Michel Strogoff, corriere dello zar

This is another Italian version of Jules Verne's most dramatic novel 14 years after the great spectacular one of 1956 with Curd Jurgens as Strogoff. This version is more modest and more intimate and personal, but it has tampered a considerable deal with the original novel, without making the story better, rather the contrary, as is usually the case. However it begins interesting enough with the career of Ivan Ogareff, explaining why he became a rebel and traitor, and it is a stroke of ingenuity to make him quite handsome, actually vying with the good looks of John Philip Law as Strogoff, who all the same is better and more convincing as Strogoff than the bulky Curd Jurgens in the earlier version. This is less spectacular, but it nevertheless has some grand cavalry and battle scenes, although they come late at the battle of Irkutsk fought outside the city, ignoring all Jules Verne's intrigues inside the city. It is not a better version than the previous one, but they complement each other, and Mimsy Farmer makes a great performance as a more complex character of Nadia. Also here the music is beautiful, but the older version remains more impressive for its more spectacular preferences.