Anna Karenina Page #42

Anna, with her cup of coffee, comes in and looks down from the window.

ANNA'S POV--

Vronsky, hat in hand, at the coach window, accepts a large envelope from a

lilac-gloved hand. He bows. With a wave of the hand and a flash of golden

hair, the coach pulls away. Vronsky goes back inside.

INT. STUDY, HOTEL SUITE, SAME TIME--DAY

With the envelope, Vronsky comes in. Anna is as he left her, the cigarette

stubbed out.

ANNA:

So it's the child.

VRONSKY:

She brought papers from Maman.

He hesitates, thinking she is about to speak.

VRONSKY (CONT'D)

Anna?

She stays silent. He leaves.

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INT. BEDROOM, HOTEL SUITE, SAME TIME--DAY

Anna finds Annushka filling several half-filled cases.

ANNA:

Unpack everything. We're not going.

She lies down on the bed. Annushka would like to comfort her.

ANNUSHKA:

Anna Arkadyeva . . .

ANNA:

When Count Vronsky comes back, tell

him . . . I don't want to be disturbed.

INT. BEDROOM, HOTEL SUITE--NIGHT

Anna is listening for Vronsky's return. She hears him come in. She hears

him approach. Then she hears Annushka's voice, then Vronsky's voice. She

waits in suspense, disappointed as Vronsky's steps retreat.

INT. STUDY, HOTEL SUITE--NIGHT

Anna, holding a candle-lamp, finds Vronsky asleep on the couch. She hesi-

tates, but turns away.

INT. BEDROOM, HOTEL SUITE--DAY

Anna wakes. She re-collects herself. She looks at the bedside clock. In a sud-

den hurry she leaves the bed and the bedroom.

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INT. OUTSIDE THE BEDROOM, HOTEL SUITE, SAME

TIME--DAY

Anna finds Annushka waiting.

ANNA:

Count Vronsky . . . ?

ANNUSHKA:

He went out early, to the stables, he said.

Anna collapses on a chair and weeps.

ANNA:

Oh, Annushka . . . I should have

died. Do you remember?

ANNUSHKA:

Don't take it to heart, Anna Arkadyeva . . .

ANNA:

I've made him hate me.

INT. CLOSE (HOTEL)--DAY

Anna's hand writes in a hurry: "I'm to blame. Come home. I'm

frightened."

INT. HOTEL SUITE, SAME TIME--DAY

Anna seals the note and gives it to Annushka.

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ANNA:

Tell Michael to hurry.

Annushka runs out with the note.

INT. HOTEL SUITE--DAY

Anna is keeping watch at the window . . . and is rewarded by the return-

ing coach. She hurries out.

INT. STAIRS, HOTEL--DAY

Anna looks down into the entrance hall. Michael, the Coachman, comes in

and comes up the stairs to her. She sees that he is holding her note.

MICHAEL:

Count Vronsky had already left, Your Excel-

lency. He took a cab to the station . . . to the

Countess.

INT. LOCAL TRAIN--DAY

Anna clutches her red bag to her, sitting among passengers.

Anna looks about her. Across the carriage she sees through the window that

her train is overtaking another passenger train on the next line.

She looks at the windows of the other train "going by" . . . seeing the pas-

sengers inside.

Unexpectedly, she seems to see a Man who might be Vronsky sitting opposite

a laughing Woman who might be Princess Sorokina.

191

Anna's body jerks involuntarily. She half rises. The image, however, is

brief and is borne away, as her own train goes by, accelerating. The win-

dows opposite pick up speed as she leaves them behind--

And then she has the same illusion again-- a "Vronsky" and a "Sorokina"

glimpsed in the other train and snatched away in the instant.

Now she stands up and goes to the opposite window, where the windows

of the other train are flashing by in the (anachronistic) manner of pro-

jected film-frames, and she sees "Vronskys" and "Sorokinas" flashing by at

gathering speed. And then the train has gone and there's nothing going by

but the view.

Anna collapses into the nearest seat.

EXT. LOCAL STATION, SAME TIME--DAY

The train arrives at a small station.

Anna steps down from the train. The platform is well populated by people

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