Horror under the sauce of a children's fairy tale.
The film is based on the play of the same name, the plot of which consists of the 'Bad Trip' psychedelic journey of children The Afterlife, which the author of the play gives off as fabulous.
From the cat, the author described a maniac who wants to kill children. Is this not what caused a surge in child violence against cats?
The dog is depicted infinitely devoted not even a dog, but a slave, with exorbitant servility. The image of the dog gives a false idea of the dog family, not such good dogs in Nature, as it is presented in the film, are evil and biting, i.e. dangerous to life and health.
In general, the viewer is given a false symbol of happiness - the Blue Bird, more an idol, a fetish than a symbol.
How can such a creation be shown to children? What it teaches, educates. Looking for the Blue Bird to be happy? Who does this help in real life?
At the same time, yes, the dove is a symbol of the World, the Holy Spirit (white dove), but the play does not indicate a dove, but gives a false term - the Blue Bird.
The work was written in 1908 in Belgium, and the customer knew perfectly well what would happen in Belgium in 1914.
The conclusion is that the film is not intended for children, as it gives false ideas about happiness. The age category of this creation should be 18+.
The joint film of the USSR and the USA turned out to be predictably contradictory, with numerous sharp angles. This is because the ideologies of the two countries are opposite. If in the West, those values were sung, which are clear to us even now, then the Soviet Union was drowning in self-restrictions, and therefore Soviet actors look and feel a little constrained next to their Western counterparts.
The original work in many scenes is very sad, and the film can be thanked for the fact that he tries to smooth out all the most painful topics. The journey of Tiltil and Mitil together with the revived Bread, Sugar, Milk and pets turned out to be interesting, without unnecessary notes of tragedy, but whatever happens on the screen, the viewer is constantly puzzled.
It was not a very good idea to show talking animals with the help of live actors who look too ridiculous. The dog and cat are no longer seen as animals, but as ordinary people who have escaped from Dr. Moreau’s lab. They even walk like people, although in the book, besides the ability to speak, they remained themselves. At the same time, the lack of the book associated with the negative image of the cat remains in the film adaptation. Unfortunately.
In an effort to keep up with the children's rating, the director turned many scenes into a laughing stock. Episodes with trees and even in the castle of Night were funny, although in theory they should be frightening. At least in the book they were frightening. The closer to the end, the more the weakness of the script, in which there is nowhere to go to the Light (played by her delightful Elizabeth Taylor). She pulls away from the main characters and just watches them, giving clues.
While praising the camera work, I should also note that the scene with the aristocrats in constant fun turned out, perhaps, better than in the book. The film touches on more pressing issues related to social inequality, and this is certainly a big plus. But after the final, the audience feels that something did not feed them.
5 out of 10
For the first time he came into contact with the "Blue Bird" M. Meterlinka in early childhood - then he saw the eponymous Soviet cartoon of the 70th year on television. Of course, a lot, due to age, remained unclear. After a considerable period of time - after graduation from school, there was an acquaintance with this film. There were very strong and varied impressions.
Seems like a fairy tale. Little brother and sister, and with them magical characters, go in search of the Blue Bird. One person really needs her... Only gradually, over the years, began to realize how deep the meaning lies in this work.
An unforgettable scene for me is the one in which children enter the Land of Memories. They meet their grandparents who have already died. For a few minutes you are immersed in an atmosphere of complete happiness! (The blue bird is a symbol of happiness.) Here there is an important thought - if a person is remembered, he is alive after death, and if they forgot, then during life he is already dead.
So children and their companions go to different places. And the bird was always nearby, but for some reason no one noticed it. Familiar situation! Very often your happiness is right in front of your nose, and you do not see or understand.
Appreciate what you have, cherish, live as it should - this is what this beautiful film teaches!
10 out of 10
Accept the fact that the film managed to shoot back in 1976, precisely during the stagnation of the Brezhnev era, which was not so bad at first glance. It was during this period that this wonderful film, the fairy tale of Maurice Maeterlinck, was released through the eyes of film artists of that time. It deserves its place in the history of fairy tales, family films, and the film contains wisdom and was able to preserve the charm of the play, it should be noted that Maeterlinck wrote his play not only for children.
I confess honestly that the source is better than the film, in the display of details and the force with which it goes in the book, the film is silent, "Blue Bird" - as a play by the way quite gloomy. It's much darker in the original, so George Cukor went down the right path to remove that bleakness, not quite, but the parts that were particularly dark in the book were rightly closed. I would also recommend reading the play.
The installation and sound is honed, all the scenery is apparently made by hand, because of all this, the film creates coziness. Which will not leave until the end of the session or viewing.
The music is superb, it’s infused, and it’s very pleasing to me that the music has filled the atmosphere of Disney movies.
Actors: Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Fonda, Ava Gardner – imagine all of them playing in a film that was shot in the Soviet Union. I will not forget Vitsin, he played sugar here.
It is a complete harmony, it is a pity the film could not even recoup its budget.
Cons: the duration, or you just may not like it, it is a very strange film, although it may seem boring and unnecessary. If you don’t like it, there is a cartoon “Blue Bird” (USSR, 1970).
I think you know this story, if not, you can enjoy it.
For the only time in my life, I found myself in a fairy tale. It happened in the distant 70s at the session "Blue Bird". Everything was fabulous - an incredibly beautiful colorful picture, never before or since I have seen such brightness and juiciness of the image on the screen. Fairy-tale heroes, a fairy-tale world, fabulous scenery and costumes and, of course, in the end - a fairy-tale song. I believe everything that happens on the screen from the first to the last seconds. The film captivated the whole open and trusting child’s soul and carried away into its magical and unprecedented world. Of course, I had no idea about any Cukor, Freddie Young, Ava Gardner and Lizka Taylor at that time, only Georgy Vitsin and Oleg Popov from “Alarm clock” and all were recognized from the actors.
How hard it was to return to the gray, everyday world, the world of kindergarten - the hated quiet hours, cold pudding and foam on milk! The film itself then completely quietly disappeared from our box office, only decades later I had to see it again on the television screen. I wish that hadn't happened. The dried colors, the ridiculous scenery and the unnatural play of the actors appeared to me - the magic disappeared. It turned out that in the fairy tale you can get only once. For adults, the road was already closed. Although we can call a fairy tale and the very appearance of the picture – such a level of co-production we have with Hollywood was no more, to collect in one picture such masters of American and Soviet cinema once again – alas, failed.
Thanks to Hollywood, the picture was shot not on any "Svema" or God forbid - "Tasma", but on the most natural - "Kodak", which did not regret the rental copies. However, the American film itself has lost over the years its original color reproduction and now requires serious restoration. My personal estimate of the film is a million - but here you can put alas - only
10 out of 10
"Blue Bird" is a kind and bright fairy tale of 1976, filmed jointly by American and Soviet directors. This fantasy was created at the height of the Cold War between the two powers. This film represents the world and unites at that time two cinemas. We see a calm, sweet and good fairy tale that brings a smile.
Young heroes - a brother and sister in a dream go on a long journey for a blue bird. They see on their way the personification of light, darkness, animals, fire, water, bread and milk. The heroes will find the long-awaited blue bird and look at our world with completely different eyes.
The cast was gorgeous. Two Academy Award winner Elizabeth Taylor will always be one of the most beautiful women in the world of cinema. She’s a great actress and I love watching her movies. In this fairy tale, Taylor played a loving mother and a radiant light, and it was simply impossible to break away from her. Two Academy Award-winning hot Jane Fonda is a chic actress, and I’ve loved her for a long time. In this tale, she was the epitome of the night, and her heroine was the most mysterious. It was nice to see Margarita Terekhov in a small role. I would also like to note that the children in this fairy tale were simply charming, and they played with dignity. Watch the “Blue Bird”, and this fairy tale will take you to the story of good and evil, light and darkness, love and something good and native.
It's a great movie!
The doors to the fascinating world of fairy tales, fantasy and childhood dreams are opened for us by George Cukor. Fairy tales are kind and instructive, somewhat strange and sometimes naive: such as she was in 1908 - it was then that Maurice Meterlinck wrote the play The Blue Bird, by the way, a Nobel Prize winner in literature.
This is the story of two restless children, a brother and sister, with whom the most extraordinary adventures and amazing events occur. Wherever they go, looking for the mysterious blue bird: however, the purpose of their search is something more significant than a dot with feathers of heavenly color, and they will have to realize this.
A strange and fragile magical world full of allegorical images envelops children. The whirlpool of events deeper and deeper drags the little heroes, revealing to them the secrets of life and the abyss of the human soul. The entire scale of this imagery the young viewer probably will not comprehend, but the film can be safely called instructive. For the children, Tiltil and Mitil, are not looking for the bird, but for the truth; they must understand what has real value and meaning in the real world. This will help them what they see around them: determination, courage, hard work of some, idleness and selfishness of others. The leitmotif is also a thought often expressed in works of art: things, people, events, if you look at them more closely, turn out to be completely different than they were at first glance. Sometimes to see more, you have to look deeper.
This is the beauty of fairy tales: they entertain with brightness and colorfulness, but at the same time harbor a philosophical overtones. Sometimes it is necessary to grow up to see it; but something may well be perceived by the child. Perhaps, the depth of thought can be compared to the “Blue Bird” with the “Chronicles of Narnia” in the book version, since the film adaptations of the latter work could not fully reflect its philosophical and religious meaning.
Yes, now the film seems a little naive: people in bizarre costumes of animals and trees, ghosts, the soul of objects. The frightfulness of the faint-hearted milk and the antics of a man in a dog suit (Isn't this where Stephen King found it for his The Shining?) make you smile. But the whole film is permeated with a spirit of unfailing kindness and compassion: exactly what some modern cartoons (by no means all) lack. Films for children in recent years does not appear (fantasy I do not consider in this capacity, this genre is designed not only for children).
From the point of view of enforcement there can be no claims. The actors play – and the actors in the film are very famous, both domestic and foreign – at the highest level, even the smallest of them reflect the thoughts and emotions of their characters. Of course, the most beautiful Elizabeth Taylor shines, but she does not eclipse the rest. Plus light, unobtrusive music, pleasant voices, good choreography: all this helps to maintain the air magic of the atmosphere in which we immerse ourselves from the first minutes of the picture.
Of course, children today can only smile and shrug when they see the Blue Bird: it is a tribute to technological progress. But the older generations probably remember this film with warmth, not recklessly funny, but really fascinating; not boring, but containing morality.
An amazing example of cooperation between filmmakers of the USA and the USSR: the case must be unprecedented.
9 out of 10
Original family film based on the famous fairy tale of Meterlinck. I think this film will help everyone who watched it to understand what is really important in this life, and undoubtedly answer the question of what happiness it is, which I think everyone asked himself at least once in his life.
Tiltil and Mitil searched for the blue bird of happiness for a long time, but only at the end did they realize that it was not what they imagined it to be. This helped them understand, first of all, the fairy of Light, who was the embodiment of motherly love in the film. In general, the film is very wise, and not a simple fairy tale.
8 out of 10