The Frogs Who Wanted a King (1922)

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Blistering performances.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

One of Starevich's earliest films made in France is possibly his only political satire. The story of The Frogs Who Wanted A King mirrors its title as a group of high "croakers" feel that democracy has gone flat so they demand a king from Jupiter to rule their land. When he sends down a stump, the frogs ask for another king, saying the stump is but "political timber." Jupiter sends down a hungry stork this time whose frog lusty eyes devour the town's residents. As the original "croaker" is about to slide down the stork's beak, he speaks his moral: "let well enough alone." This film features a few beautiful crowd scenes of dozens of puppet frogs. Starewicz tricks the audience into believing they are all moving at once by keeping the background in constant motion and animating only about six frogs or so at one time. The slightly corny dialogue and problems with lighting in a few places diminish the quality of repeat viewings, however its historical significance in Starewicz's life make it of importance to watch. His feelings towards government immediately following his flee from Russia are likely expressed in this film. In addition, the technical accomplishments of animating so many characters at once in a stop-motion film is astounding.

Many animation buffs consider Wladyslaw Starewicz the great forgotten genius of one special branch of the art, puppet animation, which he invented almost single-handedly -- and, as it happens, almost by accident. As a young man Starewicz was more interested in entomology than the cinema, but his unsuccessful attempt to film two stag beetles fighting led to an unexpected breakthrough in film-making, when he realized he could simulate movement by manipulating beetle carcasses which he would photograph one frame at a time. This discovery led to the production of Starewicz' amazingly elaborate classic short The Cameraman's Revenge, which he made in Russia in 1912, at a time when motion picture animation of all sorts was still in its infancy.The political tumult of the Russian Revolution caused Starewicz to flee to Paris, where one of his first productions (coincidentally?) was a dark political satire variously known as "Frogland" or "The Frogs Who Wanted a King." A strain of black comedy can be found in almost all of Starewicz' films, but here it is very dark indeed, aimed more at grown-ups who can appreciate the satirical aspects than children, who would most likely find the climax upsetting. (I'm middle-aged and found it pretty upsetting, myself.) And indeed, prints of the film intended for English speaking viewers of the 1920s were given title cards filled with puns and quips in order to help soften the sharp sting of the finale.Our tale is set in a swamp, the Frogland Commonwealth, where the citizens are unhappy with their government, and have called a special session to see what they can do to improve matters. They decide to beseech Jupiter for a king. The crowds are impressively animated in this opening sequence -- it couldn't have been easy to make so many frog puppets look alive, simultaneously -- while Jupiter, for his part, is depicted as a droll white-bearded guy in the clouds who looks like he'd rather be taking a nap. When Jupiter sends them a tree-like god who regards them impassively the frogs decide that this is no improvement, and demand a different king. Irritated, Jupiter sends them a stork.Delighted with this formidable new king who towers above them, the frogs welcome him with a delegation of formally dressed dignitaries. The Mayor steps forward to hand him the key to the Commonwealth as newsreel cameras record the event. To everyone's horror, the stork promptly eats the Mayor and then goes on a merry rampage, swallowing citizens at random. A title card dryly reads: "News of the king's appetite spreadeth throughout the kingdom." When the now-terrified frogs once more beseech Jupiter for help, he loses his temper and showers their community with lightning bolts. The moral of our story, delivered by a hapless frog just before he is eaten, is "Let well enough alone."Considering the time period when this startling short was made, and considering the fact that it was made by a Russian émigré at the height of that beleaguered country's Civil War, it would be easy to see this as a parable about those events. Starewicz may or may not have had Russia's turmoil in mind when he made 'Frogland,' but whatever prompted his choice of material the film stands as a cautionary tale of universal application. Frogland could be the Soviet Union, Italy, Germany or Japan in the 1930s, or any country of any era that lets its guard down, seeks a "strong leader," and is then overwhelmed by tyranny. It's a fascinating film, even a charming one in its macabre way, but its message is no joke.

This very amusing short feature combines Starewicz's trademark animal puppets with a funny fable about government. The animation is not as stunning as it is in his finest pictures, but it is very good, and many of the frog puppets are quite amusing.The story has the 'Frogland Commonwealth' seeking new leadership, and while the plot is deliberately silly, it is entertaining and it creates some good opportunities to use the animated frogs and other creatures. The English translations of the title cards have numerous puns, and some of these are real groaners, but others are at least mildly amusing."Frogland" does not have quite the masterful complexity of "The Cameraman's Revenge" or "The Mascot", but it is an entertaining, well-crafted movie that is well worth seeing.

A great piece of pioneering stop motion animation. Taxidermied frogs make up the cast here. A group of smark-aleck reptiles ask the Gods for a suitable President. What the Gods send down are not suitable even for bathroom monitor. The gods send down one last "candidate" and all heck lets loose amongst the frightened frogs. No, I am not tripping on airplane glue, I am describing exactly what I saw here. Great little film for adventuresome movie goers!