Rent Son of the White Mare and Other Early Works by Marcell Jankovics (1981)
3.8 of 5 from 61 ratings
1h 26min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Legendary Hungarian animator Marcell Jankovics created a definitive masterpiece of world cinema with this psychedelic adaptation of the Hungarian folk tale. Traversing an otherworldly canvas, 'Son of the White Mare' follows mythic folk heroes Treeshaker, Stonecrumbler, and Irontemperer as they descend into the perilous Underworld on an epic quest to battle the forces of ancient evil and save the cosmos.
- Directors:
- Marcell Jankovics
- Voiced By:
- György Cserhalmi, Vera Pap, Gyula Szabó, Ferenc Szalma, Mari Szemes, Szabolcs Tóth, Ottó Ulmann
- Writers:
- László György, Marcell Jankovics
- Aka:
- Fehérlófia
- Genres:
- Anime & Animation, Children & Family
- Countries:
- Hungary
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 14/11/2022
- Run Time:
- 177 minutes
- Languages:
- Hungarian LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Johnny Corncob (Janos Vitez) - Jankovics first animated feature
- Sisyphus - short film
- The Struggle (Kuzdok) - short film
- Dreams on Wings - short film created as a commercial for Air India
- Brighter Colors - extensive interview with Marcell Jankovics from the Hungarian National Film Archive, filmed in 2020
- Making of Janos Vitez - archival featurette from 1973
- The Director Talks - featurette with Jankovics produced by the Hungarian National Film Archive
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Reviews (1) of Son of the White Mare and Other Early Works by Marcell Jankovics
Folk Tales on Fire - Son of the White Mare and Other Early Works by Marcell Jankovics review by griggs
I was wary of this one. Animation can lose me when the imagery gets so overpowering that the story ends up shoved into the back seat. And having seen it described as a cross between Belladonna of Sadness and Disney's Hercules, I was braced for the worst. Belladonna left me more drained than dazzled: grotesque, gorgeous, and hard work.
Thankfully, this landed better. The visuals are completely wild — blazing colours, swirling shapes, enough mythic strangeness to fuel a dozen folk tales — but they mostly serve the story rather than just showing off. Even so, there were stretches where I was admiring it more than connecting with it, which probably says as much about my limits with this kind of overwhelming visual style as it does about the film.
Undeniably inventive, often striking, and never boring to look at. I wasn't swept away, but I'm glad I spent time with it. A fascinating piece of animated myth-making that kept me at arm's length — though I suspect that distance is more on me than on the film.
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