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Aleksandr Ptushko Fantastika Box on Blu-ray

A box set containing four of legendary Russian filmmaker Aleksandr Ptushko's most sweeping, visual F/X-filled epics: ILYA MUROMETS (THE SWORD & THE DRAGON), 1956, Mosfilm, 87 min. A stunning Cinemascope ballad of heroic medieval knights, ruthless Tugar invaders, wind demons and three-headed fire-breathing dragons. SAMPO (THE DAY THE EARTH FROZE), 1959, Finland/USSR, 91 min. Dir. Aleksandr Ptushko. Based on the Finnish national epic "Kalevala," Ptushko's ravishing, mystical fantasy tells the story of a sinister witch Louhi (Anna Orochko) who covets the Sampo, a magical, rainbow-colored mill that can produce endless salt, grain and gold. When the hero Lemminkäinen (Andris Oshin) attempts to stop her, Louhi literally steals the sun, plunging the world into eternal darkness. THE TALE OF TSAR SALTAN, 1967, Mosfilm, 85 min. Based on a famous fairy tale in verse by Alexander Pushkin, TSAR SALTAN is one of director Aleksandr Ptushko's most sublime creations: a ravishingly beautiful fantasy about love, magic, betrayal and abandoned family. Like his earlier masterpieces, TSAR SALTAN is filled with breathtaking imagery: carved wooden lions who shed tears; peasants in pagan ritual masks, dancing in the snow; the treacherous faces of conspirators bathed in red candle glow like the witches in MacBeth. RUSLAN AND LUDMILA - 1972, Mosfilm, 145 min. The final film from Russian fantasy master Aleksandr Ptushko, RUSLAN AND LUDMILA was a glorious and magical summation of his career: a 2-1/2 hour greatest hits package filled with the sweeping lyricism, bejeweled visual F/X and mythic storytelling that put him on par with Walt Disney, Ray Harryhausen and Mario Bava.