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Scarlet Sails (film)

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Scarlet Sails
Алые паруса
Poster for original USSR release
Directed byAlexandr Ptushko
Written byAlexandr Yurovsky
Semyon Nagorny
StarringAnastasiya Vertinskaya
Vasily Lanovoy
Lena Cheremshanova
Sasha Lupenko
Ivan Pereverzev
CinematographyGennady Tsekavy
Viktor Yakushev
Edited byI. Moronov
Music byIgor Morozov
Distributed byRUSCICO
Release date
  • 1961 (1961)
Running time
88 minutes
CountrySoviet Union
LanguageRussian

Scarlet Sails (Russian: Алые паруса, romanizedAlye parusa) is a 1961 Soviet romantic fantasy film produced by Mosfilm and directed by Alexandr Ptushko. It is based on Alexander Grin's 1923 romance novel of the same name and stars Vasily Lanovoy and Anastasiya Vertinskaya.[1][2] The story is a romantic fantasy[3] and is described as a "fairy tale",[4][5] though it contains no supernatural elements but two prophecies that came true.

Plot

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The setting is a small fishing village. The former seaman Longren raises his daughter Assol[6] alone after losing his beloved wife, making a meager living by selling the toy boats he carves from wood. As a child, Assol encounters an old man who claims to be a wizard and promises the girl that one day a prince will come on a ship with scarlet sails to carry her away. The villagers scoff but Assol believes her dream will come true one day.

Arthur Grey is a nobleman's son who breaks away from his cruel father to pursue a life at sea, and eventually becomes the captain of a merchant vessel. Having set to port at Assol's village, he spies the young maiden sleeping in the forest and falls in love. After inquiring in the village he learns of Assol's dream and sets about to make it come true.

Principal cast

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Actor Role
Anastasiya Vertinskaya Assol
Vasily Lanovoy Arthur Grey
Yelena "Lena" Cheremshanova (Елена "Лена" Черемшанова) Young Assol
Aleksandr "Sasha" Lupenko (Александр "Саша" Лупенко) Young Arthur
Ivan Pereverzev Longren
Nikolay Volkov (Николай Волков) Egl (the "wizard")
Sergei Romodanov Captain Gop
Oleg Anofriyev Letika (a seaman)
Zoya Fyodorova Governess
Pavel Massalsky (Павел Массальский) Arthur's father
Grigori Shpigel (Григорий Шпигель) Menners Jr. (the innkeeper)

Miscellaneous

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This was the film debut of Anastasiya Vertinskaya, who celebrated her 16th birthday during the filming.[7] She went on to star in such Soviet classics as The Amphibian Man and Hamlet.[8]

Locations used in the filming include Koktebel and Yalta in Crimea, Baku in Azerbaijan, and Pitsunda in Abkhazia.[5]

Two real ships were used for Grey's ship Secret. One of them was the training ship Alfa («Альфа») from the Rostov-on-Don Naval School. It was outfitted with 2,500 meters of scarlet parachute silk procured to satisfy Ptushko's demand for authenticity.[5] Another one was Tovarishch («Товарищ») from Kherson.[9]

Notes

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  1. ^ Scarlet Sails [DVD]. (IV quarter 2003). Russia: RUSCICO.
  2. ^ Alye Parusa at IMDb
  3. ^ Eleanor Mannikka (2007). "Scarlet Sails review". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2007-10-19.
  4. ^ "Official DVD disc description". Ruscico.com. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  5. ^ a b c "Interview with Oleg Anofriev". Scarlet Sails [DVD]. (IV quarter 2003). Russia: RUSCICO.
  6. ^ Note: The heroine's name is changed to "Isolde" in the English-language dubbing on the DVD.
  7. ^ "Interview with Vassily Lanovoy". Scarlet Sails [DVD]. (IV quarter 2003). Russia: RUSCICO.
  8. ^ Anastasiya Vertinskaya at IMDb
  9. ^ «Алые паруса» (1961)

References

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  • Alexandr Ptushko (Director). Scarlet Sails [DVD]. (IV quarter 2003). Russia: RUSCICO
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