"Alenkiy tsvetochek" or "The Scarlet Flower" is a Soviet animated movie from 1952, so next year it will have its 65th anniversary already. It was directed by Lev Atamanov and written by Aksakov and Grebner. When people talk about the Golden Age of Soviet Animation, they are rarely referring to a time as early as the 1950s (this would still be the American prime), but this film here, which runs for 40 minutes, is a good example of how Russian animation was pretty strong that early already. It's definitely on par with what America had to offer at that time, even if it is an entirely different approach. It's the Soviet version of Beauty and the Beast, a famous Disney movie from much much later and you will not find too many similarities or parallels between these films. But this one here succeeds in its own right. The story is pretty interesting, it almost never drags and the animation is stunning and the visual beauty of this film is probably the best thing about it. Make sure you get subtitles, if you don't speak Russian. I recommend the watch. Thumbs up.
Review of The Scarlet Flower
