A Major Disappointment

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Russia's folk and fantasy tales are timeless and have made for some great films adapted from those tales. The Tale of Tsar Saltan is one such story, and makes for a beautifully done animated adaptation. The animation on the whole is very nicely done, some of the character animation is a little stiff sometimes and maybe the two sisters and aunt are stereotypically drawn but the traditional story-book-like backgrounds and simple and elegant colours are lovely to look at. The music is lilting and elegiac, very Russian folk-tale-like in style, definitely one of those soundtracks that if there was a CD of it I'd buy it with no hesitation. The story is moving and charming with all the elements and plot-lines of the original story/poem intact, it moves at a deliberately stoic pace but doesn't feel dull or too padded out, each scene has a purpose and the slower scenes allow for more intimacy with the characters. The narration has a suitably understated sincerity, it makes its point and doesn't have anything irrelevant or any clumsy attempts of humour or breaking-the-fourth-wall as it is a story that doesn't require those latter qualities. The characters are ones that you immediately recognise and they are engaging, while the voice acting is good, sometimes with moments of it being broad but mostly it's noble. Overall, beautifully done animated Russian folk-tale. 9/10 Bethany Cox