Something of an oddity, this one. A puppet version of the Shakespeare play make by Czech director and animation master Jiri Trnka, the film was originally made in 1958 without dialogue, relying on pantomime, dance and music. But then someone decided to give it an English soundtrack in 1971 and this is the version you see here. The voices of (among others) Richard Burton, Joss Ackland, Alec McCowen, Ann Bell and Barbara Leigh-Hunt speak a truncated and seriously cut version of the text. This idea isn't entirely successful, but the visual delights of the film (of which there are many) adequately compensate. It may not be Shakespeare, but it's quite delightful.


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