In response to the last written comment on this film, « The Singing Princess » ( English translation ) with Julie Andrews as the voice of the princess, I want to say that I also know this film from my childhood and loved it very much ...with the difference that I was born in the eighties. My mother had rented it from a movie store in Sudbury, Ontario. So it does exist in more recent years than the fifties, and has appeared in VHS form, which means that if the original, archived film is lost, ( this being the only real loss of a film ) it was in the last twenty years or so, but I know of no information to support this. There was at least one existing, good quality master tape ( original source tape ) available which served for mass produced, VHS release around the 80's. Copies may be lost, but copies have also still existed around 1990, and there are good chances that some still do. It is a question of finding one, which will certainly take time. Succeeding in finding a copy on DVD or VHS for personal use may be difficult, as it would almost be guaranteed that it would not be found on most if any commercial sites, since sales would not be anywhere near high today. You may have to write to the makers of the film, or search for it in used VHS format in second-hand shops, or in older, less updated VHS movie rental stores, which may still have a copy, like the one in Sudbury, and offer to buy it off them. If you find a movie rental store that once had it in stock, as them who their supplier was. Tell them you're a collector - they may be more willing to help you in your search.
As for the quality of the film, as others have stated the VHS copy I saw badly needed to be restored, but was nevertheless in viewable condition - enough to get me hooked to it as a child! The limited palette is disappointing for modern standards, comprising of black, white, reds and sepia tones, with very little if any other colours. The pace of the film is much slower and the action would probably seem dull in the eyes of a child of today, used to much more busy, contemporary footage...though I may be wrong. I would definitely love to see this film restored!
As for the quality of the film, as others have stated the VHS copy I saw badly needed to be restored, but was nevertheless in viewable condition - enough to get me hooked to it as a child! The limited palette is disappointing for modern standards, comprising of black, white, reds and sepia tones, with very little if any other colours. The pace of the film is much slower and the action would probably seem dull in the eyes of a child of today, used to much more busy, contemporary footage...though I may be wrong. I would definitely love to see this film restored!
