SAMPO (1959) Restored Trailer

Now available on Blu-ray.
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Based on the Finnish national epic “Kalevala,” director Aleksandr Ptushko’s ravishing, mystical fantasy tells the story of a sinister witch Louhi (Anna Orochko) who covets the Sampo, a magical, rainbow-colored mill that can produce endless salt, grain, and gold. When the hero Lemminkäinen (Andris Oshin) attempts to stop her, Louhi steals the sun, plunging the world into eternal darkness. A Finnish/Soviet co-production and shot like its predecessor ILYA MUROMETS in gorgeous CinemaScope, SAMPO features some of Ptushko’s most surreal and fantastical imagery: a glowing red horse plowing a field of vipers; a boat of fire with a stag’s head; a weeping mother literally walking across the sea to find her lost son. With its witch’s incantations and repeated scenes of forging magical items - “Give me fire for the furnace from the nave of the sky!” - there is a Macbeth-like occult force to the film as well, underscored by the raging blue-gray seas and rock-strewn landscapes. Previously released in the U.S. in a dubbed, butchered version as THE DAY THE EARTH FROZE (and later mocked on MST3K), SAMPO has been beautifully restored in 4K by KAVI - the Finnish National Audiovisual Institute for its first-ever American release in its original Finnish-language version by Deaf Crocodile.

[@Ryan_Gallagher]

Looks great! 🙌

[@jimgrigsby3682]

stereo soundtrack elements used??

[@deafcrocodile]

Sampo's original magnetic sound elements have survived. KAVI digitized those tapes, cleaned them up, and then created a 5.1 master that maintained the original 4 channel sound design.