VASILISA THE BEAUTIFUL is an early Russian fantasy film, made in 1940 in black and white. It's set in a fantastic landscape full of magical creations and giant creatures, while the story is pure fairy tale and features the hard-working son of a farmer battling against an evil witch with immense powers.
The story is sufficiently interesting enough to keep the film's narrative moving along nicely. Early on there's a nice gender twist in the story as a beautiful princess is turned into a frog and must be rescued by the hero. The hero subsequently goes on a lengthy adventure which sees him battling various giant creatures. There's a dragon, inevitably, and also a giant spider which gives Peter Jackson's Shelob a run for her money (the pulsating body is a fine effect, spoilt only by the mammalian mouth). There's also a lot of material with people fighting bears and the like. It's solid stuff and extremely likable, even if the technical qualities aren't always up to scratch.
The story is sufficiently interesting enough to keep the film's narrative moving along nicely. Early on there's a nice gender twist in the story as a beautiful princess is turned into a frog and must be rescued by the hero. The hero subsequently goes on a lengthy adventure which sees him battling various giant creatures. There's a dragon, inevitably, and also a giant spider which gives Peter Jackson's Shelob a run for her money (the pulsating body is a fine effect, spoilt only by the mammalian mouth). There's also a lot of material with people fighting bears and the like. It's solid stuff and extremely likable, even if the technical qualities aren't always up to scratch.