The Tale of Tsar Saltan Blu-ray arrives in its original Russian-language presentation, newly restored and released in the United States for the first time. Adapted from Alexander Pushkin’s famous fairy tale in verse, The Tale of Tsar Saltan Blu-ray ranks among the most sublime and visually breathtaking works by visionary filmmaker Aleksandr Ptushko.
 
Driven from the Russian court by the jealous scheming of her sisters, the young Tsarina (Larisa Golubkina) is cast into the sea inside a wooden cask with her infant son. Against all odds, they survive the storm-tossed voyage and wash ashore on a remote island, where the child magically grows into adulthood (Oleg Vidov). As the young prince falls in love with a Swan Princess in human form (Kseniya Ryabinkina), he yearns for reunion with his estranged father, Tsar Saltan (Vladimir Andreyev), setting the stage for a sweeping tale of love, betrayal, destiny, and reconciliation.
 
Like Ptushko’s earlier masterpieces Sampo and Ilya Muromets, The Tale of Tsar Saltan is overflowing with unforgettable imagery: carved wooden lions shedding tears, pagan ritual dancers moving through falling snow, and conspirators lit in ominous red candlelight worthy of Macbeth. Ptushko’s second-to-last feature was a major event in Soviet cinema, produced on a massive scale with thousands of extras and elaborate practical effects.
 
This edition has been gorgeously restored by Mosfilm and Deaf Crocodile, co-presented with Seagull Films, and represents the globally definitive version of this landmark fairy-tale epic. Presented in Russian with English subtitles.
 
directed by: aleksandr ptushko
starring: larisa golubkina, oleg vidov, kseniya ryabinkina, vladimir andreyev
1967 / 85 min