Professor Pfinklepfunder's $1 Sunday Films
White Mane (1953)
Directed by Albert Lamorisse
With Alain Emery, Pierre Bestieux, Denys Colomb de Daunant
Rated G, 39 minutes, DVD
In French with English subtitles
In the south of France, in a vast plain region called the Camargue, lives White Mane, a magnificent stallion and the leader of a herd of wild horses too proud to let themselves be broken by humans. Only Folco, a young fisherman, manages to tame him. A strong friendship grows between the boy and the horse, as the two go looking for the freedom that the world of men won't allow them. Long unavailable in the U.S., this extraordinarily shot wonder from Albert Lamorisse is a work of technical sophistication and immense natural beauty.
The Red Balloon (1956)
Directed by Albert Lamorisse
With Pascal Lamorisse, Sabine Lamorisse
Not Rated, 34 minutes, Blu-ray
In French with English subtitles
Albert Lamorisse's exquisite The Red Balloon remains one of the most beloved children's films of all time. In this deceptively simple, nearly wordless tale, a young boy discovers a stray balloon, which seems to have a mind of its own, on the streets of Paris. The two become inseparable, yet the world's harsh realities finally interfere. With its glorious palette and allegorical purity, the Academy Award-winning The Red Balloon has enchanted movie lovers, young and old, for generations.