Two weeks ago, I showed the 1973-1974 miniseries based on Volshebnik Izumrudnovo Goroda. Not only is this series a classic, it's far from the only adaptation of the story in Russia.
Warning, this post contains some long videos!
In 1994, a film adaptation was produced. It appears it was shown in theaters, but it looks a lot like a television movie. (It seems to be listed on IMDB twice as 1994 and 1995.) Here it is:
EDIT: I have recently discovered more about Russian film-making of the sort. The above video is indeed a televised version of a play, called a "телеспектакль," or "telespektakl."
In 1999 and 2000, a fully animated series was produced, this time based a little more on the original L. Frank Baum stories. It adapted Baum's first two books, though there's a cameo by the Nome King, and it seems they planned to adapt Ozma of Oz as well, but the series was unable to be sold internationally, so it was scrapped. (It has since been re-dubbed and edited into a British film titled The Haunted Journey to Oz.)
Film has not been the only medium for the story by any means. Stage adaptations have been wide and varied, from this school production played by children...
... to this Christmas circus spectacular!
I don't expect anyone to watch all of these videos in one sitting, and maybe not even this weekend. Still, if you're interested in seeing more Russian takes on Oz, I hope you'll be back.
EDIT: Despite all these other versions, it really seems the stop-motion version is the most classic. As evidence...
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2 comments:
The 1994 version came at a time when Russia was in the middle of their post-USSR economic crisis and the previouslt state-subsidized motion picture industry was falling apart. There obviously wasn't enough money to do justice to the story.
Thanks for that bit of information. I do think it's a very charming adaptation regardless.
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