Sen noci svatojánské
Directed by:
Jiří TrnkaCinematography:
Jiří VojtaComposer:
Václav TrojanCast:
Rudolf Pellar, Jack Gwillim, Richard Burton, Joss Ackland, Ann Bell, Jean Desailly, Alec McCowen, Stephen Moore, Georgine Anderson, Donald Eccles (more)Plots(1)
The first puppet kinescope in the world. It is based on the famous poetic comedy by William Shakespeare. Three worlds meet in this story: the noble world of three Athens couples, a common popular world of tradesmen amateur theatre and a fairy-tale happiness of magic creatures as elves and nymphs. The film is considered the most remarkable Trnka's work and a milestone in the history of the world animation. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Reviews (2)
I'm fine with Trnka of the 40s and I like the Trnka of the 50s. With A Midsummer Night's Dream, I'm also saying goodbye to him, because Trnka of the 60s is not timeless, he's just disappointed, which is heartbreaking, but I'm not going to torture myself because of it. The fact is that the Trnka/Kainar/Shakespeare connection is very eloquent, tender, spicy, and charming to the extent that everyone should experience it at least once in their lifetime.
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Animation-wise, it is beautiful, dreamlike, and furthermore, the puppets have a magnificent design that combines with excellent ideas. However, I simply don't like "A Midsummer Night's Dream". The story, although beautiful and dreamy, doesn't really speak to me, and Trnka's adaptations, which further suppress the plot, did not benefit me in this regard. It's great, but it doesn't completely captivate me.
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