Prince Vladimir (film)
Encyclopedia
Prince Vladimir is a 2006 Russia
n traditionally
-animated
feature film
loosely based on the story of Prince Vladimir, a historically important figure who converted
Kievan Rus'
(a predecessor state of Russia
, Ukraine
, and Belarus
) to Christianity
a thousand years ago. The film's production was blessed by Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexius II
in 1998, and in 2000 it was granted the status of a national film and given government support. This is the first film to focus on the story of Prince Vladimir.
In the beginning of the film, being under the influence of the high priest Krivzha, the Prince is a young, impulsive and cruel pagan. Fighting for supreme power, Vladimir wins a battle that kills his brother. Regretting what he has done, Vladimir does not suspect a conspiracy between the priest and the Pechenegs. Vladimir is concerned about gathering the Slavic tribes into one united state. Solving this major task, he faces obstacles, which Vladimir overcomes in the end, defeating Krivzha and winning the battle against Kurya, a Pecheneg chief.
, Prince Vladimir was named one of the world's 12 most anticipated upcoming animated films. The first official presentation of the finished film took place on February 3, 2006, for the press.
A sequel, Prince Vladimir - The Feat (Князь Владимир. Подвиг) is scheduled for release in 2008.
s" trilogy by Melnitsa Animation Studio
(the second film in the trilogy, Dobrynya Nikitich and Zmey Gorynych
, was due for release on March 16), and were surprised and dismayed at the film's serious tone. Critical reaction was relatively positive, but mixed. Critics praised the film's art and animation but criticized it for its inaccurate portrayal of the historical period and for perceived ideological pandering
to its main sponsor, the Russian Orthodox Church
.
It is the highest-grossing Russian animated film of all time, taking in $5.8 million dollars since its release, and is the third highest-grossing animated film within Russia
(behind Madagascar
and Flushed Away
). It cost $5 million to make, however (far more than Melnitsa's films, which are made for about $300,000 or a million), the film is thought to have either lost money or narrowly broken even.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n traditionally
Traditional animation
Traditional animation, is an animation technique where each frame is drawn by hand...
-animated
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
loosely based on the story of Prince Vladimir, a historically important figure who converted
Baptism of Kievan Rus'
The Christianization of Kievan Rus took place in several stages. In early 867, Patriarch Photius of Constantinople announced to other Orthodox patriarchs that the Rus', baptised by his bishop, took to Christianity with particular enthusiasm...
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
(a predecessor state of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, and Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
) to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
a thousand years ago. The film's production was blessed by Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexius II
Patriarch Alexius II
Patriarch Alexy II was the 15th Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church....
in 1998, and in 2000 it was granted the status of a national film and given government support. This is the first film to focus on the story of Prince Vladimir.
Plot
The plot follows the events surrounding Vladimir from childhood and into adulthood.In the beginning of the film, being under the influence of the high priest Krivzha, the Prince is a young, impulsive and cruel pagan. Fighting for supreme power, Vladimir wins a battle that kills his brother. Regretting what he has done, Vladimir does not suspect a conspiracy between the priest and the Pechenegs. Vladimir is concerned about gathering the Slavic tribes into one united state. Solving this major task, he faces obstacles, which Vladimir overcomes in the end, defeating Krivzha and winning the battle against Kurya, a Pecheneg chief.
Characters
- Prince Vladimir - Grandson of the legendary princess Olga and son of great warlord Svyatoslav.
- Krivsha - A priest and wizard, pontificates on behalf of PerunPerunIn Slavic mythology, Perun is the highest god of the pantheon and the god of thunder and lightning. His other attributes were the fire, mountains, the oak, iris, eagle, firmament , horses and carts, weapons and war...
, Prince Vladimir's prime martial god, but in fact just skillfully shelters himself behind this, only wishing absolute power. There is gossip that he did bad things while in the guise of a bear, but those who saw him in this guise have gone missing. - Alexei (Aleksha) - An inquisitive and clever boy. Having lost his parents, he has been fostered by his grandfather.
- Kurya - A Pecheneg Prince. Used to be at enmity with Prince Svyatoslav, Vladimir's father. Since then, he has been a cruel and imperious leader of half-wild steppe tribe, planning and doing everything to invade Russian lands and harry Kiev.
- Boyan - A kind and honorable old man. "The wood grandsire" - he is a part of the nature in which he lives. A fair pagan, talks with living trees and worship them. His staff is a home for bees, which tell him about all the news of the wood. Boyan is a personification of ancient Slavic wisdom, open-mindedness and patience.
- DobrynyaDobrynyaDobrynya was Vladimir the Great's maternal uncle and tutor who was later transformed into the invincible bogatyr Dobrynya Nikitich in the Russian folklore....
- A waywode, Prince Vladimir's uncle and tutor. Harsh and straightforward. A warrior of tremendous power, sophisticated, whole-hearted in his devotion to the young Prince. Heads the Slavic troops. - Olaf the Red-haired - A centurion. Used to be a waywode of Norwegian sea-king Harald the Blue Teeth's troops. Disagreed about carving-up the spoils of war, left the sea-king and now swears to serve young Prince Vladimir. A brave and cruel warrior.
- Hoten and Kostyanin - Brothers, Boyan's sons. Both are giants. Always together, and always searching for places where they can boast of their bravery.
- Olga - Waywode Dobrynya's daughter. Grew up without a mother, a playful and lively girl.
- Giyar - A son of Pecheneg Prince Kuri. A petty proudling, Alexei's everlasting rival.
- Anastasius - An adviser of the Byzantine Emperor.
- Byzantine Emperor - A wise politician, who sees in Russia not a rival or enemy but a possible ally, a defendant of orthodox Christians from eastern barbarians.
- AnnaAnna PorphyrogenetaAnna Porphyrogeneta was a Grand Princess consort of Kiev; she was married to Grand Prince Vladimir the Great....
- A Byzantine Czarevna and beauty. A sister of Byzantine emperors Basil IIBasil IIBasil II , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his long reign was dominated...
and Constantine VIIIConstantine VIIIConstantine VIII was reigning Byzantine emperor from December 15, 1025 until his death. He was the son of the Emperor Romanos II and Theophano, and the younger brother of the eminent Basil II, who died childless and thus left the rule of the Byzantine Empire in his hands.-Family:As...
. Clever and proud-hearted. - YaropolkYaropolk I of KievYaropolk I Svyatoslavich was a young and rather enigmatic ruler of Kiev between 972 and 980. His royal title is traditionally translated as "Prince"....
- Vladimir's elder brother and by the will of Heaven – an obstacle on his way to the power.
Background
Production started in 1997 with research into the customs of the time period as well as character design. Originally, the story was to be told through a series of 30-minute shorts, but the idea was scrapped. The first proposal presentation of Prince Vladimir took place on April 17, 2000, at the Russian Cultural Fund. Soon after, work began in earnest, and about 120 animators were employed on the film. At the 2002 Annecy International Animated Film FestivalAnnecy International Animated Film Festival
The Annecy International Animation Film Festival was created in 1960 and takes place at the beginning of June in the town of Annecy, France. Initially occurring every two years, the festival became annual in 1998...
, Prince Vladimir was named one of the world's 12 most anticipated upcoming animated films. The first official presentation of the finished film took place on February 3, 2006, for the press.
A sequel, Prince Vladimir - The Feat (Князь Владимир. Подвиг) is scheduled for release in 2008.
Reception
Many in the public thought that the film was part of the light-hearted "3 bogatyrBogatyr
The bogatyr was a medieval heroic warrior of Kievan Rus' and the Novgorodian Republic, akin to a Western European knight errant.- Kievan Rus' :...
s" trilogy by Melnitsa Animation Studio
Melnitsa Animation Studio
Melnitsa Animation Studio is a Saint Petersburg-based Russian studio which produces animated films. There is also a section of the studio devoted to digital special effects for the use of its own projects as well as for live-action films....
(the second film in the trilogy, Dobrynya Nikitich and Zmey Gorynych
Dobrynya Nikitich and Zmey Gorynych
Dobrynya Nikitich and Zmey Gorynych is a Russian traditionally-animated feature film directed by Ilya Maksimov, made by Melnitsa Animation Studio. It opened in Russia on March 15, 2006...
, was due for release on March 16), and were surprised and dismayed at the film's serious tone. Critical reaction was relatively positive, but mixed. Critics praised the film's art and animation but criticized it for its inaccurate portrayal of the historical period and for perceived ideological pandering
Pandering (politics)
Pandering is the act of expressing one's views in accordance with the likes of a group to which one is attempting to appeal. The term is most notably associated with politics...
to its main sponsor, the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
.
It is the highest-grossing Russian animated film of all time, taking in $5.8 million dollars since its release, and is the third highest-grossing animated film within Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(behind Madagascar
Madagascar (2005 film)
Madagascar is a 2005 computer-animated film produced by DreamWorks Animation, and released in movie theaters on May 27, 2005. The film tells the story of four Central Park Zoo animals who have spent their lives in blissful captivity and are unexpectedly shipped back to Africa, getting shipwrecked...
and Flushed Away
Flushed Away
Flushed Away is a 2006 computer animated British film directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell. It is a partnership between Aardman Animations of Wallace and Gromit fame, and DreamWorks Animation, and is Aardman's first completely computer-animated feature as opposed to the usual stop-motion.The film...
). It cost $5 million to make, however (far more than Melnitsa's films, which are made for about $300,000 or a million), the film is thought to have either lost money or narrowly broken even.
Voice cast
| Actor | Role(s) |
|---|---|
| Yuriy Berkun | Kurya |
| Irina Bezrukova | Anna |
| Sergei Bezrukov Sergei Bezrukov Sergey Vitalyevich Bezrukov is a Russian screen and stage actor, People's Artist of Russia, the laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation. He currently works at Tabakov Studio .... |
Prince Vladimir |
| Alexander Ryzhkov | The Adviser |
| Vladimir Gostyukhin Vladimir Gostyukhin Vladimir Vasilyevich Gostyukhin is a Russian film and stage actor.- Actor :* 1986: V poiskakh kapitana Granta as Major McNabbs-External links:... |
Olaf the Red-Haired |
| Thomas Schlecker | Alexei |
| Vasiliy Lanovoy | The Byzantine Emperor |
| Dmitriy Nazarov | Dobrinya |
| Aleksandr Pinegin | Boyan |
| Kolya Rastorguev | Prince Giyar |
| Alexander Barinov | Krivzha |
| Olga Zhuravlyova | Olga |
See also
- History of Russian animationHistory of Russian animationThe History of Russian animation is very rich, but is so far a nearly unexplored field for Western film theory and history. As most of Russia's production of animation for film|cinema and television was created during Soviet times, it may also be referred to as the History of Soviet...
- List of animated feature films
- List of historical drama films
External links
- Film Trailers
- Andrei Ryabovitchev's blog - info and artwork from the film (2005-early 2006 entries)