Lifetime staged an unexpected coup with its BBC co-production War & Peace, a lush and soulful retelling of Leo Tolstoy’s indomitable classic. Adapted by Andrew Davies (Pride and Prejudice) and directed in full by Peaky BlindersTom Harper (that singularity of vision helps enormously with keeping the sprawling tale unified), the miniseries is a showcase of great British acting talent, although it’s an American who stands out above all.

I came into this third episode of War & Peace expecting to just write about Paul Dano, who has been exceptional through the first two parts of the series as Pierre Bezukhov, a thoughtful but often naive Russian aristocrat who makes a series of poor decisions throughout the story. And yet, "Part 3" also showed particularly notable work from Lily James as Natasha Rostova, who grows up immensely over these two hours, as well as James Norton’s tormented portrayal of Andrei Bolkonsky.


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Image via BBC

Still, Dano shines even against these other wonderful performances, despite the fact that “Part 3” was not largely focused upon him. But, it found space to show the core struggles Pierre faces, from his impossible love for Natasha to his scheming wife’s continued infidelity. He tries to mend things between Andrei and Natasha, yet curses his larger inability to be the change he so desired when he joined the Free Masons. “Part 3” didn’t alight much on Pierre’s faith and his conversion to Christianity, but “Part 2” saw a beautiful transformation in him that seem to portend a sea change.

But Russian novels are rarely so straight-forward, and “Part 3” had Pierre hearing the echo of the first Free Mason he met, and confessing to Natasha that he is afraid he’s done nothing with his life. Yet Dano imbues Pierre with such a grounded nature that he never becomes morose. Natasha and Andrei both light up whenever they see Pierre, and viewers should feel the same way. Dano’s Pierre is earnest, impassioned, thoughtful, and quirky. He slides into scenes in the knick of time, and begs our forgiveness for not being helpful enough. He desperately loves Natasha, yet never lets it cloud his selfless nature when it comes to Andrei. But, he will still chase Anatole (Callum Turner) out of Moscow when need be.

That scene was yet another example of Dano’s mastery of his character, when he confronts the dastardly Anatole and threatens to bludgeon him. It wasn’t the moment of anger that made the impression, although it was powerful (Pierre so often speaks in a hushed toned) — it was in the moments afterwards, when Pierre took hold of himself, slowly, his fingers flexing as he considered whether or not to throttle Anatole, and as he held back words he surely wished to wield as weapons. In a fantastic little flourish to finish off the confrontation, he swipes gently at Anatole’s scarf enough to knock it from his shoulder. Whether it was intentional or not, it worked to fantastic effect. It was a last pronouncement of power, something Pierre typically doesn’t wield so boldly.


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Image via BBC

Though he stood up for himself against Dolokov (Tom Burke, who has been quietly stealing the show with his brief scenes), once he improbably shot him, he was instantly remorseful and forlorn at the idea of having lost a friend (and though Dolokov survived, the friendship was most certainly over). He interferes with Natasha and Andrei’s love life in the hopes of uniting them, and then comforts them both when reconciliation seems impossible. He pines for Natasha, and punishes himself by saying he will see her less. In these moments of empathy and uncertainty, Dano furrows his eyebrows in a way that expresses everything words cannot. He also displays a particular kind of half-smile that betrays a knowing and a comfort that things may not be good, but he understands why and he desperately wishes you felt better.

In Dano’s hands, Pierre is the best friend a person could have. He can be frustrating and a little irritating (like when he wanders into the soldier’s encampment before the Battle of Borodino hoping only to “see what’s going on”). But he does so only as a messenger of good will, and as a kind of sponge, soaking up experiences that will continue to inform his sweet and wise countenance. His story is full of frustration and anguish, as he fights an inward battle between base desires and a higher calling. It is for those reasons and more — that his Pierre becomes not just a character, but a person we know, who happens to very naturally exist on screen — that Paul Dano is the TV Performer of the Week.

War & Peace concludes Monday, February 8th on Lifetime. You can read about previous TV Performers of the Week here.

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Image via BBC

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Image via Lifetime