Sadko (1953)

Director:

Aleksandr Ptushko

Writers:

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (libretto)
Konstantin Isayev (writer)

Release Date:

1962 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy

Tagline:

All the Magic of "Stone Flower". All the Power of "Alexander Nevsky". All the Artistry of "Grand Concert"

Plot:

Arriving home to find his native land under the yoke of corrupt merchants, an adventurer named Sadko sets sail in search of a mythical bird of happiness.

Plot Keywords:

Blue Bird Of Happiness | Mythological | Sea | Character Name In Title

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Sergei Stolyarov	...	Sadko
Alla Larionova	...	Lyubava
Ninel Myshkova	...	Princess of Lake Ilmen (as Y. Myshkova)
B. Surovtsev	...	Ivashka the boy
Mikhail Troyanovsky	...	Trifon
Nadir Malishevsky	...	Vyashta the Giant (as N. Malishevsky)
Nikolai Kryuchkov	...	Omelyan Danilovich
Ivan Pereverzev	...	Timofey Larionovich
Yuri Leonidov	...	Kuzma Larionovich
Lev Fenin	...	Varangian Leader (as L. Fenin)
Mikhail Astangov	...	Maharaja (as M. Astangov)
Lidiya Vertinskaya	...	The Phoenix (as L. Vertinskaya)
Stepan Kayukov	...	Neptune
Olga Vikland	...	Neptuna (as O. Vikland)
Sergei Martinson	...	The Monk

Directed by
Aleksandr Ptushko

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Konstantin Isayev		writer
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov		libretto

Non-Original Music by
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov		(from opera "Sadko")

Cinematography by
Fyodor Provorov

Production Design by
Yevgeni Svidetelev		(as Ye. Svidetelyov)

Art Direction by
Yevgeni Kumankov

Costume Design by
Olga Kruchinina		(as O. Kruchinina)

Makeup Department
Jose Malar	....	makeup artist

Sound Department
Viktor Zorin	....	sound recordist (as V. Zorin)

Special Effects by
Sergei Mukhin	....	special effects

Editorial Department
George Stein	....	1962 US version additional editing

Music Department
Grigori Gamburg	....	musical director
Vissarion Shebalin	....	music arranger (as V. Shebalin)

Other crew
Francis Ford Coppola	....	script adaptor (1962 version)
Art Diamond	....	1962 US dubbing production supervisor (as Joseph Moss)
Sergei Koren	....	choreographer
James Landis	....	1962 US version dubbing director

Production Companies

• Mosfilm

Distributors

• Astral Films (1962) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Retromedia Entertainment (2005) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Filmgroup, The  1962 USA dubbing production services

Also Known As:

"The Magic Voyage of Sinbad" - USA (dubbed version)

Runtime:

85 min | Argentina:80 min | USA:79 min

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

Russian

Color:

Color (Magicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Mosfilm

Trivia:

Spoofed as "The Magic Voyage of Sinbad" in "Mystery Science Theater 3000" (1988) episode #505, first aired August 14, 1993.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Sinbad sings, his singing voice is quite a bit different from his speaking voice. (U.S. dubbed version titled "The Magic Voyage of Sinbad")

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Magic Voyage of Sinbad (#6.5)" (1993)

Sadko revives ingenuity and freshness to a decadent art

Charming and naive, Alexandr Ptushko's version of Sadko maintains the ingenuity of the fairy tale through the golden touch of imaginative coloring and splendid characters ingrained in the Russian folklore, which at the same time are part of the universal lore. Add to this Rimmsky-Korsakov's magical music, and lo and behold, a dearest masterpiece to feast eyes and endear hearts. Ptushko used to work under stressing circumstances, political as well as cultural, within a government-controlled industry, where ideology ruled over imagination. However, the artist surpassed the militant many times. Sadko concedes to the nationalistic trend in tyrannies proclaiming, in this case, the 'proud of been a Russian", heard as an echo of fascistic hypes on 'selected people or race"; but it is done with such an obvious declarative tone that the imposition of dialogs and lines comes clear to the viewer. Hail to a filmmaker who conceived films as a domain for the illusive and the innocence.