novel, as l was not always clear on the identity of the female characters in the dramatization, and the story is exceptional
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Michael Darby
- 20-04-20
Life Changing
A beautifully crafted story that shattered my view of humanity but left me with hope
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 31-12-19
Mixed story
Struggled to follow as story moved about.
Also available for free on BBC Radio 4 website.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Grumpy_Bastard
- 15-10-19
Far too much taken out of the original
This dramatised version is far too short to convey the full story, characters and narrative necessary. So many cuts that it, in parts, becomes almost indecipherable. I wouldn’t recommend it.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- stephen
- 12-08-20
One of the best.
One of the greatest books brought to life in a stunning way. Superb performances all round.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- The Curator
- 18-02-22
Stunning
I confess that I started listening to this in 2019 and gave up. Recently I listened to a podcast of the prequel and realised I had this already. I did find hearing them in order quite useful because there are key moments that surround events in the first book but it wouldn’t be a disaster to read one without the other.
The book itself is the story of several interlinked families and associates during the Siege of Stalingrad during WW2. There’s a lot of politics and references to groups within Communism but you don’t really need to know anything to understand Dialectical Materialism to get the point of the ever-moving goalposts in Russia under Stalin. The sense of mistrust and fear that the characters feel towards their friends and neighbours makes the Nazis at the gates to the city seem like a minor worry. It’s got some moments of humour among the pathos but it is a hard listen in places. It also reminded me of Russian classics I read years ago in that what it’s really about is people, place and good.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Pete
- 31-07-15
super cast
you will struggle to find a more poignant beautiful production. the cast is like a who's who of British theatre.. long live BBC drama
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10 people found this helpful