New Arrival Heroic Times

A crime is a crime, even if committed by kings, intones the narrator of director Jzsef Gmes animated portrait of the supposedly heroic age of medieval knights and kings, a sprawling and bloody tapestry of ruthless combat to rival Game Of Thrones. Based on an epic narrative poem by 19th century Hungarian writer Jnos Arany, HEROIC TIMES has a unique visual style combining gorgeous oil paintings and 2-D animation, similar to the Japanese anime BELLADONNA OF SADNESS. Stylistically, the film is closer to sweeping medieval sagas like Aleksandr Ptushkos ILYA MUROMETS, John Boormans EXCALIBUR and Ralph Bakshis underrated version of THE LORD OF THE RINGS, tied together by the battle-wearied voice of the narrator: I haunted the alien streets as a spirit of withered times. Winner of the feature film award at the 1985 Annecy Animated Film Festival, the long-unseen HEROIC TIMES has been newly restored by the NFI National Film Institute-Film Archive in Hungary for its first-ever U.S. release by Deaf Crocodile.

directed by:Jzsef Gmes
starring:Gyula Szab
1983 / 79 min / 1.37:1 / Hungarian Mono

Additional info:

• Region A Blu-ray
• New 4K restoration of HEROIC TIMES by the NFI National Film Institute-Film Archive in Hungary
• New commentary track by film historian Samm Deighan
• New essay by film historian and professor Jennifer Lynde Barker
• Short film: Koncertissimo (1968, 3 min.) in this scathing anti-war satire, an elegant crowd gathers at the concert hall to hear a very different kind of orchestra perform
• Short film: Parade (Dszlps) (1969, 5 min.) a beautiful hand-painted short about the absurdity of military dress parades
• Short film: Funeral (Temets) (1970, 3 min.) a solemn and tearful funeral is interrupted by unexpected laughter in Gmes black comic gem
• New video interview with HEROIC TIMES animator Sndor Bksi, moderated by Dennis Bartok of Deaf Crocodile
• New video interview with Gyrgy Rduly, Director of the National Film Institute-Film Archive on Jzsef Gmes and the history of Hungarian animation, moderated by Dennis Bartok
• Blu-ray authoring by David Mackenzie of Fidelity In Motion
• English subtitles