Fehérlófia
Encyclopedia
Fehérlófia is a Hungarian
animated movie made in 1981. It is the second animated feature-length film of Marcell Jankovics
, and PannóniaFilm
.
and Avaric
legends, Fehérlófia is a tribute to the old steppe peoples. There are slight differences between Arany's work and the movie - for example, in the movie, Fehérlófia (Son of the White Mare, main protagonist) and Fanyűvő (Treetearer) are the same person. There are also references to ancient origin legends: Ősanya (Progenitrix), Ősapa (Forefather), and the Világfa (World tree).
The story's main character is Fehérlófia (Son of the White Mare), who is a man with superhuman power. He is born as the third son of a horse
, and he gains his power by suckling the horse's milk. He listens to old tales, mostly about the Forefather and the end of his reign, caused by evil dragon
s. After the horse's death, Fehérlófia decided to search and destroy the dragons, who seized power over the world. He met his two brothers, Kőmorzsoló (Stonecrumbler) and Vasgyúró (Ironkneader), who also have superhuman abilities. In search of the Underworld's entrance (home of the dragons), they accommodate themselves in a tree hollow. One of them stays there every day, in order to cook mush
and make rope while the other two search for the entrance. An ancient and mischievous creature, Hétszűnyű Kapanyányi Monyók keeps asking them to give him some mush. Kőmorzsoló and Vasgyúró refuse to give him food, so Hétszűnyű attacks them and eats the mush from their belly. Fehérlófia, however, stops him by trapping his beard in the tree hollow. Trying to escape, Hétszűnyű fells the tree, and the heroes find the entrance of the Underworld under its roots.
Only Fehérlófia dares to go down there, where he finds the three dragons and three princesses. After the victory, Kőmorzsoló and Vasgyúró rescue the princesses but leave Fehérlófia down in the Underworld. The desperate Fehérlófia finds a griffin
's nest. A snake
tries to eat the griffin chicks, but Fehérlófia stops it. To show his gratitude, the Griffin Father takes Fehérlófia to the upper world. The trip is very long so the griffin has to get some food in order to survive. Finally, Fehérlófia has to cut off his own legs to give something to the griffin to eat.
After the arrival, the griffin chicks restore Fehérlófia's legs, which gives him more power. He is very angry at his brothers, but finally forgives them. All three marry with one of the princesses, and the Forefather restores the power which he lost by the dragon's arrival.
The Three Headed Dragon is a symbol of the Stone Age
people, and his wife, the Red Princess, is the representation of sexuality
. The Seven Headed Dragon is appearing as a World War tank, symbolising all the war and terror in the world. His wife is a bit hysterical which is a direct reference to Sigmund Freud
. The Twelve Headed Dragon displays nothing but a modern metropolis
and the computer
ised world.
Evil unleashed by the fault (usually of curiosity) of human beings is a recurring motif in legends and tales all over the world. This appears in Fehérlófia, when three princesses, despite a prohibition, opens a locked door at the bottom of a castle to see what is behind it. The ancient evil escapes in the form of the three dragons.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
animated movie made in 1981. It is the second animated feature-length film of Marcell Jankovics
Marcell Jankovics
Marcell Jankovics is a Hungarian graphic artist, cartoon director, animator and author. He received his Oscar nomination for the 1974 animated short movie "Sisyphus".d That movie was used for a GMC Yukon Hybrid ad during the 2008 Super Bowl based on an agreement between the Hungarian film studio...
, and PannóniaFilm
PannóniaFilm
Pannonia Film Studio is the largest animation studio in Hungary, based in the capital of Budapest.-History:...
.
Synopsis
Based on the work of László Arany and ancient HunnicHuns
The Huns were a group of nomadic people who, appearing from east of the Volga River, migrated into Europe c. AD 370 and established the vast Hunnic Empire there. Since de Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China 300 years prior to the emergence of the Huns,...
and Avaric
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
legends, Fehérlófia is a tribute to the old steppe peoples. There are slight differences between Arany's work and the movie - for example, in the movie, Fehérlófia (Son of the White Mare, main protagonist) and Fanyűvő (Treetearer) are the same person. There are also references to ancient origin legends: Ősanya (Progenitrix), Ősapa (Forefather), and the Világfa (World tree).
The story's main character is Fehérlófia (Son of the White Mare), who is a man with superhuman power. He is born as the third son of a horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
, and he gains his power by suckling the horse's milk. He listens to old tales, mostly about the Forefather and the end of his reign, caused by evil dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
s. After the horse's death, Fehérlófia decided to search and destroy the dragons, who seized power over the world. He met his two brothers, Kőmorzsoló (Stonecrumbler) and Vasgyúró (Ironkneader), who also have superhuman abilities. In search of the Underworld's entrance (home of the dragons), they accommodate themselves in a tree hollow. One of them stays there every day, in order to cook mush
Mush (cornmeal)
Mush — sometimes called coosh — is a thick cornmeal pudding usually boiled in water or milk. It is often allowed to set, or gel into a semi solid, then cut into flat squares or rectangles, and pan fried. Usage is especially common in the eastern and southeastern United States. It is also customary...
and make rope while the other two search for the entrance. An ancient and mischievous creature, Hétszűnyű Kapanyányi Monyók keeps asking them to give him some mush. Kőmorzsoló and Vasgyúró refuse to give him food, so Hétszűnyű attacks them and eats the mush from their belly. Fehérlófia, however, stops him by trapping his beard in the tree hollow. Trying to escape, Hétszűnyű fells the tree, and the heroes find the entrance of the Underworld under its roots.
Only Fehérlófia dares to go down there, where he finds the three dragons and three princesses. After the victory, Kőmorzsoló and Vasgyúró rescue the princesses but leave Fehérlófia down in the Underworld. The desperate Fehérlófia finds a griffin
Griffin
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle...
's nest. A snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
tries to eat the griffin chicks, but Fehérlófia stops it. To show his gratitude, the Griffin Father takes Fehérlófia to the upper world. The trip is very long so the griffin has to get some food in order to survive. Finally, Fehérlófia has to cut off his own legs to give something to the griffin to eat.
After the arrival, the griffin chicks restore Fehérlófia's legs, which gives him more power. He is very angry at his brothers, but finally forgives them. All three marry with one of the princesses, and the Forefather restores the power which he lost by the dragon's arrival.
Symbolism
Beneath the movie's surreal imagery, there are many indirect references. For example, the White Mare is the Progenitrix, who was one of the rulers of the world before the dragon's arrival. The Hétszűnyű was once the king of the world, the Forefather. The character also appears as the mysterious old man who advises Fehérlófia to suckle his mother's milk in order to gain power.The Three Headed Dragon is a symbol of the Stone Age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
people, and his wife, the Red Princess, is the representation of sexuality
Human sexuality
Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
. The Seven Headed Dragon is appearing as a World War tank, symbolising all the war and terror in the world. His wife is a bit hysterical which is a direct reference to Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
. The Twelve Headed Dragon displays nothing but a modern metropolis
Metropolis
A metropolis is a very large city or urban area which is a significant economic, political and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections and communications...
and the computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
ised world.
Evil unleashed by the fault (usually of curiosity) of human beings is a recurring motif in legends and tales all over the world. This appears in Fehérlófia, when three princesses, despite a prohibition, opens a locked door at the bottom of a castle to see what is behind it. The ancient evil escapes in the form of the three dragons.
Cast
- Directed by Marcell Jankovics
- Written by Marcell Jankovics and László György
- Animators: Edit Baksa, Marcell Jankovics, Edit Szalay, Csaba Szórády, János Uzsák, László Ujváry
- Xerox animation by Erzsébet Pintér
- Background by László Hegedűs
- Graphical designers: Marcell Jankovics, Zsolt Richly, László Hegedűs
- Music by István Vajda
- Sound engineers: Mátyás Szakály, Béla Zsebényi
- Movie cutting by Magda Hap
- Cameraman: Zoltán Bacsó
Links
- Fehérlófia – the original tale by László Arany (in Hungarian)