Consider Soyuzmultfilm the quintessential studio when it comes to Russian/Soviet animation, and one of the best when it comes to animation in general when getting into their work while my tastes in animation was continuing to broaden. And for Russian films and shorts. Have seen most of their output and have really liked to loved all seen, have recently re-started my completest quest in seeing their output and have yet to see anything bad from them.
'The Golden Antelope' is one of Lev Atamannov's best known animations, the most familiar to me being 'The Snow Queen' (followed closely by 'The Scarlet Flower') and again to me that film is his masterpiece and had a big influence on the likes of Hayau Miyazaki. And it is not hard to see why 'The Golden Antelope' is one of his best know. Also think that 'The Golden Antelope' is one of his best as well, a near-masterpiece and almost one of the best examples of Russian/Soviet animation.
It is a little bit of a slow starter to begin with, with it taking a touch too long to set up, but it does very quickly get better and everything else is superb.
Particularly striking is the animation. Especially the landscapes and the backgrounds, which are nothing short of incredible. The fluid, expressive movements for the characters also impress, as do the quite stunning but suitably subtle use of colour. The music never comes over as bombastic or too constant, instead it is used with restraint and elegance with lush orchestration in a way that's distinctively Russian and this is meant in a good way. Being a huge fan of Russian music.
From start to finish, 'The Golden Antelope' is written with much sincerity and charm, with some nice amusing gentle humour that never feels too much. The story is engaging throughout, slow start aside, and very charming in its quietness and simplicity. It never feels too slight and the moral doesn't preach, while the central relationship is touchingly and sensitively handled with two characters well worth rooting for. The voice work never sounded too theatrical.
Overall, a near-masterpiece. 9/10
