The critics complain that Anastasia fails to deal adequately with the Bolshevik Revolution and that it does not even mention the word Communism. Do they also complain that Snow White and Cinderella are not accurately historically described? The fact is that Anastasia was (and perhaps still is) a real, historical character. Indeed, all of the major characters in the movie Anastasia were actual real people, with the exception, of course, of Dimitri and Vladimir, the two con men who try to locate a suitable impostor to collect a ten million ruble reward which has been offered by the Dowager Empress Marie for the return of the real Anastasia.
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Rasputin was a real person who was a mad monk in the Russian Orthodox Church. History has long debated and will continue to debate the role of Rasputin in bringing about the downfall of the Romanovs. His actual importance was derived from the fact that Czarina Alexandra believed that Rasputin held magical powers to cure or at least to treat the hemophilia which afflicted her son, Alexei. Nasty rumors of the time placed Rasputin in bed having sex with the Czarina and all four of her daughters, while her husband, Nicholas II, was out on the front lines, leading his troops during World War I.
These rumors were based on Rasputin's known habits of debauchery, plus a packet of letters which Czarina Alexandra had written to Rasputin which were stolen from Rasputin's room by another monk named Iliodor and published in the newspapers in 1911. One of these letters from the Czarina to Rasputin said: "How soon will you be close to me again? Come quickly! I am waiting for you and tormenting myself for you."
According to historians, the publication of these letters greatly contributed to the overthrow of the Czar in 1916, which condemned Russia to more than 70 years of Communist rule.
In spite of these flaws, the creators of Anastasia, who are two top refugees from Walt Disney Productions, have done a magnificent job of turning the story of a young girl who was almost certainly killed by a firing squad in 1918, into a compelling children's story. Their attention to detail is fantastic. The real Anastasia looked just like the cartoon character Anastasia (provided that the real Anastasia had lost about 15 pounds. Reports of that time say that the real Anastasia was somewhat overweight, in contrast to the "Barbie Doll" physique of the cartoon version.) In addition, believe it or not, the real Rasputin looked just like the animated cartoon version of Rasputin. The real Czar Nicholas II looked just like the cartoon czar. The real St. Petersberg looks like St. Petersberg, Paris looks like Paris and so on. The real Anastasia had a small dog, just like the movie version. The cartoon Anastasia wears the same outfit and even the same hat as the real Anastasia was photographed wearing.
The creators did take liberties in two respects: In real life, the Dowager Empress Marie, the only immediate member of the ruling Romanov family to escape the firing squad, did not settle in Paris but rather in Denmark. However, the creators have explained that they wanted to capture the image of Paris in the 1920s. They have afforded cameo parts in the movie to such luminaries of that time as Sigmund Freud and Maurice Chevalier. Freud provides his most famous quote, which was that, after much study, he still does not know what women want. Secondly, in depicting the Winter Palace of the czars, the creators knocked out the second floor, thereby combining two floors into one to make the palace look even grander and more majestic than it really is. They also added a grand staircase.
The creators of the movie Anastasia have also spliced in parts of the story of Anna Anderson, a fake but almost convincing Anastasia who was found by a court in Germany in the 1920s to be merely a Polish peasant girl in spite of her strong physical resemblance to the real Anastasia plus the fact that numerous persons who had known the actual Anastasia swore that Anna Anderson was Anastasia.
Anna Anderson died in 1984 in Richmond, Virginia. In 1994, after DNA testing became available, they compared her DNA with that of Anastasia's grand nephew, Prince Philip of England, the husband of Queen Elizabeth. This DNA test proved conclusively that Anna Anderson really was a Polish peasant girl and was not Anastasia.
This DNA test was possible because the royal families of that time intermarried with each other. The royal families of England, Austria and Russia are all really the same family. Queen Victoria of England was the great grandmother of Anastasia.
Tragically, Queen Victoria carried the gene of hemophilia, which she passed on to many of her 9 children, even though she herself was not afflicted with this disease. As a result, the royal families of Europe carry this disease and when two members of that family marry each other, the child is likely to be afflicted. Czarina Alexandria, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, was born in Germany, but when she was married to Czar Nicholas II she brought with her the gene for hemophilia which she passed on to her only son, Alexis.
The real Anastasia has been dug up. The mass grave of her family was discovered in Yekaterinberg in the Ural mountains in 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The bodies of five females and four males were recovered, along with the bones of a small dog. The males were positively identified to include Czar Nicholas II. The dog was Anastasia's dog, whom she is said to have been holding in her arms when they were shot by the firing squad. However, supposedly six females were executed at Yekaterinberg in 1918. These were: Czarina Alexandra, her four daughters, Olga, Titiana, Marie and Anastasia, and the family cook. This means that the body of one female is unaccounted for. Could Anastasia have possibly escaped? Is it possible that she grew up in a Soviet orphanage, as the movie says that she did? Is it possible that Anastasia is among us today and that you are Anastasia?
Why would Anastasia be hiding today if she were alive? Why would a person claim to be Anastasia if she were not? The answer is obvious: MONEY. The Romanovs, like many world leaders, kept their money hidden in foreign bank accounts. There are one billion dollars in assets on deposit in England, just waiting for Anastasia to walk in the door and claim them. Perhaps you are that person!
Above is a photo of the real Anastasia. Here are pictures of the cartoon version of Anastasia and of the evil monk, Rasputin. Here are also photos of the real Czar Nicholas II and of the Winter Palace. After that is a photo of his bones. Next is a photo of Anastasia with her three sisters, Olga, Titiana and Marie, all of whom were murdered. Anastasia is on the right end. Last is a photo of the real Rasputin.
Sam Sloan
