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| | Label: Ruscico
Salesrank: 57605
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| Our Price: $4.91 |
| Used Price: $4.89 |
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MPAA Rating:
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Language: Russian (mono), Russian (DD 5.1), English (DD 5.1 original), French (DD 5.1 offscreen translation); Subtitles: Russian, English, French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Hebrew, Swedish, Chinese, Arabic, Japanese; No zone restriction; Fairy Tale; USSR/USA, Lenfilm, 1976, 100 min. Format: 4:3; This screen adaptation of the Maurice Maeterlincks tale was the first Soviet-American co-production. The Blue Bird is an embodiment of happiness, both immediate and distant, that every person is sure to find if he recognizes it. The children of a woodcutter, Tiltil and Mitil, found themselves, while sleeping, in an amazing country, shown to them by Fairy Light. All domestic animals and foodstuffs come alive there and turn into real people. They helped the children fulfil the Fairys request find the Blue Bird, although the bird proved to look different from what the brother and sister had seen in their dreams. Awards: Honorary Diploma at the Teheran IFF for Children and Youth, 1976; Director: George Cukor; Script: Alexei Kapler, Hugh Whitemore, Alfred Hayes; Music by: Irvin Costel, Andrei Petrov; Cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Fonda, Cicely Tyson, Ava Gardner, Margarita Terekhova, Georgy Vitsin, Oleg Popov, Nadezhda Pavlova, Todd Lookingland, Patsy Kanzit, Leonid Nevedomsky, Will Geer, Mona Washborn, Robert Morley, Garry Andrews
The Blue Bird / Sinyaya Ptitsa Reviews:
Visually Beautiful 
2009-11-17 - "The Blue Bird"
Visually Beautiful
Amos Lassen
The story of "The Bluebird" has entertained us forever it seems and in this film, we get the third filmed version of Maurice Maeterlinck's novel about spoiled peasant children and the dream trip they took. It is pure fantasy and visually beautiful to watch even though it is shoddy production wise. It is quite simply a bad movie that is thoroughly entertaining. The script is a mess and the plot is simple and I simply am unable to explain why I enjoyed it.
The film was a co-production between Hollywood and the then Soviet Union and the result is a sugary children's film with a wonderful cast and costumes. Some of the world's most beautiful women appear--Elizabeth Taylor, Ava Gardner, and Jane Fonda and even though it is somewhat quirky at times, I still had a great time watching it. It is filled with qualities that are clueless and directed by Hollywood veteran, George Cukor. It is heavy and seems to go on forever but the music is wonderful and the acting is old fashioned as we learn about what happiness is.
To those who hate the film and there are many, I say "get a grip and stop looking for perfection--sit back and enjoy a mindless piece of fluff for what it is". Every movie cannot be perfect and if it entertains me that is all I ask for.
Still love this movie! 
2009-10-29 - First time I saw that movie I was 6 years old, so it was great so see it again,25 years later, because it was one of my favorite movies. I even named my cat Tylette back then. I wish they would reproduce this movie today, with all the special effects in movies, it would be great, because the story is fantastic and very magical!
What do we really want?
2008-01-19 - I had the apportunity of sharing this film with a group of children of various ages from 5 to 14 years old. This film captures the innosence lost or trap in us as we get more involved in society and tend to look up to others espectations and forget who we are and who we can be. Great film.
Sincerely,
A Friend
Peculiar Fare 
2006-10-19 - This film was not a hit when it was released and after viewing it, it is easy to understand why. The film is more of a curiousity. Its curious to see top film stars Elizabeth Taylor, Ava Gardner, Jane Fonda in a lackluster film like this and one is left wondering why. Save your money and buy the Shirley Temple version on VHS instead. Unlike the Shirley Temple version, the motivation for the children to seek the Bluebird isn't there. They don't seem particularly unhappy with their present life, so why look for the Bluebird. The costumes, particularly Tylo the dog's, look cheap and the film lacks the overall lush production values of the earlier Shirley Temple version. There is no emotional depth to the direction. This is particularly evident when you compare how the separation of the young lovers in the Land of the Future was handled in each version. Tylo, the dog and Tylette, the cat are weak counterparts to their earlier predecessors. The additional characters of Bread, Water, Fire, Milk & Sugar are fairly disposable, as they lend nothing to the story. Cicely Tyson's Tylette lacks the true sinisterness of the same character portrayed by Gale Sondergaard in the earlier version. Elizabeth Taylor seems totally out of place as the children's mother and as Light. Ava Gardner in the Land of Luxury appears to be reprising her role in the British "horror" film Tam Lin, i.e. peculiar parallels in that in both films her character spirits away young men, while ignoring and even resenting the female character attached to the men. As I said before, the film is peculiar. Its hard to comprehend why it was made and what attracted these stars to it.
The Blue Bird / Sinyaya Ptitsa
2006-05-31 - This is one of the memorable movies in my life. I watched it as a kid and loved it.
So thrilled that it's on DVD now. I want my child to see it now and hopefully enjoy as much as I did when I was a kid.
A light humor, a great fairy-tale story and awesome actors- all in 1 movie!
