A BAFTA award nominated Russian animation about the antics of two young foresters.
This is quite an adventure for two young hunters who emerge from their forest hut looking for lunch. Armed with their spears, they spot a deer snacking on the grass and one takes a shot. It sticks in a nearby tree and startles the beast which makes an hasty retreat whilst they follow - with some Olympic standard stride patterns, it has to be said! This leads them further into the woods whereupon they encounter a medicine woman who warns them of the dangers of the woods, of the men of stone and of the the giant tiger which would cheerfully turn the tables on the men. Indeed, before long it falls to one to undergo some perilous trials if he is to save his friend from the sharp claws of this hungry cat! The quality and detail of of the animation is lovely here and with a solid fable extolling the virtues of loyalty and dependency the feature embodies synergies with nature mixed with a little fantasy and even a little humour as their escapades, quite literally, hot up! I can’t pretend I understood the dialogue, but the imagery does plenty of the heavy lifting on that front making for a charming and watchable cartoon.