An early example of stop-motion animation that is so effective that it was widely believed at the time of release that director Wladislaw Starewicz was working with trained insects! The plot is largely incomprehensible, although some form of conflict escalates from two insects in boots duelling to a large-scale attack on a fortress. A fascinating watch.
3 Reviews
a feature, not a bug
lee_eisenberg9 July 2019
One of Wladyslaw Starewicz's stop-motion shorts from pre-revolutionary Russia features a pair of insects vying for a female insect. Like most of his works, "Prekrasnaya Lyukanida" may come across as silly today, but you still have to appreciate the work that he put into it. As it turns out, Starewicz's first passion was entomology, so it makes sense that he often depicted insects. Nothing particularly sophisticated, but enjoyable.
First Hit For Starewicz
boblipton1 August 2020
Here's an early stop-motion film by Starewicz that makes fun of all the epics that we're beginning to come out from Italy. Two noble bugs fight with flashing swords for the love of a beautiful lady bug.
Of course, it is best to take the legends of movie-making with a grain or ten thousand of salt. Reports that contemporary reviewers didn't realize this was stop-motion work, but thought insects were trained, is probably as true as the reports that people screamed in terror as the train pulled into the station for the Lumieres' first show. Still, the principal thing to note about this film is it's earnest silliness.
Of course, it is best to take the legends of movie-making with a grain or ten thousand of salt. Reports that contemporary reviewers didn't realize this was stop-motion work, but thought insects were trained, is probably as true as the reports that people screamed in terror as the train pulled into the station for the Lumieres' first show. Still, the principal thing to note about this film is it's earnest silliness.
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