Eugene Onegin Film Adaptations: The Loss or Transformation of Alexander Pushkin’s Poetic Code?

Abstract

Abstract: Screen adaptations remain a relevant issue for both cinema and literary studies, especially those of such complex works as Alexander Pushkin’s novel in verse Eugene Onegin. The article compares the versions by Martha Fiennes (1999) and Sarik Andreasyan (2024) from the perspective of Pushkin’s poetic code. Cinematic interpretations inevitably transform the irony, lyricism, multilayered structure, and unique metanarrative of Pushkin’s text because films have a different narrative pace and expressive means. The author used the semiotic approach, as well as comparative, cultural-semiotic, descriptive, and intertextual methods, to study the transformation of Pushkin’s poetic code on different levels in the context of its visual interpretations. The analysis concentrated on such aspects as the reduction and / or adaptation of the original text, the image transformation of the main characters, and the visual interpretation of the original chronotope. M. Fiennes’ version is a significant attempt to transpose a classic work into a cinematic format. However, its focus on the visual and dramatic elements simplifies the poetic complexity of the original, resulting in a profound modification of Pushkin’s poetic code. S. Andreasyan’s version simplifies and adapts the text to suit contemporary cinema: as a result, the film becomes an illustration to the plot that fails to render the deeper poetic layers.