The Tale of the Fisherman and the Goldfish
Plot
An elderly fisherman lives in poverty with his wife by the sea. One day, he catches a magical golden fish that can speak and promises to grant any wish in exchange for its freedom. The kind fisherman releases the fish without asking for anything, but when his wife learns of the magical creature, she demands he return to ask for increasingly extravagant wishes. Beginning with a new washtub, her greed escalates to demanding a new house, becoming a noblewoman, then empress, and finally wanting to rule the seas and command the fish herself. Each time the fisherman reluctantly returns to the sea, the fish grants the wishes, but when the wife's ultimate desire to command the fish is revealed, the fish revokes all wishes and returns them to their original poverty, teaching a harsh lesson about the dangers of insatiable greed.
Director
About the Production
This film was groundbreaking as one of the first Soviet feature films to combine live-action with stop-motion animation. The production took place during the height of Stalin's purges, making artistic expression particularly challenging. The underwater sequences were created using innovative glass tank photography techniques. The golden fish was created using detailed stop-motion animation, requiring hundreds of hours of painstaking work by the animation team. The film's visual effects were considered revolutionary for their time, with Ptushko developing new techniques for blending live actors with animated elements.
Historical Background
The film was produced during one of the darkest periods in Soviet history - 1937 marked the peak of Stalin's Great Purge. Despite this oppressive atmosphere, the arts were expected to flourish as propaganda tools, yet Ptushko managed to create a film that was both artistically innovative and relatively free of overt political messaging. The year 1937 also saw the Soviet Union celebrating the 100th anniversary of Pushkin's death, making adaptations of his works particularly timely. The film industry was undergoing rapid modernization, with Soviet filmmakers eager to prove they could match Western technical achievements. This context explains both the film's technical ambition and its reliance on classic Russian literature as a safe source material that would satisfy both artistic and political requirements.
Why This Film Matters
This film represents a landmark in Soviet and world cinema as one of the earliest successful feature-length films to combine live-action with stop-motion animation. It established Aleksandr Ptushko as a master of fantasy cinema and influenced generations of filmmakers both in the Soviet Union and internationally. The film demonstrated that Soviet cinema could compete technically with Hollywood productions while maintaining its distinct artistic identity. Its adaptation of Pushkin's work helped preserve and popularize Russian literary heritage during a period when traditional culture was often suppressed or distorted for political purposes. The film's visual innovations, particularly its underwater photography and seamless integration of animation, paved the way for later fantasy films and special effects techniques.
Making Of
The production of 'The Tale of the Fisherman and the Goldfish' was a monumental technical achievement for Soviet cinema in 1937. Director Aleksandr Ptushko, who had previously worked as an architect and engineer, applied his technical knowledge to solve complex filming challenges. The underwater sequences were particularly innovative, requiring the construction of a massive glass tank with special lighting to simulate ocean depths. The stop-motion animation of the golden fish was created by a team of animators working around the clock for months. The film's blend of live-action and animation required precise timing and coordination, with actors often performing against blank backgrounds that would later be filled with animated elements. The production faced additional challenges due to the political climate of 1937, with many artists and technicians living in fear of the Stalinist purges that were sweeping across the Soviet Union.
Visual Style
The cinematography by Fyodor Provorov was revolutionary for its time, particularly in the underwater sequences which used innovative glass tank techniques and special lighting to create realistic ocean environments. The film employed pioneering methods for combining live-action with stop-motion animation, using matte paintings and multiple exposure techniques. The visual style emphasized rich, saturated colors in the original Technicolor version, with the golden fish shimmering against deep blue ocean backgrounds. The contrast between the humble fisherman's hut and the opulent palace was emphasized through careful composition and lighting, visually reinforcing the story's themes.
Innovations
The film pioneered several groundbreaking techniques in special effects and animation. It was one of the first films to successfully integrate stop-motion animation with live-action footage on such a large scale. The underwater sequences required the development of new camera housing and lighting techniques to film through water without distortion. The film also experimented with early forms of motion control photography to ensure precise alignment between live-action and animated elements. The creation of the golden fish involved detailed puppetry and animation techniques that would influence special effects work for decades to come.
Music
The musical score was composed by Lev Shvarts, who created a memorable leitmotif for the golden fish that became instantly recognizable to Soviet audiences. The soundtrack combined traditional Russian folk melodies with classical orchestral arrangements, creating a musical bridge between the fairy tale setting and contemporary cinema. The film's songs, particularly those sung by the fisherman, became popular in their own right and were often performed on Soviet radio. The sound design was particularly innovative in creating the underwater atmosphere and the magical voice of the fish, which was achieved through experimental recording techniques.
Did You Know?
- Director Aleksandr Ptushko was known as the 'Soviet Walt Disney' for his pioneering work in fantasy and animation films
- The film was one of the first Soviet features to use the three-strip Technicolor process, though most surviving copies are black and white
- The underwater sequences were filmed in a specially constructed glass tank measuring 20 meters long
- The stop-motion fish required over 2,000 individual frames of animation for its movements
- Despite being made during Stalin's regime, the film's critical message about greed was allowed as it was based on Pushkin's classic work
- The film was nearly destroyed during World War II but was preserved in the State Film Archive
- Ptushko had to fight studio executives who wanted to add more propaganda elements to the fairy tale
- The film's success led to Ptushko being given his own studio unit at Mosfilm
- The wife's costume changes required 12 different elaborate outfits, each reflecting her increasing status
- The film was shown at the 1937 Paris World Exhibition as an example of Soviet cinematic achievement
What Critics Said
Contemporary Soviet critics praised the film's technical achievements while noting its faithful adaptation of Pushkin's classic tale. Foreign critics, particularly at the Venice Film Festival, were impressed by the film's visual effects and artistic merit, with many comparing Ptushko's work to Disney's animated features. Modern critics regard the film as a masterpiece of early fantasy cinema, highlighting its innovative techniques and enduring artistic value. The film is now recognized as a crucial link between early animation and modern special effects cinema, with scholars studying its influence on subsequent fantasy and science fiction films.
What Audiences Thought
The film was enormously popular with Soviet audiences upon its release, offering a magical escape from the harsh realities of daily life during the Stalin era. Children and adults alike were captivated by the visual spectacle of the golden fish and the underwater sequences. The film's moral message about the dangers of greed resonated with audiences, though many likely also appreciated the subtle critique of those who abused power. The film ran in Soviet cinemas for several years and was regularly revived for children's programming. International audiences were equally impressed when the film was shown abroad, with many marveling at the technical achievements of Soviet cinema.
Awards & Recognition
- Stalin Prize (Second Class) - 1941
- Honorable Mention at Venice Film Festival - 1937
Film Connections
Influenced By
- Alexander Pushkin's 1835 poem 'The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish'
- Brothers Grimm's 'The Fisherman and His Wife'
- Traditional Russian folklore
- Disney's early animated features
This Film Influenced
- The New Gulliver
- 1935
- also by Ptushko
- Sadko
- 1952
- Ptushko's later fantasy film
- Ilya Muromets
- 1956
- another Ptushko fantasy epic
- Modern stop-motion films by studios like Laika and Aardman