Such a beautiful and delicate way of translating Shosty's music, I love it.
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| Next 🡪Comment on Dances of the Dolls (1985)
2.
beaheine
2026-10-22 16:19:19
Such a beautiful and delicate way of translating Shosty's music, I love it.
Such a beautiful and delicate way of translating Shosty's music, I love it.
Comment on The Miraculous Bell (1949)
1.
Admin
2026-10-19 03:01:03 (edited 2026-10-19 03:10:45)
A lovely traditional Russian fairy tale film, and a very good entry in the Brumbergs' filmography. The late 1940s and early 1950s was the era of some very good adaptations of well-known fairy tales. In later decades, as directors ran out of classic stories to adapt and just because of stylistic preferences, they often tried to make their fairy tale films more "modern" and "interesting" (a good example is the 1975 adaption of The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats), but there's something to be said for just telling the stories in a straightforward and honest manner, without trying to subvert them or add "modern relevance" to them.
I like the script, the art direction, the animation and the voice acting a lot - nothing to complain about here.
There would be many later adaptations of this story, or a slightly different version of it in which the bear actually kidnaps Masha for a while. For example "Cheburashka" director Roman Kachanov made Little Masha and the Bear (1960), which uses puppets. Sergey Olifirenko directed Mashenka (1992), a bit of a satire in which the little girl's eagerness to help far outmatches her actual ability to do so. And of course, that idea then would lead directly into the popular modern computer animated TV series "Masha and the Bear". The little girl seems to get more and more destructive in each newer adaptation, which perhaps reflects the changing ways in which children are raised and how much they are expected to help around the house, to the point that the little girl's competence and personality in the original story begin to seem very unrealistic.
There's also a very similar fairy tale called "Morozko" in which Grandfather Frost (the Russian "Santa Claus") takes the place of the bear. This was adapted by director Vladimir Degtyaryov in The Wondrous Bell (1956, puppets) and by Ivan Aksenchuk in Frost Ivanovich (1981).
A lovely traditional Russian fairy tale film, and a very good entry in the Brumbergs' filmography. The late 1940s and early 1950s was the era of some very good adaptations of well-known fairy tales. In later decades, as directors ran out of classic stories to adapt and just because of stylistic preferences, they often tried to make their fairy tale films more "modern" and "interesting" (a good example is the 1975 adaption of The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats), but there's something to be said for just telling the stories in a straightforward and honest manner, without trying to subvert them or add "modern relevance" to them.
I like the script, the art direction, the animation and the voice acting a lot - nothing to complain about here.
There would be many later adaptations of this story, or a slightly different version of it in which the bear actually kidnaps Masha for a while. For example "Cheburashka" director Roman Kachanov made Little Masha and the Bear (1960), which uses puppets. Sergey Olifirenko directed Mashenka (1992), a bit of a satire in which the little girl's eagerness to help far outmatches her actual ability to do so. And of course, that idea then would lead directly into the popular modern computer animated TV series "Masha and the Bear". The little girl seems to get more and more destructive in each newer adaptation, which perhaps reflects the changing ways in which children are raised and how much they are expected to help around the house, to the point that the little girl's competence and personality in the original story begin to seem very unrealistic.
There's also a very similar fairy tale called "Morozko" in which Grandfather Frost (the Russian "Santa Claus") takes the place of the bear. This was adapted by director Vladimir Degtyaryov in The Wondrous Bell (1956, puppets) and by Ivan Aksenchuk in Frost Ivanovich (1981).
Comment on The Fulfilment of Wishes (1957)
1.
Admin
2026-10-17 13:04:14 (edited 2026-10-17 13:18:42)
I think that this one is solid, but not brilliant. It's a kind of by-the-book adaptation. The story it's based on is quite well-written. The screenplay is good as well, following the original pretty closely. The art style is ok, but the late 1950s is probably my least favourite period of the Brumbergs' animation, as you still have the remains of realism (with rotoscoped characters) but the drawing style is much simplified and less interesting to look at compared to the late 1940s-early 1950s (to make each frame quicker to draw, I guess). Some other Soviet animation directors were doing the same thing as well in that period.
I think the king was a stronger character in the original story - it seemed like they weren't exactly sure what aspects focus on. He goes through the motions of the script, but doesn't really stand out as a character. Also, I think that in the original story it was bit of a running joke that "stoic down-to-earth salt-of-the-earth" Zerbino remains completely uncurious and unperturbed no matter what insane things happen around him, while that element is much less there in the cartoon.
As for the subtitles - like many of the other Brumberg films, I added this film to the site back before I decided on checking the quality of the English subtitles before adding any new film. So the subtitles that had been on the site for years were rated "unknown" (meaning, I had never checked them), but in fact were not very good; they were made in 2015 by Eus (a native Dutch-speaker with not-the-best command of Russian) on the basis of earlier subs by Zhurka75 (a native Russian-speaker with not-the-best command of English). I retranslated almost every line by consulting the Russian subtitles and the 19th-century English version of the story. I tried to stick to the 19th-century style of English for consistency, even when I changed the original lines to be closer to the actual Russian text.
I think that this one is solid, but not brilliant. It's a kind of by-the-book adaptation. The story it's based on is quite well-written. The screenplay is good as well, following the original pretty closely. The art style is ok, but the late 1950s is probably my least favourite period of the Brumbergs' animation, as you still have the remains of realism (with rotoscoped characters) but the drawing style is much simplified and less interesting to look at compared to the late 1940s-early 1950s (to make each frame quicker to draw, I guess). Some other Soviet animation directors were doing the same thing as well in that period.
I think the king was a stronger character in the original story - it seemed like they weren't exactly sure what aspects focus on. He goes through the motions of the script, but doesn't really stand out as a character. Also, I think that in the original story it was bit of a running joke that "stoic down-to-earth salt-of-the-earth" Zerbino remains completely uncurious and unperturbed no matter what insane things happen around him, while that element is much less there in the cartoon.
As for the subtitles - like many of the other Brumberg films, I added this film to the site back before I decided on checking the quality of the English subtitles before adding any new film. So the subtitles that had been on the site for years were rated "unknown" (meaning, I had never checked them), but in fact were not very good; they were made in 2015 by Eus (a native Dutch-speaker with not-the-best command of Russian) on the basis of earlier subs by Zhurka75 (a native Russian-speaker with not-the-best command of English). I retranslated almost every line by consulting the Russian subtitles and the 19th-century English version of the story. I tried to stick to the 19th-century style of English for consistency, even when I changed the original lines to be closer to the actual Russian text.
Comment on The Firebird Riders (1985)
1.
Admin
2026-10-16 00:23:27 (edited 2026-10-16 00:24:59)
Just about everyone is this film is cruel and cynical, doing anything possible to take advantage of other "suckers". There's no hint of the kindness that Soviet animation was traditionally known and praised for (at least by its fans). Even the supposed "good guy" commits murder. The stoic heroism of the traditional story is portrayed as something that maybe existed once, but is out of place in modern times. I think that in a Moscow-based studio, this sort of script would not have been allowed - the periphery apparently had more freedom in this regard, at least by 1985. Does it serve more as a warning, as a guide? Or as a preview of the dog-eat-dog times that were shortly to come?
Just about everyone is this film is cruel and cynical, doing anything possible to take advantage of other "suckers". There's no hint of the kindness that Soviet animation was traditionally known and praised for (at least by its fans). Even the supposed "good guy" commits murder. The stoic heroism of the traditional story is portrayed as something that maybe existed once, but is out of place in modern times. I think that in a Moscow-based studio, this sort of script would not have been allowed - the periphery apparently had more freedom in this regard, at least by 1985. Does it serve more as a warning, as a guide? Or as a preview of the dog-eat-dog times that were shortly to come?
Comment on Ping Pong (1988)
1.
Admin
2026-10-14 23:08:17
I think I like this one less than Mailyan's previous film "Planet 888", although I can't say I dislike it. The direction is dynamic, but the poor video quality of the only copy I could find makes it a bit hard to watch. Though very different in technique, they are both about the evils of war (which, in each film, appears to be civilization-ending). In this film, though, the war itself takes up a much bigger amount of time.
I think I like this one less than Mailyan's previous film "Planet 888", although I can't say I dislike it. The direction is dynamic, but the poor video quality of the only copy I could find makes it a bit hard to watch. Though very different in technique, they are both about the evils of war (which, in each film, appears to be civilization-ending). In this film, though, the war itself takes up a much bigger amount of time.
Comment on Motorcyclist at Fault (1984)
2.
Admin
2026-10-14 20:52:59 (edited 2026-10-14 20:53:34)
A bit of a housekeeping note: I just noticed that Cynir had tried to add this film to the site in Jan 2024, but I didn't approve it back then because it still needed a translation.
Here are some translations of the film's title from Cynir's submission that could be added to the site if someone adds subtitles in those languages:
Па віне матацыкліста (be)
По вина на мотоциклетиста (bu)
З вини мотоцикліста (uk)
Chỉ tại kẻ đi xe gắn máy (vi)
由於摩托車手的失誤 (zh)
A bit of a housekeeping note: I just noticed that Cynir had tried to add this film to the site in Jan 2024, but I didn't approve it back then because it still needed a translation.
Here are some translations of the film's title from Cynir's submission that could be added to the site if someone adds subtitles in those languages:
Па віне матацыкліста (be)
По вина на мотоциклетиста (bu)
З вини мотоцикліста (uk)
Chỉ tại kẻ đi xe gắn máy (vi)
由於摩托車手的失誤 (zh)
Comment on Little Havroshechka (2006)
2.
Admin
2026-10-14 20:47:48
Found a comment about it that Eus sent me in Jan 2024: "Beautiful film, but the murder of the cow and the gruesomeness of the spider sisters caused it to not be broadcast much, if at all."
Found a comment about it that Eus sent me in Jan 2024: "Beautiful film, but the murder of the cow and the gruesomeness of the spider sisters caused it to not be broadcast much, if at all."
Comment on Planet 888 (1985)
1.
Admin
2026-10-14 20:35:04
A surprisingly nice short sci-fi animation from Armenia. The art style and animation are pretty otherworldly, but despite this, the main characters move well and the plot ends up being pretty understandable, despite no dialogue being spoken. The first time I watched it, it was in atrocious video quality and it was very hard to tell what was going on. The new 2023 scan by the RuTracker film archivists made things a lot clearer.
For some reason, despite being distributed in the RSFSR (see: the Russian credits in the nice scan), it lacks an animator.ru entry. It does list two other films directed by him, which I haven't watched yet. Neither seems to have had a nice scan done, though.
A surprisingly nice short sci-fi animation from Armenia. The art style and animation are pretty otherworldly, but despite this, the main characters move well and the plot ends up being pretty understandable, despite no dialogue being spoken. The first time I watched it, it was in atrocious video quality and it was very hard to tell what was going on. The new 2023 scan by the RuTracker film archivists made things a lot clearer.
For some reason, despite being distributed in the RSFSR (see: the Russian credits in the nice scan), it lacks an animator.ru entry. It does list two other films directed by him, which I haven't watched yet. Neither seems to have had a nice scan done, though.
Comment on Cabaret (1981)
1.
Admin
2026-10-11 00:22:21 (edited 2026-10-11 00:37:49)
Starting to work on this one really involved going down a rabbit hole much deeper than I intended, and included tracking down three plays and a poem in 3 different languages. The screenplay is kind of ingenious in taking a bunch of different plays by Lorca and making connections between them. They do indeed have some plot similarities. All the same, the tonal shift between the brilliant, farcical and hilarious first half and the romantic, sombre and tragic second half is jarring. This movie is a real emotional roller coaster! Judging from the "5.6" user rating on Kinopoisk, not everyone appreciated that transition and some would have preferred for the film to have ended at the half-way point, before our main hero, Don Cristobal, cuts his own strings (IMDB's rating is a more generous "7.5").
Well, the first half is definitely memorable! It's hard for me not to notice the sheer virtuosity of what Garanina was trying to do with stop motion - all those camera movements, quick cuts, blurred motion, exquisite lighting... and those exquisite puppets! They were made by Lyudmila Soshinskaya, who mainly worked as a sculptor. Her works are on display at some of the most famous Russian galleries and museums.
The second half, meanwhile, reminds me of the slow pace and poetry that would show up later in sections of Garanina's 1988 animated feature The Cat Who Walked By Herself. From a farce, it turns into a surreal dream that speaks in the language of feelings. It does away with most of the details of the plot of the "Don Perlimplin" play it is based on (throwing away the important housekeeper character, for example, or the letters that the young woman received), narrowing the focus only to the emotional relationship between the two main characters. It's a hard thing to get right, though I think Garanina mainly succeeds. On the other hand, it might be too abstract for some.
Starting to work on this one really involved going down a rabbit hole much deeper than I intended, and included tracking down three plays and a poem in 3 different languages. The screenplay is kind of ingenious in taking a bunch of different plays by Lorca and making connections between them. They do indeed have some plot similarities. All the same, the tonal shift between the brilliant, farcical and hilarious first half and the romantic, sombre and tragic second half is jarring. This movie is a real emotional roller coaster! Judging from the "5.6" user rating on Kinopoisk, not everyone appreciated that transition and some would have preferred for the film to have ended at the half-way point, before our main hero, Don Cristobal, cuts his own strings (IMDB's rating is a more generous "7.5").
Well, the first half is definitely memorable! It's hard for me not to notice the sheer virtuosity of what Garanina was trying to do with stop motion - all those camera movements, quick cuts, blurred motion, exquisite lighting... and those exquisite puppets! They were made by Lyudmila Soshinskaya, who mainly worked as a sculptor. Her works are on display at some of the most famous Russian galleries and museums.
The second half, meanwhile, reminds me of the slow pace and poetry that would show up later in sections of Garanina's 1988 animated feature The Cat Who Walked By Herself. From a farce, it turns into a surreal dream that speaks in the language of feelings. It does away with most of the details of the plot of the "Don Perlimplin" play it is based on (throwing away the important housekeeper character, for example, or the letters that the young woman received), narrowing the focus only to the emotional relationship between the two main characters. It's a hard thing to get right, though I think Garanina mainly succeeds. On the other hand, it might be too abstract for some.
Comment on The Russian Waltz (2026)
2.
Admin
2026-10-05 01:06:07 (edited 2026-10-05 01:26:29)
>>1
>at this point Bardin's career as director is one of the longest in Russian animation: 51 years, second only (I think) to the 57-year-long career of the Soviet animation patriarch, Ivan Ivanov-Vano.
Ok, I need to correct this. Andrey Hrzhanovskiy holds the #2 spot - he directed from 1966-2020, so 54 years. He was working on another feature film, too, but I doubt that will be finished now that he's emigrated to Israel and it lost its Russian state funding.
Close behind Bardin is Stanislav Sokolov, who began directing in 1976 (if you count a Moldovan Brandy commercial) or 1977, and is currently woefully underrepresented on this site (though I love his "Hoffmaniada"). He also released a film recently, a 20-minute pilot for his "Bulgakov" animated feature which he claimed could be finished "around 2031". It's very possible that it will be. He managed to complete "Hoffmaniada" even though production often stopped and it took 17 years, after all.
>>1
>at this point Bardin's career as director is one of the longest in Russian animation: 51 years, second only (I think) to the 57-year-long career of the Soviet animation patriarch, Ivan Ivanov-Vano.
Ok, I need to correct this. Andrey Hrzhanovskiy holds the #2 spot - he directed from 1966-2020, so 54 years. He was working on another feature film, too, but I doubt that will be finished now that he's emigrated to Israel and it lost its Russian state funding.
Close behind Bardin is Stanislav Sokolov, who began directing in 1976 (if you count a Moldovan Brandy commercial) or 1977, and is currently woefully underrepresented on this site (though I love his "Hoffmaniada"). He also released a film recently, a 20-minute pilot for his "Bulgakov" animated feature which he claimed could be finished "around 2031". It's very possible that it will be. He managed to complete "Hoffmaniada" even though production often stopped and it took 17 years, after all.
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