30/11/2007

Farkas (Wolf), a Siberian fairy-tale by Tamás Tóth

A sledge pulled by reindeers on a cold winter evening, the deserted wide Siberian taiga, shepherds gathering in the local “club” for a drink. Light and peaceful pictures of the landscape and its inhabitants are presented in this modern fairy-tale, which combines elements of feature film and documentary. The story is told by a narrator, who comments on events with a rather ironic tone. Documentary-like scenes, such as the singing of the Mansi women and their recounting of the recent wolf attacks, are occasionally interrupted to present an overall view of the story.

The reindeer-shepherds call in Nikolai Sergelevich to help them get rid of the “vampire-wolves” who are attacking both reindeers and villagers. Nikolai is a well-known and respected shaman, and a great amount of trust is put in him. The celebrations of his success in saving the Mansi people prove however to be somewhat overhasty…