We Live Again, starring Fredric March and Anna Sten, is a 1934 period drama based on Leo Tolstoy's novel Resurrection. Fredric March is Dimitri, a Russian nobleman, who is getting caught up in the beginnings of socialism. He believes in equality of persons, and thus, he spends the bulk of the summer enjoying the company of Katusha (Anna Sten), a beautiful peasant girl who works for his family. Although Dimitri and Katusha are very much in love, by summer's end, they separate, as Dimitri must pursue military training.
Over the next two years, Dimitri's views change, and by the time he returns home, he is not the same man he was before. He does still desire Katusha, though, and in short order, seduces her. The morning after their interlude, Dimitri rides away and out of Katusha's life, leaving nothing behind but an envelope with a piece of money contained within.
Katusha is humiliated and devastated by Dimitri's actions. Soon, though, she discovers that she is pregnant, which makes her situation even worse, for the royals dismiss her from her position. Driven from her home and job, Katusha falls onto very bleak times and, ultimately, finds herself on trial for murder. It is at that point that Dimitri re-enters her life.
As already noted, this movie is based on Leo Tolstoy's novel Resurrection. Some might think that you would need to be a Tolstoy fan in order to enjoy this movie. I don't find that to be the case. I actually don't care for Tolstoy. War and Peace is a huge challenge for me to get through, and I have never been able to get through Anna Karenina. I've never read the novel on which We Live Again is based, but I definitely enjoyed the movie...I even found myself getting misty-eyed on a couple of occasions. Two warnings, though...first, the ending is highly unrealistic. Second, there is a scene in the church about 25 minutes into the movie that was far too long, in my opinion. It went on for about three minutes, and I very nearly gave up on the movie at that point. But I persevered through the boredom...and I'm glad I did. Although this isn't an excellent movie by any means, I think it's a solid 3 stars (more like 3.5) and definitely worth watching. Fredric March gives his usual terrific performance, and Anna Sten, who I'm not overly familiar with, is lovely and very good in her role.
By the way, there is a very strong socialist message in this film, but don't let that deter you from seeing it. It's more a beautiful love story and a story of repentance than anything. The film is out on DVD, so it should be easy enough to track down.
Happy viewing!!