Peter & der Wolf

Sergei Prokofiev Peter & der Wolf orchestra suite. This childrens' favorite work does not have the traditional Prokofiev narration; instead, the music is coupled with a short stop-motion animated film. Suzie Templeton wrote and directed the film, which won an Oscar in 2008. The feature firm lasts 34 minutes, and there is about an hour of high-quality bonus material. Mark Stephenson conducts a new recording by the Philharmonia Orchestra. Released 2010, disc has 7.1 dts-HD Master Audio surround sound. The auflösung or resolution is described on the keep case as "1080/24P Full HD." Please note this title is restricted to Blu-ray players that are set for Region B. The disc is unplayable on most Blu-ray players available in Region A, which includes the United States and Japan, and Region C. For this reason, the disc may only be offered for sale in Europe.  Grade: X-A+

The stop-motion animation in this film, which required the work of scores of people over 5 years, is impressive and delightful. The storytelling is first rate too. There is no narration, so the "acting" of the puppets portrays a lot more than just the plot. This Peter & der Wolf is a joy to watch as both a nice short film and as an example of stop-motion animation at its peak. The disc also has interesting bonus materials about the music and the making of the film. However, there are downsides. As noted, the disc works only on Region B players. The disc is also geared toward a central European market with subtitles in English, German, Polish, and Dutch for the bonus material. The booklet is all in German only. This work is short because the musical score was written for the attention span of young children. Finally, we are not sure how many adults would consider stop-motion animation to be a fine-arts form. For these reasons, we give this Peter & der Wolf the grade of X. But the grade is A+ if there are kids in your life, if you are interested in animation, or if you love Prokofiev. Henry McFadyen III 2010.

When I was 5, my mom played Peter and the Wolf for me from an album of 3 78-rpm discs recorded by RCA Victor in 1939 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Prokofiev narration by Richard Hale. I don't think I heard Peter and the Wolf for the next 65 years or so. But before I put this HDVD on our Region B Blu-ray player, I could still sing the "Peter" leitmotive and I still remembered which instruments represent the bird, the duck, the cat, the grandfather, and the hunters.  I was expecting Suzie Tempelton's animated film to be like my mom's 78-rpm album. Well, the leap from 78-rpm to HDVD is pretty broad, and so is the difference between the Prokofiev narration and the Tempelton's animation.

By using the music only (and dropping the narration), Tempelton was able to move grandfather and his shack from old Russia to a spot right on the border between the vast Siberian wilderness and the squalor of a contemporary Russian village. But a bigger change was her transformation of the story from a cute nursery tale into a mini Bildungsroman ("apprentice novel") in which Peter grows from a victim into a victor. The more you watch this film, the more you see how cleverly it is put together. And there's just as much here to please the adults as the kids.

Why was this film made? It seems it was originally designed to be shown on ad hoc screens to spice up performances by symphony orchestras of Peter and the Wolf at pops concerts! What a waste of talent and treasure! The film has been a hit at festivals. But maybe now the film will have new legs with the emergence of HDVD. The video of the film looks more brilliant and clear on my 52" LCD screen than it likely will ever look in a movie theater or concert hall. The music is rendered with great delicacy and verve in Master Audio surround sound.

This HDVD merits repeated viewing. So if it interests you, buy it! It's a shame that this can only be played easily in Europe. There is no verbal component to the film, and it should have a world-wide audience. The fact that it's restricted to Region B has to be the fault of lawyers. Let's hope someone can do a version for Regions A and C as well. Henry C McFadyen Jr 2010 

In its March 2011 issue, Gramophone calls this the best DVD of Peter and the Wolf on the market, and they apparently didn't know that there is a Blu-ray version available! Henry C. McFadyen, Jr. 2011

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