Description:

A somewhat political comedy based on Russian folklore, influenced by avant-garde art.

Only 2/3 (or 1/3) of the film has survived. The ending was as follows: In the dungeon, Sila meets the girl-craftswoman Talan, who has lost her sight because of hard work for Tetyoha. The blacksmith defeats the dragon, frees Talan, obtains the "water of life", which returns her sight to the innocent girl and brings death to the evil Tetyoha.

The full original screenplay, written by Aleksandr Kurs, can be read here (p.134-151 - Т. Д. Цидина. ИСТОРИЯ И ТЕОРИЯ АНИМАЦИИ, 2018).

According to Ivanov-Vano's 1984 book, the music composition was initially offered to and accepted by Sergey Prokofyev while he was on a visit to Moscow, but as he was leaving for America, it made collaboration difficult. Ultimately, it was composed by Anatoliy Nikolayevich Aleksandrov, his debut in film. He later composed a suite on the basis of the music in this film:
ор. 44. «Забавная сюита» из музыки к мультфильму «Царь Дурандай» для большого симфонического оркестра и голоса (сопрано): 1. Пролог. 2, Полька и вальс. 3. Марш. 4. Две песни девицы-мастерицы Талани. 5. Пляска. 6. Три шествия (Забавное, Зловещее, Торжественно-юмористическое), 1935—1938 2-я ред.— 1956 (Рукопись). (source)

The film was made entirely on paper, without any celluloid. It was popular with the public. Ivanov-Vano claimed in his 1984 book that animator John Hubley once told him that the film had been obtained by Walt Disney, who used to show it to his animators (this would have been 1936-1941, when Hubley worked for Disney). Hubley himself wrote that it was "big influence on us guys who later became UPA". It is unknown if that American copy of the film still exists, and if it has the missing final reel.