Uncle Vanya (1970): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1970, Uncle Vanya is a drama film directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, running about 104 minutes.

What it’s about. Serebryakov, a retired professor and his beautiful, much younger second wife, Yeléna, visit their country estate, which funds their urban lifestyle. Vanya, brother of the Professor's first wife, who manages the farm estate, and the local Doctor Astrov, both fall under Yelena's spell, while complaining of the endless ennui of their provincial existence. Astrov is an experienced physician who performs his job conscientiously, but has lost all idealism and spends much of his time drinking. Sofya, the Professor's daughter by his first wife, who works to keep the estate going with her uncle Vanya, meanwhile suffers from lack of esteem over what she sees as her own lack of beauty, and from an unrequited love for Dr. Astrov. Matters are brought to a head when the Professor announces his intention to sell the estate, Vanya and Sofya's home, to achieve a higher income for himself and his wife.

Who’s in it. Uncle Vanya stars Innokentiy Smoktunovskiy as Ivan 'Uncle Vanya' Voinitsky, Sergey Bondarchuk as Dr. Mikhail Lvovich Astrov, Irina Kupchenko as Sofya Aleksandrovna Serebryakova and Irina Miroshnichenko as Yelena Andreevna Serebryakova, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 7.2/10, Uncle Vanya has been warmly received by audiences. It went on to earn $2K at the box office.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Uncle Vanya page.

If you liked it. Fans of Uncle Vanya tend to enjoy The Shawshank Redemption, The Godfather, Schindler's List and The Godfather Part II.