23.11.25, 20:30, Kinokwartet: Once Upon a Time

Once upon a time... there was a film day that made your wildest dreams come true. As is tradition, Kinoautomat puts on its glass slippers for a four-part series of magical proportions. This time, we're letting our hair down at KASKcinema for a series of fairy tale films from different eras and cultural contexts.

13:00 The Little Mermaid

(Karel Kachyna 1976, Czechoslovakia, 84', Czech spoken, English subtitles)

We start deep in the sea with this Czechoslovakian adaptation of The Little Mermaid. No Rastafarian crab or catchy musical numbers in Karel Kachyna's version, but a kaleidoscopic wealth of beautiful sets, costumes and hairstyles. Floating between psychedelic fever dream and Glam Rock music video, you will be immersed in unforgettable visuals.

15:00 Un Rêve Plus Long Que la Nuit

(Niki de Saint Phalle 1976, France, 82’, French spoken, English subtitles)

Niki de Saint Phalle's status as an artistic jack-of-all-trades with boundless imagination is once again confirmed in her second feature film. Un Rêve Plus Long is part erotic picaresque novel, part feminist coming-of-age story and 100% delightfully deranged. Young Camélia's search for pure love leads her on quests that turn the foundations of fairy tales upside down.

17:00 Legend

(Ridley Scott, 1985, USA, 94', 35mm, English spoken, no subtitles)

We already knew that Tom Cruise possesses the secret of eternal youth, but the fact that he starred in this terrible film in his younger years is often forgotten. Ridley Scott chose to follow Blade Runner (1982) with this heroic saga in which Cruise, clad in chain mail, takes on the unicorn-slaying Lord of Darkness. Although reviled upon its release, Legend has since been knighted a campy cult classic.

20:30 The Red Shoes

(Emeric Pressburger & Michael Powell 1948, UK, 133', English spoken, no subtitles)

Before we return home in our pumpkin carriage, we conclude with this timeless classic from the dream duo Powell & Pressburger. In sensuous Technicolor, they retell Hans Christian Andersen's story of the same name about a girl doomed to keep dancing. The hauntingly beautiful cinematography borders on magic, while the dance sequences leave you gasping for air.

And they lived happily ever after.