Хоббит

An unauthorized television version of The Hobbit aired on a Russian TV channel (now Petersburg Channel 5) in Leningrad in 1985. At just over 70 minutes, this version of Tolkien's tale is a lot shorter than Peter Jackson's epic movie trilogy, and it is also less faithful to the source material.

With a title that literally translates to The Fantastic (sometimes rendered as Fabulous or Fairytale) Journey of the Hobbit, Mr Bilbo Baggins, the Russian adaptation was narrated by a moustachioed, cane-waving substitute for Tolkien, played by Zinovy Gerdt. The character was never identified as "Tolkien", simply a rocking-chair-based "Professor", complete with bowler hat and umbrella (perhaps the Russian idea of an English storyteller?) And acclaimed theatre and cinema actor, Gerdt was recognised with the title "People's Artist of the USSR" and was an accomplished puppeteer, having worked for almost 40 years as part of the Obraztsov Central Puppet Theatre in Moscow.

Shot in 1984, this Soviet-era take on The Hobbit was produced as an instalment of the children's storytelling television series Tale After Tale (a variation on Jackanory), and was rescreened sporadically on the Leningrad TV Channel until the 1990s. Mikhail Danilov played a wool-hatted and pink-shirted Bilbo, with Anatoly Ravikovich as an orange-clad Thorin Oakenshield, Ivan Krasko as a rather camp Gandalf, and Igor Dmitriev as an angry, fishnet clad Gollum. Ravikovich was better known for comedy movies, such as The Pokrovsky Gate (1982), and was a prolific a stage actor. Dmitriev was similarly largely a comedic actor, working as part of the Nikolay Akimov Theatre of Comedy. He had an international career, appearing in over 120 movies, as well as performing many radio versions of classic Russian literature.

All the actors playing Hobbits were normal-sized, with only a limited number of attempts made to have them appear smaller through the use of perspective and camera angles. Many scenes saw the actors fuzzily imposed over artwork backgrounds representing the various environments of Middle-earth. Despite these visual liberties, the text used in the Russian dialogue appeared true to Tolkien's original. The story begins with Bilbo in his garden (the wider world of Hobbiton or the Shire is not evoked), where he is visited by the playful wizard Gandalf. Gandalf is then followed by the 13 Dwarves, whose introductions are accompanied with crazy cartoon-style music, as are their antics at Bilbo's dining table. While not as lengthy as Jackson's take on the same introductory material, these opening sequences do fill the first 20 minutes, just under a third of the total running time!

Throughout, Bilbo is depicted as a rather more confident figure than the standard interpretation, while Gandalf seems more of a trickster, willing to play with Bilbo rather than be straightforward about their quest and the dangers involved. Director Vladimir Latshev - who also adapted The Hobbit - seems to have a called on Gerdt's puppeteering skills for his realization of the fantastic world of Middle-earth. While the majority of the roles were played by live actors, puppets were used to portray the dragon Smaug and the spiders of Mirkwood (rather poorly, looking more like something from 1970s Doctor Who than Jackson's twenty-first century special effects-filled film). The Goblins were reimagined as humanlike figures with minimal makeup and performed by dancers from the Leningrad State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre (who also doubled up as the lantern-wielding inhabitants of Lake-town). The Goblins are introduced in the style of a 1980s music video, complete with video effects and a proto-rock soundtrack! Not included in this version were Bilbo's encounter with the Trolls, the characters of Elrond or Beorn, and the Wood Elves. Rivendell, the Eagles, and the escape from Lake-town in barrels were also omitted. However, the frequent use of the professorial narrator made it easy to skip sections of the story, while keeping the overall driver of the narrative intact.

The story moves through the Goblin caverns, the encounter with Gollum, the spiders of Mirkwood, the visit to Lake-town, and the desolation of Smaug. As with many versions of the story, Bilbo's meeting with Gollum is a highlight - and comes halfway through the television special's running time - even if this bizarre Russian Gollum is rather threadbare, wearing a torn green hood and what appears to be a fisherman's net, with red-and-yellow gardening gloves. Given the limitations of mid-1980s Soviet television, Smaug's attack on Lake-town and the climactic battle of the five armies - simply artwork with actors milling around in front in a distinctly abstract take on the story's major set-piece - are all somewhat reduced in spectacle. This fascinating, colourful curiosity may not be cinematic Tolkien as it is now perceived, but it is for more concise than the epic movies!​