A Christmas Dream

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Vánoční sen
)
A Christmas Dream
Directed by
Written byKarel Zeman
CinematographyPavel Hrdlička
Edited byZdenek Stehlík
Music byJiří Šust
Release dates
  • 1945 (1945) (Czechoslovakia)
  • 1948 (1948) (United States)
LanguagesCzech
English

A Christmas Dream (Czech: Vánoční sen) is a 1945[1] Czechoslovak short film directed by Karel Zeman and Bořivoj Zeman.

Plot

Under the family

electric fan
, is blown about and nearly knocks over a vase as it attempts to avoid falling off the table. The girl, getting out of bed, saves the vase and takes the doll in her arms. The girl wakes up to find her rag doll still on the floor.

Production

The film was Karel Zeman's first experiment in combining

The Fabulous World of Jules Verne (1958).[2] The pioneering animator Hermína Týrlová also reportedly participated in the production.[3][4]

Release

In the United States, the film was released by

Universal-International in 1948. An abridgement of the American version for home projection was sold by Castle Films from 1949 through 1965.[5] The American version replaces the wordless Czech soundtrack with new audio, including a voice for the rag doll; it also includes new footage in which Santa Claus, appearing by magic, sends the Christmas dream to the girl.[6]

Reception and legacy

In their history of Eastern European films, Mira Liehm and Antonín J. Liehm called A Christmas Dream "a classic of its genre."[7] Scott MacGillivray, in a review of the Castle Films version, wrote that "the Zemans' stop-motion effects are truly extraordinary."[5] Le Parisien called the film "magical" and rated it four stars out of a possible four.[8]

The film was screened at the 1946 Cannes Film Festival,[3] where it won the Grand Prix International for best short fiction film.[9]

The dubbed version was spoofed by RiffTrax[10] on December 21, 2009.[11]

It is also available on

HBO Max.[12]

See also

References

  1. ^ The Criterion Channel’s December 2023 Lineup|The Criterion Collection
  2. ISBN 9780520021518
  3. ^
    ISBN 9781136307898
  4. ISBN 978-1598632453
  5. ^
    ISBN 9780595324910
  6. ^ Karel and Bořivoj Zeman [uncredited] (1948), A Christmas Dream (short film), Universal-International
  7. ISBN 9780520031579
  8. ^ R.B. (21 January 2015), ""Rêve de Noël": magique", Le Parisien, retrieved 7 February 2015
  9. Festival de Cannes
    , retrieved 7 February 2015
  10. ^ RiffTrax: A Guide to Christmas and Holiday Episodes|Den of Geek
  11. ^ RiffTrax
  12. ^ Max

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=A_Christmas_Dream&oldid=1197691508"