6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The Tale of Tsar Saltan is a colorful Russian fairy tale based on the classic poem by Alexander Pushkin. When Tsar Saltan is away at war, the scheming members of his court exile his young wife and newborn heir. The tsarina and the young prince Guidon survive and reach a remote island. Guidon saves the beautiful Princess Swan from an evil sorcerer and through a series of miracles she helps the prince to reunite with his father.
Starring: Larisa Golubkina, Oleg VidovForeign | 100% |
Family | Insignificant |
Fantasy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.19:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.20:1
Russian: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Co-writer/director Aleksandr Ptushko continues his exploration of fairy tales with 1966’s “The Tale of Tsar Saltan,” which is an adaptation of a poem by Alexander Pushkin. Once again, the helmer puts on a wholly impressive show of filmmaking force, creating a fantasy realm that deals with the demands of love, family, and heroism, with the Russian epic taking time to build a wild vision of unreality as the details of such cinematic embellishment are carefully handled by Ptushko and his marvelous adoration for moviemaking imagination.
The AVC encoded image (2.19:1 aspect ratio) presentation is sourced from a 2001 Mosfilm restoration of "The Tale of Tsar Saltan," taken from the original camera negative. The packaging also credits "Blu-ray authoring by David Mackenzie of Fidelity in Motion." Obvious care has been put into this release, which provides as film-like a look at frame particulars as the source allow, capturing the expanse of the production and its bizarre and dream- like details. Skin particulars are decent, along with makeup additions, and interiors retain their cavernous appeal. Costuming offers acceptable textures. Exteriors secure deep backgrounds with sweeping shots. Colors are respectfully refreshed, preserving softer fairy tale hues with more striking golds and blues. Skin tones seem accurate with the exaggeration of the endeavor. Delineation is satisfactory. Some mild scratches are found.
The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix provides a clear sound for "The Tale of Tsar Saltan," with expected elements of age not present on the track. Stretches of the film sound remarkably fresh, securing crisp dialogue exchanges. Scoring cues are deep, with a full orchestral sound and clear instrumentation. Music pushes into the surrounds, joining mild atmospherics and community bustle. Low-end supports scenes of war, with blasting cannons.
With rhyming dialogue, big feelings, and an appreciation for the mysterious ways of this fantasy land, "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" is truly a feast for the eyes, summoning a very Disney-esque atmosphere, though one with a greater appetite for strangeness. Again, it's not something that wins with plot, instead aiming to delight with a widescreen vision of enchanted events, sold with mind-boggling craftsmanship by Ptushko, who carries a seemingly endless appetite for the surreal and the extraordinary.
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