''Dog in Boots'' (, ''Pyos v sapogakh''), also known as ''Pup in Boots'' is a 1981
Soyuzmultfilm
Soyuzmultfilm ( rus, Союзмультфи́льм, p=səˌjʉsmʊlʲtˈfʲilʲm , ''Unioncartoon'') (also known as SMF Animation Studio in English, formerly known as Soyuzdetmultfilm, ''Unionchildcartoon'') is a Russian animation studio, produ ...
's
animated
Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...
parody film
A parody film or spoof film is a subgenre of comedy film that lampoons other film genres or films as pastiches, works created by imitation of the style of many different films reassembled together.
Although the subgenre is often overlooked by cri ...
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
adaptation of the classic 1844
Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas (born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas , was a French novelist and playwright.
His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the mos ...
story of
d'Artagnan
Charles de Batz de Castelmore (), also known as d'Artagnan and later Count d'Artagnan ( 1611 – 25 June 1673), was a French Musketeer who served Louis XIV as captain of the Musketeers of the Guard. He died at the siege of Maastricht in the Fr ...
and ''
The Three Musketeers
''The Three Musketeers'' () is a French historical adventure novel written and published in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is the first of the author's three d'Artagnan Romances. As with some of his other works, he wrote it in col ...
''.
''Dog in Boots'' parodies
costume
Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture.
The term also was traditionally used to describe typica ...
and
historical drama films
A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction such as c ...
, particularly the musical miniseries ''
d'Artagnan and Three Musketeers
''D'Artagnan and Three Musketeers'' (, ''D'Artanyan i tri mushketyora'') is a three-part swashbuckler musical miniseries produced in the Soviet Union and first aired in 1978. It is based on the 1844 novel ''The Three Musketeers'' by Alexandre Dum ...
'' (1978) that was incredibly popular in the Soviet Union. The concept of this film is similar to the 1981 series ''
Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds
''Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds'' is a children's animated television series that adapts the classic 1844 Alexandre Dumas story of d'Artagnan and ''The Three Musketeers'', produced by Spanish studio BRB Internacional with animation by Ja ...
'': the main characters are dogs, while
Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...
novelization
A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book, or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent ...
''Pyos v sapogakh, ili Novye priklyucheniya treh mushketerov'' (lit. "Dog in boots, or New Adventures of the Three Musketeers") for
children
A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...
, authored by Vladimir Valutskiy, was published by Strekoza Press in 2004. In 2006 TVIK-LIREK released an
audiobook
An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements.
Spoken audio has been available in sch ...
CD based on Valutskiy's story. In 2009 ''Dog in Boots'' was fully restored by Krupny Plan and released on
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
as a part of ''Full Picture and Sound Restoration'' series. The original film copy was provided by
Gosfilmofond
Gosfilmofond is a state film archive in Russia. It is the main film archive of the Russian Federation and a member of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF). It is a state cultural institution — curator of films collection and ot ...
.
Plot
The film begins with a young Gascon Dog running on the road to Paris and singing that he is "provincial yet principled", "fameless, but direct and honest", and "if service, let it be service to the king". He sees two carriages and a beautiful
bichon
A bichon is a distinct type of toy dog; it is typically kept as a companion dog. Believed to be descended from the Barbet, it is believed the bichon-type dates to at least the 11th century; it was relatively common in 14th-century France, wh ...
nearby.
Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria (; ; born Ana María Mauricia; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was Queen of France from 1615 to 1643 by marriage to King Louis XIII. She was also Queen of Navarre until the kingdom's annexation into the French crown ...
, sitting unseen inside one carriage, hands a diamond
necklace
A necklace is an article of jewellery that is worn around the neck. Necklaces may have been one of the earliest types of adornment worn by humans. They often serve ceremonial, religious, magical, or funerary purposes and are also used as sy ...
to the Duke of Buckingham. Then both carriages leave the place. The whole scene is seen by a red cat named Milady, who reports on the meeting to
Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...
's gray cat (the Count).
Following the royal carriage, the Dog meets three dog musketeers in blue
Musketeers of the Guard
The Musketeers of the military household of the King of France ( or ''compagnie des mousquetaires du roi''), also known as the Musketeers of the Guard () or King's Musketeers (), were an elite fighting company of the military branch of the Maiso ...
costumes: the Fatty (
Porthos
Porthos, Baron du Vallon de Bracieux de Pierrefonds is a fictional character in the novels ''The Three Musketeers'' (1844), '' Twenty Years After'' (1845), and '' The Vicomte de Bragelonne'' (1847–1850) by Alexandre Dumas, père. He and the o ...
), the Handsome (
Aramis
René d'Herblay, alias Aramis, is a fictional character in the novels ''The Three Musketeers'' (1844), '' Twenty Years After'' (1845), and '' The Vicomte de Bragelonne'' (1847–1850) by Alexandre Dumas, père. He and the other two musketeers, ...
) and the Lofty ( Athos). The dogs get into an argument with the newcomer, but their quarrel is quickly interrupted by a throng of Cardinal's cats. The dogs, despite being greatly outnumbered, win the ensuing fight and become best friends. The musketeer dogs tell d'Artagnan that the beautiful
bichon
A bichon is a distinct type of toy dog; it is typically kept as a companion dog. Believed to be descended from the Barbet, it is believed the bichon-type dates to at least the 11th century; it was relatively common in 14th-century France, wh ...
is the favorite dog of Anne of Austria (a reference to Constance Bonacieux). D'Artagnan sneaks into the king's palace and reveals his feeling to the bichon singing that "I am not thoroughbred, which is a minus, but I am noble hearted, and that is a plus" and that he is "ready to fight a dozen cats" for her. In response, the bichon asks for his help. She explains that The Queen is in trouble, because at the next ball she is expected to wear a diamond necklace presented to the Duke of Buckingham. The ball is tomorrow, but the diamonds have already left France. The bichon gives d'Artagnan the Duke's glove to track his scent.
D'Artagnan rushes to England immediately and three musketeers follow him. Richelieu's gray cat orders to stop them at all costs. Milady arranges several traps: "the Fatty" is lured into a cat ambush by a chain of sausages; "the Handsome", who dreams of becoming a
herding dog
A herding dog, also known as a stock dog or working dog, is a Dog type, type of dog that either has been trained in herding livestock or belongs to one of the dog breed, breeds that were developed for herding. A dog specifically trained to he ...
, is distracted with a
herd
A herd is a social group of certain animals of the same species, either wild or domestic. The form of collective animal behavior associated with this is called '' herding''. These animals are known as gregarious animals.
The term ''herd'' ...
of sheep who turn out to be cats in sheep skins; "the Lofty" stays behind to fight a cat gang chasing the dogs and buy his friend precious time. D'Artagnan alone finally arrives to England. Trying to find the Buckingham's palace he meets an English Dog Detective, but after smelling the glove the Detective is only able to deduce that "it belongs to a human", who "carries a heavy oak stick". Finally, the Duke's Foxhound helps d'Artagnan to find the way. He steals the diamond necklace from Buckingham's palace, defeats Milady and returns just in time for the ball. Anne of Austria's reputation is unblemished. He wins Bichon's heart, rejoin with friends and earns a blue musketeer costume.
Yuri Volyntsev
Yuri Vitalyevich Volyntsev (; 28 April 1932 – 9 August 1999) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor. People's Artist of the RSFSR (1984).Русский драматический театр: Энциклопедия / Под общ. ре ...
as the Fatty
*
Valentin Gaft
Valentin Iosifovich Gaft (; 2 September 1935 – 12 December 2020) was a Soviet and Russian actor. He was a People's Artist of the RSFSR (1984).
Biography Early life and education
Gaft was born in Moscow to Jewish parents, Iosif Ruvimovich Gaft ...
as the Lofty
*
Yevgeny Vesnik
Yevgeny Yakovlevich Vesnik (; 15 January 1923 in Petrograd – 10 April 2009 in Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian actor. The son of Yakov Vesnik, the first director of the Kryvorizhstal plant, he fought the Germans in World War II. He worked at the ...
as Richelieu's cat
*
Lev Durov
Lev Konstantinovich Durov (23 December 1931 – 20 August 2015) was a Soviet and Russian theatre and film actor who appeared in more than 200 films and numerous stage productions between 1955 and 2008. He was named a People's Artist of the USS ...
as a Foxhound and Fisherman's dog
*
Vasily Livanov
Vasily Borisovich Livanov (; born 19 July 1935), MBE, is a Soviet and Russian film actor, animation and film director, screenwriter and writer most famous for portraying Sherlock Holmes in the Soviet TV series. He was named People's Artist of ...
as English Detective
*
Vsevolod Larionov
Vsevolod Dmitriyevich Larionov (; September 11, 1928 in Moscow, RSFSR, Soviet Union – October 8, 2000Grigory Shpigel as one-eyed cat-bully
Production
''Dog in Boots'' was created in traditional
hand-drawn animation
Traditional animation (or classical animation, cel animation, or hand-drawn animation) is an animation technique in which each frame is drawn by hand. The technique was the dominant form of animation of the 20th century, until there was a shif ...
technique with character design by Sergey Marakasov. Music was performed by Kris Kelmi's band with lyrics written by Mikhail Libin.
The main character (d'Artagnan, "the Dog") was voiced and sung by Nikolai Karachentsov. Animators later complimented Karachentsov that his performance let them literally see his character, so they did not have to invent him. Dog's songs, in his opinion, should not be sung or even screamed, but "yelled". Karachentsov said that while working in studio he "spied on masters of cartoon voice acting, such as
Oleg Tabakov
Oleg Pavlovich Tabakov (; 17 August 1935 – 12 March 2018) was a Soviet and Russian actor and the Artistic Director of the Moscow Chekhov Art Theatre. People's Artist of the USSR (1988).
Biography
Tabakov was born in Saratov into a family of do ...
''Dog in Boots'' instantly became very popular. It was cited as one of the films that have opened "new verges" in Yefim Gamburg's talent, such as "lyrical mood, elegance, fanciful fantasy". Nikolai Karachentsov and Irina Muravyova performances were praised. Yefim Gamburg recalled that shooting ''Dog in Boots'' was "a real feast" and not only for him, but "for the whole staff", because the studio animators enjoyed actors' performance and cinematography, also "the theme was merry, and the characters were funny". ''Bosporus'' magazine's critic mentions that "there is no such person among our readers who haven't seen" ''Dog in Boots'', which he calls "simple and funny parody". M. Ivanov of Film.ru comments that there are a lot of "wonderful songs" and that "children will love it".
Kris Kelmi gained his fame as a composer partially thanks to his work on this film. Several songs from ''Dog in Boots'' became Soviet
hits
Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block
* ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998
* ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...
, most notably the final duet between the Dog and the Bichon ("We have suffered, which is a minus, but now we are together, and that is a plus"). These songs were equally popular with
Mikhail Boyarsky
Mikhail Sergeyevich Boyarsky (; born 26 December 1949) is a Russian actor and singer. He is best known for playing swashbucklers in historical adventure films; the role of d'Artagnan in the 1978 Soviet adaptation of Alexander Dumas' ''Thre ...
's of the ''d'Artagnan and Three Musketeers'' (1978), the miniseries that ''Dog in Boots'' parodies.