The Tale of Tsar Saltan

The Tale of Tsar Saltan (Skazka O Tsare Saltane) (1966)

Runtime: 85 minutes

Directed by: Aleksandr Ptushko

Starring: Vladimir Andreyev, Larisa Golubkina, Oleg Vidov, Kseniya Ryabinkina, Sergey Martinson

From: Mosfilm

It was overdue for me to view more from Aleksandr Ptushko, a famed Soviet director little-known in the West. Due to boutique label Deaf Crocodile, in the past I was able to view Ilya Muromets via owning it on Blu and via streaming rental, I’ve also seen the late 50’s Soviet-Finnish film Sampo. Both have had butchered American dubs but those fantasy tales are much better in original form. Dead Crocodile did a swell job presenting those restored movies. The fantasy elements in those included a superman that can rip out tree stumps, a three-headed dragon (no, not King Ghidorah), the Finnish version of the Horn of Plenty, and a witch stealing the sun. Saltan contained more of the same.

Based on the fairy tale from famed Russian writer Alexander Pushkin, it features some familiar themes. The titular Tsar chooses one of three sisters; he picked that one in particular as she promised him a son but it didn’t hurt that many would say her two sisters were much uglier! You shouldn’t feel sympathetic to their plight: the duo plus a few others conspire to have the Tsar’s lady and young son banished while the Tsar is off far-away, fighting troll creatures. 

For a fairy tale, naturally the story should be colorful & magical. Thankfully, it was w/ this lavish production featuring colorful sets & costuming, fantastical characters (there is a Swan Princess, after all), vile villains who get their comeuppance, big special effects for the time, etc. It’s a charming tale told in rhyme… for a fairy tale, such a device is fine with me. It also had a wondrous, lush musical score that complimented the movie perfectly.

Oh, and there’s a singing, dancing squirrel that appears in two scenes!