 |   Format : Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC Publisher : BBC Warner Company : Warner Brothers List Price: Our Price: $3.80 You Save: $11.18 (75%) Used Price : $1.99 |
Description
Hans Christian Andersen's classic fairy tale comes to life in an enchanting mix of music and song, live drama and stunning animation. When Gerda and her mother take in the penniless beggar boy, Kay, powerful forces come into play that will take both children on a magical journey and test their friendship to the extreme. One cold winter night a splinter of ice pierces Kay's eye, turning his heart cold and making him angry and unhappy. He is enchanted by the Snow Queen and taken to her palace in the frozen North. Gerda decides that she must do whatever she can to find her friend. Faith, love and courage lead Gerda on a perilous quest through many strange lands. Will the little girl in the red velvet cloak be able to match the power of the Snow Queen?Amazon.com
This staggeringly gorgeous interpretation of Hans Christian Andersen's classic fairy tale The Snow Queen began as a concert of the pretty music by Paul K. Joyce. The story is told in broad strokes: A mother (Juliet Stevenson, Truly Madly Deeply) and her daughter Gerda (teen soprano Sydney White, who's been tearing up the musical stages in England) take in a homeless boy named Kay. When Kay disappears, kidnapped by the vampiric Snow Queen (ancestress to the White Witch of Narnia, no doubt), Gerda sets off in pursuit and comes across helpful ravens, talking flowers, moving statues, and benevolent reindeer in the course of her hero-journey. The wholly digital world created for this film is astonishing; much of it looks like hand-painted Victorian photographs, each image suitable for framing. Ironically, as the story grows more magical, the imagery turns more conventionally "fantastic" (the Snow Queen's arctic lair is a bit like Superman's Fortress of Solitude). But the overall texture of the movie is engagingly stylized, with movement that seems staggered yet graceful, like a silent film. The Snow Queen demonstrates that digital technology can make a more ethereal aesthetic as vivid and startling as a slimy alien or a bigger explosion. --Bret FetzerSimilarProduct
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Customer reviews
Absolutely beautiful! 
by .. La Coccinelle ()
I caught this wonderful production when it was on television here in Canada last year. At the time, I believe it was only available on DVD in the UK, so to see that it will be released in North America is great!
This is a beautifully produced story for children and adults alike. Much use was made of computer imaging and, as a result, the live-action characters look like they are walking through a world of paintings. The beautiful, haunting soundtrack of songs that complement the scenes in the movie only adds to the artistic quality of the work.
I highly recommend it.
Enchanting and Ethereal by .. Nancy Taylor (Toronto)
Finally a computer generated piece of illustrative fiction that is haunting and beautiful and very much like paintings come to life. The dreamlike imagery and gorgeous soundtrack make for a must have annual Christmas show for adults and children. Truly stunning!
A beautiful painting in motion by .. Family of Boys (34.0,-98.5)
What an magical rendition of the Snow Queen fairy tale. I have watched multiple versions of the Hans Christine Anderson story and this is by far the most impressive one. It is filmed in such away that you almost appear to be watching an enchanted painting that has sprung to life. The story itself focuses on the trait of compassion, the value of family and the strong pure love of children. Gerda and her mother take Kay in from the cold and give him a warm loving place to live. When the Snow Queen does take Kay, Gerda's love for her adopted brother know no bounds and she sets out after him. Through many fantastic landscapes and after encountering individuals both helpful and hindering, Gerda finds the strength within and does the impossible. A true tale of family love and the lengths at which we go to help those we value deeply.
Beautifully dreamlike by .. William Timothy Lukeman ()
This version of the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale must be the most visually rich & gorgeous one yet! Every frame is drenched in color, reminiscent of hand-tinted photographs; and the slightly herky-jerky motion is like watching a turn-of-the-century nickelodeon. It's a fascinating use of CGI, one that utilizes cutting-edge techniques to create a deliberately old-fashioned look ... and it's a stylistic success. The acting is somewhat stylized as well, which serves the overall tone & brings the viewer into a perfectly realized world. This isn't the place to look for subtle characterization, or nuanced psychological portraits -- these are fairy tale characters, embodiments of mythic types, and they act as such.
But I don't want it to sound too high-falutin'. While the thoughtful viewer can certainly find more below the surface, it's primarily an entertainment, and a dazzling one to boot! It can be enjoyed as pure eye candy, a luscious confection; it has all the thrills & surprises of any good fairy tale; and it teaches something in its own quiet way. You really can't ask for more than that!
Accompanied by a lovely, haunting score, this short film will be a welcome addition to your home library. Most happily recommended!
GORGEOUS ANIMATED FILM 
by .. Michael Butts (Martinsburg, WV USA)
Imagine all your Victorian styled Christmas cards coming to life and you'll have some idea about the sumptuous animation of this BBC tv movie. Although only a little under an hour long, the movie floats along ethereally with brilliant animation, some Enya-like music (voiced by Gerda, Sydney White) and a fairyland paperweight comes to life. The film almost has a silent movie feel to it, with jerky motions and off-beat colorizations, but it's delightfully entertaning and different.