The Little Fox
| The Little Fox | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Directed by | Attila Dargay |
| Screenplay by | Attila Dargay István Imre Ede Tarbay |
| Based on | Vuk 1965 novel by István Fekete |
| Starring | Judit Pogány József Gyabronka Teri Földi Gyula Szabó |
| Cinematography | Irén Henrik |
| Edited by | János Czipauer Magda Hap |
| Music by | Peter Wolf |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Mokép |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 76 minutes |
| Country | Hungary |
| Language | Hungarian |
| Budget | 7 million Ft |
| Box office | 17.2 million Ft |
The Little Fox, known in Hungary as Vuk, is a 1981 Hungarian animated film produced by Pannónia Filmstúdió, based on the novel Vuk by István Fekete.[1] The film is directed by Attila Dargay and written by Attila Dargay, István Imre and Ede Tarbay, and released in December of 1981.[2][3]
A computer-animated sequel, A Fox's Tale, was released in 2008 to negative reception.[4]
Plot
[edit]The film tells the story of a little red fox kit, Vic (Vuk in the original Hungarian version), who ventures away from his family's den and, upon his return finds it empty. He concludes that his whole family left the den with the human hunter (called "Smoothskinner" in the cartoon) because he can smell him. His maternal uncle Karak finds him, then offers for the little fox to stay with him, and Karak continues to raise him.
As Vic grows older, he develops much cunning and cleverness. Now a young adult fox, he even dares to infiltrate the hunter's house, during which he finds a vixen, named Foxy, held captive in a cage. During a stormy night, he tricks the guard dogs and other animals, as well as the hunter himself, and eventually helps the vixen escape by smashing the cage open with a loaded wagon.
Foxy joins Vic and Karak in the woods, but when Autumn comes, Vic's uncle is shot by the hunter during the seasonal hunt. Vic swears revenge on the hunter and finally accomplishes it: first by breaking into the food locker and eating up all the eggs, then taking away all the poultry from the cages while playing many jokes on the hunter's dim-witted dogs (which results in the two dogs becoming strays at the end). Eventually, the hunter decides to set up bear traps around his house, luring Vic with goose roast; however, the two hunting dogs fall into the traps, and the third one seriously injures the hunter himself. At the end of the film, Vic and Foxy have cubs of their own.[5]
Production
[edit]Originally produced as a TV series, Dargay visited the Budapest Zoo to study the movements and habits of newborn fox cubs.[3]
Voice cast
[edit]| Character | Original | English |
|---|---|---|
| Vuk | József Gyabronka | Steven R. Weber (Vic) |
| Judit Pogány (Young) | Corinne Orr (Young Vic) | |
| Íny | Teri Földi | Anne Costello (Vic's mother) |
| Kag | Gyula Szabó | John Bellucci (Vic's Father) |
| Karak | László Csákányi | William Kiehl |
| Fox girl | Erzsébet Kútvölgyi | Lucy Martin (Foxy) |
| Simabőrű the Hunter[6] | Róbert Koltai | Peter Newman (Chester the Hunter) |
| Vahúr | Sándor Szabó | Unknown |
| Fickó | András Márton | |
| hooded crow | Gyula Bodrogi | |
| shepherd dog | Ottó Füzessy | |
| Narrator | Tibor Bitskey | John Bellucci |
Additional Voices
[edit]- Anne Costello
- George Gonneau
- Les Marshak
- Peter Newman
- Maia Danziger
- Ira Lewis
English version
[edit]The English dub of the animation, titled simply The Little Fox, was produced in 1987 by Robert Halmi, Inc. It was broadcast in the United States as part of Nickelodeon's Special Delivery block and released on home video by Celebrity Home Entertainment.[7] The English dub changed Vuk's name to "Vic" and his partner’s name to "Foxy," although Karak's name remains unchanged.[8]
Reception and legacy
[edit]Video Choice gave the film a positive review, calling it a "charming and visually appealing film" while author Giannalberto Bendazzi (Animation: A World History) called it "an excellent example of personality of animation".[9][10]
A digital restoration was completed in 2021 under the supervision of the film's cinematographer.[3] It remains the most-popular Hungarian animated feature of all time.[3][11] The director had said that putting Vuk on screen was one of his dearest cartoon works.[12]
Home media
[edit]The film was released on VHS in 1987[13] by Celebrity Home Entertainment[14] and re-released on November 4, 1994.[15]
See also
[edit]
- Foxes in popular culture, films and literature
- The Fox and the Hound - a similar 1981 animated film about a fox.
- List of animated feature films of 1981
- List of Hungarian films
- Pannonia Film Studio
References
[edit]- ^ FilmAffinity
- ^ BCDB.com
- ^ a b c d National Film Institute
- ^ A Fox's Tale (2008)|MUBI
- ^ VUK 1981 (Hungarian Version) on Internet Archive
- ^ The Little Fox Voice Actors-24 Photos - Behind The Voice Actors
- ^ WorldCat
- ^ VUK (The English Dub) on Internet Archive
- ^ "The Little Fox Review". The Orlando Sentinel. 28 October 1988. p. 41. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
- ^ Animation: A World History - Google Books (pg.260)
- ^ Animation Behind the Iron Curtain - Google Books (ch.13 "Hungary")
- ^ Happy 40th birthday to one of Hungary’s favourite cartoon characters! - Daily News Hungary
- ^ Video Detective
- ^ WorldCat.org
- ^ The Little Fox (VHS, 1994, Editors Cut) - eBay
External links
[edit]
- 1981 films
- 1987 films
- 1981 animated films
- 1981 children's films
- 1980s children's fantasy films
- Animated films about foxes
- Children's comedy-drama films
- Films directed by Attila Dargay
- Hungarian animated films
- Hungarian children's films
- Hungarian comedy films
- Hungarian drama films
- Hungarian animated fantasy films
- Films based on Hungarian novels
- 1980s children's animated films
- Alternative versions of films