Ilya Muromets [Blu-ray]

Ilya Muromets Blu-ray brings Aleksandr Ptushko’s monumental fantasy epic to high definition in a newly restored presentation. Often described as a Soviet-era answer to western mythic cinema, this sweeping Cinemascope adventure blends folklore, spectacle, and practical effects on a scale rarely matched in the 1950s.

Based on one of the most famous byliny of Kievan Rus’ oral tradition, the film follows the legendary bogatyr Ilya, a warrior destined to defend his homeland against the brutal Tugar invaders. Across decades of battle, betrayal, and loss, Ilya confronts wind demons, monstrous armies, and a fearsome three-headed fire-breathing dragon, while tragedy strikes close to home when his wife is taken and his own son is raised to oppose him.

Directed by Aleksandr Ptushko, the visionary behind The Tale of Tsar Sultan and Sampo, Ilya Muromets is a landmark of Soviet fantasy cinema, renowned for its imaginative creature effects, vast battle sequences, and operatic sense of myth. Deaf Crocodile presents the film in its globally definitive form, painstakingly restored in 4K.

directed by: aleksandr ptushko
starring: boris andreyev, sergey stoliarov, iya arepina
1956 / 91 min

Language: Russian
Audio: Stereo
Discs: 1