Anna Karenina PosterJoe Wright’s Anna Karenina has been hotly tipped as a strong contender in the coming awards season in the past few months, particularly for Keira Knightley, who has emerged as a prime candidate for Best Actress.

The film entered UK theatres back in September – you can read our review here – and is finally arriving in the US today, in the height of the Oscar season, and Apple have debuted a new featurette in time for its release, revolving around the epic nature of the love story.

“The third collaboration of Academy Award nominee Keira Knightley with director Joe Wright, following the award-winning box office successes “Pride & Prejudice” and “Atonement,” is the epic love story “Anna Karenina,” adapted from Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel by Academy Award winner Tom Stoppard (“Shakespeare in Love”). The story unfolds in its original late-19th-century Russia high-society setting and powerfully explores the capacity for love that surges through the human heart, from the passion between adulterers to the bond between a mother and her children. As Anna (Ms. Knightley) questions her happiness, change comes to her family, friends, and community.”

Knightley stars alongside Jude Law and Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the leading trio, with Matthew Macfadyen, Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Olivia Williams, Kelly Macdonald, Emily Watson, and Holliday Grainger completing the cast brilliantly.

Wright is directing from a script penned by the great Tom Stoppard (Shakespeare in Love), adapting the classic original novel by Leo Tolstoy.

Anna Karenina is still playing in a select number of UK cinemas, and is released in a limited engagement in the US today, 16th November, before expanding further on 30th November. For now, here’s the new featurette, to encourage you to head out to theatres this weekend to see it. It’s truly beautiful, one of the year’s must-see films.