I’m going to share with you a childhood favorite of mine. At least, one of its film versions was. It was originally a ballet based on old folktales. But especially during the last century or so, it has entered other media as well.
For those who are unfamiliar with the basic story of Swan Lake, here it is. Prince Siegfried is celebrating his birthday when his mother tells him that he must choose a bride at the upcoming ball. In order to raise his spirits, the prince’s friends suggest that they go swan hunting. However, when the prince comes across the swans at a lake, he witnesses the pure white birds transform into young maidens. His attention and heart are especially captured by the Swan Queen Odette. Odette reveals that she and the other maidens are prisoners of the wizard Von Rothbart and only faithful, true love can break the spell and free them from the wizard. Siegfried determines that he will be the one to break the spell, inviting Odette to the ball that is to be held the following night.
At the ball, various princesses are presented to Siegfried, but the only maiden to catch his eye is Odette. Or rather, who he believes to be Odette. Von Rothbart intervened and enchanted his daughter Odile to be the very image of the Swan Queen. The prince is thoroughly deceived and declares not only his love but his intention to marry the woman he believes to be Odette. Rothbart reveals how the prince has promised himself to the wrong maiden, sending the prince after Odette who had been trying in vain to warn him of the trick. Back at the lake, Siegfried begs for Odette’s forgiveness before Rothbart comes on the scene.
Then just about anything can happen. (Well, within reason of the storyline.) Traditionally, Siegfried and Odette pledge their undying love for each other and drown themselves. Some variations have Siegfried and Rothbart dying, leaving Odette alone. Others, Odette and Rothbart die. All three die. Believe me, if these were the only ways this story ended, I doubt I would have discovered it until I went on a Tchaikovsky craze. But thankfully there are versions where Rothbart is defeated and Siegfried and Odette survive to live happily ever after.
The closest I can find as an origin source is that it is Russian. Though the theme of a bride or future bride being turned into some bird or forest creature was fairly popular in various tales it was always just before the wedding or sometime after the wedding, never years beforehand. Which is the case of Odette. The earliest one finds the tale is the original documented rendition of the ballet which bares the name Vladimir Petrovich Begichev. So basically for all practical purposes the original folktale has been forever lost to time if such a tale actually existed before the ballet of 1877 (give or take a few years).
I have seen some variations of the ballet on Youtube, including one that was performed on ice. I believe it was the ice performance that strayed from tradition of the same dancer playing both Odette and Odile and instead had separate ladies in the two roles. I liked the interaction and storytelling that could take place because of that. The American Ballet Theatre also made an intriguing change in the storytelling perspective by showing how Von Rothbart captured Odette in the first place. Personally, it is on my mental bucket list to one day see a live performance of Swan Lake.
To my understanding there are a few film adaptions. There are only three that I am really familiar with. One is the anime film that I have heard about and though I have yet to actually watch it myself, I am definitely interested in seeing it at least once. From a few clips I’ve seen and what I’ve heard, it features the original score from the ballet. Another film that features the original music, that I can honestly recommend without a worry is Barbie of Swan Lake. Odette is no longer a queen but a somewhat fearful baker’s daughter. The prince has many of the traditional characteristics, though his name is changed to Daniel. I don’t care what the critics say about Barbie but at least for a few years, she actually performed in some decent movies before she was forced to take on films with cheaper storylines. ;-)
The film adaption I grew up with doesn’t have any of the ballet score but features original music and songs: The Swan Princess. Okay, I know I have to be careful with this one because if I’m not you’ll receive a movie review. Maybe it’s because I’m a little biased, or it could be that it’s because it has a happy ending, but I love this film. Odette and Derek (cough*Siegfried*cough) have known each other and have virtually been betrothed since childhood. But because the prince is oblivious and not a master in the finer points of romance, it becomes doubtful that they will be together. Enter Rothbart who kills Odette’s father and kidnaps Odette. Odette then befriends some animals while under her curse who help her reunite with Derek. But the film writers made things a little more difficult than the original tale: moonlight on the lake is required for her to change back (no moon on the night of the ball. Oh, no!), and Derek has to make a vow of everlasting love and prove it to the world (very interesting twist how it actually happens). AACH! I better stop now. Moving on.
I have come across various book adaptions as well, though none have been copies that I had since childhood. Just a handful of books that I found at my local library when I went through a phase of wanting to see the original tales that movies were based on. One book I found had illustrations heavily influenced by ballet performances. Another book that has been engraved in my mind, simply because of it’s length and more “inspired by” nature is Swan Lake by Mark Helprin and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg. This book kind of became a favorite if for no other reason than Odette and the prince had a child. Unfortunately how that came about is morally questionable and overall the book was not meant for younger readers. Not that there was anything dirty or inappropriate, just the descriptions and world-building is very drawn out and wordy. Maybe if I find it again someday, I’ll give it a proper review but for now I’ll wrap this bit up by saying that the illustrations are very lovely.
To my knowledge, not a whole lot of video/computer games have been made based on this tale. The Dark Parables series have made various allusions to the Swan Princess in several games and just in recent years released a game heavily inspired by Swan Lake. Aside from this, I know that there are a couple other swan-based fairytales that have played a role in a couple games, but otherwise, no Swan Lake-based games.
As far as rating, I’d have to say that variations that have Odette and/or the prince die will have to get one or two dragons out of five while the happily ever after endings would get a four to five out of five dragons. All depends on the story leading up to the ending. :-) Hope you enjoyed.
Until next time. Bye.
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