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The State Film Archive of Russia
presents

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A Ladislas Starevich film

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The Beautiful Lucanida,

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or The Battle of the Horned
and the Whiskered

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The castle of King Cervus
is having a magnificent ball.

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Music thunders: to the captivating sounds
of a waltz whirl lavishly dressed guests.

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Cervus himself with his
beautiful wife, Queen Lucanida,

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sits majestically
on the throne.

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Today he has a special
guest of honor: Count Heros,

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whose name resounds
throughout the land.

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At the sight of the beautiful Lucanida,

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Heros is amazed by her
grace, elegance and beauty.

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He instantly falls in love with her.

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The queen is also pleasantly surprised by
the stately posture of the valiant Heros.

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She takes him by the hand
and follows him to the park.

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Here Heros wants to reveal his
feelings for the beautiful Lucanida.

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Here, to the sound
of a bubbling fountain,

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to the rustle of leaves, to the magical
sounds of a waltz heard from afar,

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a charming confession escapes his lips.

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Meanwhile,

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the lovers do not suspect that one of
the sentries, seeing them in the park,

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hurried to King Cervus with
a report of Lucanida's treason.

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"You lie! You lie, despicable wretch!"

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angrily exclaimed Cervus,
on hearing the sentry's report.

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"How can this be?! My beautiful Lucanida,
the beauty and pride of the whole country,

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the whole country of the Horned,
is betraying me?"

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"Follow me, great lord,
and you will see

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that I'm not lying,"

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whispered the sentry.

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And here is the secluded corner of the
park where Heros is making vows of his
eternal love to Lucanida:

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"I swear upon my Whiskered
honor," he exclaims,

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"I have never seen a beauty
to match yours, Lucanida!

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My heart has never beat so strongly,

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nor stilled so sweetly, as when it is
near you."

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And the beautiful Lucanida
leans her head against his chest.

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Suddenly there is an angry exclamation:

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Traitor! So that is how you
keep your vows! And you, Count,

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have you forgotten the
laws of hospitality?

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You have trampled my honor!

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Come forth to battle!
We shall duel as befits knights!"

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Poor Lucanida, hearing such
wrathful words, hurries to escape.

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But Heros and Cervus
draw their swords,

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and the duel begins.

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At last, with a lucky blow, Heros knocks
the sword out of Cervus's hands.

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Cervus falls to his
knees, expecting

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at any moment the enemy's sword to
pierce his heart, but the noble enemy

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limits himself to merely walking away.

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Meanwhile,
on the outskirts of the park,

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where a foamy waterfall falls
from the rocky cliffs into the river,

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poor Lucanida, crying her heart out,
decides to end her life.

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She throws herself into the river.

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Fortunately, Heros notices
her act in time.

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The brave knight rushes in after her
and manages to save her!

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Having swum with her
to the other shore,

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where a luxurious palanquin is already
waiting for them on an elephant's back,

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Heros takes his beloved
away to his castle.

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Meanwhile, Cervus, who saw
everything on the opposite shore,

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at first does not dare
to jump into the water,

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then in a fit of despair
he jumps anyway and...

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Oh, what indignity!

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Catching his clothes
on the branch of a tree,

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he remains hanging from it,
flailing his arms and legs helplessly.

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The next day, Cervus decides to issue an
ultimatum to his foe with the stipulation

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that if within 24 hours
Lucanida is not returned,

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he will declare a terrible and
merciless war on all the Whiskered.

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Nevertheless, Heros,
after reading this missive,

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angrily tears it up
and expels the ambassador.

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When Cervus finds out
how Heros treated his ambassador,

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he orders his army
to march against the enemy.

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At the sight of the approaching enemy,

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an alarm is raised
on the walls of Heros's castle.

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Here the first shrapnel explodes,
followed by another.

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Soon, a whole sea of salvos rises.

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The Horned roll a siege-gun
up to the castle,

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climb it, and lower the drawbridge.

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A hand-to-hand melee breaks out, during
which Cervus gets to the castle wall.

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Heros heroically defends himself.

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And now he sees his implacable enemy.

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Heros sees that the
Whiskered cannot win

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and decides to die a valiant death.

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He slams the door of the castle
behind him, and runs downstairs,

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where his faithful Lucanida awaits him.

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"My sweetheart,

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my beautiful Lucanida," he says,

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"we cannot be saved.

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Cervus will be bursting
into the tower any minute.

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Do you want to die with me?"

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And Lucanida is quick to say: "Yes."

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At that moment, as the tower door
falls under the pressure,

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and Cervus himself bursts in,
waving an exposed sword,

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Heros grabs Lucanida in his arms and
lights the gunpowder he had prepared.

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A terrible explosion follows.

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Towers, walls and
the whole castle collapse.

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Cervus and his army
die in the explosion.

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In the afterlife,
in the realm of eternal bliss,

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Heros and Lucanida finally find peace.

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They fall into a rose flower cup,

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its petals covering them,

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to the wonderful sounds of a song.

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The song of a love that prevailed.

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The Beautiful Lucanida,

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or The Battle of the Horned
and the Whiskered.

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A Ladislas Starevich film

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Reconstructed by Nikolai Izvolov

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Read by Alexander Negreba

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Music: "Valse Sentimentale"
by P.I. Tchaikovsky

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Source materials scanning:
Vladimir Kotovsky

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Restoration: Nikolai Mayorov

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THE END
(subs: easierwithpractice & Niffiwan)