Maugli

I grew up on Disney's version of Jungle Book. Soyuzmultfilm had done an earlier version of this tale but this version is a stunner! By this time (1973) the quality of Soyuzmultfilm's animation was definitely on the decline. Where this film shines is it's emphasis on character. Baloo looked like an "Asian" bear would and Bagherra as a female??! They really did their homework on this one. Whenever Bagherra appears on screen SHE steals the show, looking for all the world like a piece of living art from the deco era. The voice work was superb as would be expected from Soyuzmultfilm. Anatoly Popanov voiced Shere Khan and sounded a hell of a lot better than did George Saunders. Popanov was best know in "Russia" for his voice work in the famous "Nu Pogodi" series, as a lecherous wolf. The atonal music added real depth and atmosphere. I could go on and on - but not enough space. Not to be missed! See the Russian version.