A fantastic story

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Movie
German title A fantastic story
Original title Сказка странствий
(Skaska stranstwi) ​​/
Povestea calatoriilor /
Pohádka o putování
Country of production Soviet Union
Romania
ČSSR
original language Russian
Publishing year 1983
length 105 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Alexander Mitta
script Alexander Mitta
July Dunski
Waleri Frid
production Mosfilm
Studioul Cinematografic Bucuresti
Filmové studio Barrandov
music Alfred Schnittke
camera Valery Shuvalov
occupation

A fantastic story (alternative title: fairy tale of a hike ; original title: Russian Сказка странствий , Skaska stranstwi , Romanian Povestea calatoriilor , Czech Pohádka o putování ) is a Soviet - Romanian - Czechoslovak fairy tale film from the year 1983 by Alexander Mitta .

action

The orphans Marta ( Tatjana Axjuta ) and Mai have begged some gifts for Christmas. While they are sitting together in a poor dwelling, Santa Claus emerges from the fireplace and asks them to close their eyes and open their mouths. In expectation of a candy or something similar, Marta realizes late that the alleged Santa Claus, together with an accomplice, has in reality only kidnapped her little brother in order to benefit from his gift of finding gold. The children did not use Mai's gift to eradicate their poverty, because Marta wanted to avoid the pain and cramps associated with Mai. In desperation, Marta runs out of town in search of her brother and finally falls down a slope. There, the supposedly dead woman is found by the wandering doctor and scholar Orlando ( Andrei Alexandrowitsch Mironow ), who wants to subject her to an autopsy as a study object in his car, which he refrains from when he registers that Marta is still alive. They move on together. On the way they lose the cart horse to the wolves, meet two brothers who have been draining a swamp for at least a generation and warning of a dragon. The dragon turns out to be a source of wealth for the knights who set out to defeat him and have now settled on him and lead a contented life, but at the same time unreasonably pierce the dragon in order to be able to use his fire. Marta would like to go on and find her brother, Orlando would like to live on the back of the dragon. When the dragon wakes up, Marta and Orlando flee by boat. You can almost reach Marta's brother on the run, but are separated from Mai and his kidnappers by the fire-breathing dragon.

In the meantime, the two crooks who drag Mai with them in a kind of cage have gained their first experience of his ability. After a fight in an inn, Orlando is sentenced to death in a starvation tower by wealthy accusers. Marta accompanies him and lets himself be walled up with him. At the trial and in conversations with Marta, Orlando reveals his philosophy and shows the accusers his coat on which he has drawn his studies of human anatomy. By constructing a "human bat" - a kind of kite, for which Orlando's extensive coat is also used - Orlando and Marta can escape from their prison and land in a landscape affected by the plague. After Marta takes care of two children who have lost their parents to the plague, they are haunted in the forest by a woman who represents the plague. Orlando succeeds in keeping the plague away from Marta and the children with a torch, although after the plague is destroyed it turns out that he is infected and dies. Orlando is burned in the forest by people in fantastic protective clothing, Marta goes to town with the children, where the end of the plague is celebrated. There she can hand the children over to their grandmother, who also wants to take in Marta - which she refuses because she wants to continue looking for her brother Mai. After ten years have passed, Marta finally finds her brother Mai, who as a rich prince in a castle under the influence of his kidnapper, who now regards Mai as his son, leads a poor lifestyle - including, for example, the occasional manhunt (which Marta almost fell victim to falls) heard - cares.

Marta does not recognize her brother, but she manages to get him to change. Mai uses his ability to destroy and devastate the castle and the rich society celebrating inside. When Marta - after he collapsed exhausted - pulls him out of the rubble and brings him back to life with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, he is transformed and has lost his ability to find gold. When he begins to draw a "human bat" on a wall in the ruins of the castle, without understanding why, she understands that Orlando lives on in him.

particularities

After the film was shown in theaters, it was shown comparatively rarely on television, which means that it is not very well known overall. The German-language DVD version as well as old VHS recordings are sometimes extremely expensive (as of 2015).

The film shows numerous elements of Russian, Western European-oriented fantasy and, especially in the figure of Orlando, develops a positive image of man from the Renaissance in a sometimes hostile environment. At the same time, however, the maternal, self-sacrificing figure of Martha complements and expands this image of man through a somewhat Russian perspective of responsibility for others.

publication

A fantastic story hit Czechoslovak cinemas in November 1983 and Romanian cinemas on December 26, 1983 . The film was first shown on German television on January 15, 1985 on ZDF . It was shown in GDR cinemas on October 4, 1985, and on March 7, 1987, it was shown for the first time on GDR television on DFF 2 . It was released on video on April 26, 1989 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Information on the publication on kino-teatr.ru , accessed on December 14, 2017.
  2. ↑ A fantastic story. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed December 14, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used