A tale about a flea, a queen and two sisters.
Tale of Tales is a screen adaptation based on collections of tales by poet and courtier Giambattista Basile which sowed seeds of the earliest versions of famous fables like Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. It inspired many authors including the Grimm Brothers, Hans Christian Andersen, Charles Perrault so naturally Matteo Garrone juggles some familiar fantasy horror beats.
It's gory, bloody and pulls no punches. The costumes, makeup and practical effects are outstanding. With the bright settings in contrast to the caves, forest and nightmare underwater segments it, has an odd atmosphere. The feel is reminiscent of Terry Gilliam's works, Peter Yates Don Quixote (2000) with hint of Christophe Gans.
Director Garrone, brings the horror fairy tales together in one kingdom, Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones, and John C Reilly are faultless, along with the quirky supporting cast who add to the surreal situations. Giant fleas, ogre, princesses, witches, sea creatures, albinos and the search for youth each concurrent tale has its own twist of sorts. Especially the queen segment, there's also a bloody shock end where Toby Jones' King inadvertently forces his daughter to marry an Ogre.
While it has a lengthy run time, it's visually interesting and at times creepily haunting. For fans of European fairy-tale horror its a must see addition.
Tale of Tales is a screen adaptation based on collections of tales by poet and courtier Giambattista Basile which sowed seeds of the earliest versions of famous fables like Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. It inspired many authors including the Grimm Brothers, Hans Christian Andersen, Charles Perrault so naturally Matteo Garrone juggles some familiar fantasy horror beats.
It's gory, bloody and pulls no punches. The costumes, makeup and practical effects are outstanding. With the bright settings in contrast to the caves, forest and nightmare underwater segments it, has an odd atmosphere. The feel is reminiscent of Terry Gilliam's works, Peter Yates Don Quixote (2000) with hint of Christophe Gans.
Director Garrone, brings the horror fairy tales together in one kingdom, Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones, and John C Reilly are faultless, along with the quirky supporting cast who add to the surreal situations. Giant fleas, ogre, princesses, witches, sea creatures, albinos and the search for youth each concurrent tale has its own twist of sorts. Especially the queen segment, there's also a bloody shock end where Toby Jones' King inadvertently forces his daughter to marry an Ogre.
While it has a lengthy run time, it's visually interesting and at times creepily haunting. For fans of European fairy-tale horror its a must see addition.