War and Peace (film, 1956)

War and Peace is a 1956 American-Italian epic historical drama directed by King Vidor, adapted from Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel of the same name. Produced by Dino De Laurentiis and Carlo Ponti for Paramount Pictures, the film features a score by Nino Rota and cinematography by Jack Cardiff. The screenplay was a collaborative effort involving Vidor alongside Bridget Boland, Mario Camerini, Ennio De Concini, Ivo Perilli and Mario Soldati, among others.

Set in Russia during the Napoleonic Wars, the film stars Audrey Hepburn as Natasha, Henry Fonda as Pierre and Mel Ferrer as Andrei, supported by Vittorio Gassman, Herbert Lom, Oskar Homolka, Anita Ekberg and John Mills. Opening in August 1956 to a mixed reception, it was faulted for compressing Tolstoy's sprawling novel and for casting the 50-year-old Fonda as the young Pierre. It nonetheless earned three Academy Award nominations and won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film.