Ma-ma (1976 film)

Ma-ma Mama Rock'n Roll Wolf
Directed by	Elisabeta Bostan
Starring	Lyudmila Gurchenko Mikhail Boyarsky George Mihăiță Florian Pittiș Violeta Andrei Oleg Popov Saveliy Kramarov
Production companies	Romania Film Mosfilm Ralux Film
Release date	1976 (1976)
Running time	83 minutes
Countries	Romania Soviet Union France
Languages	Romanian Russian English

Rock'n'Roll Wolf (Romanian: Mama, Mother, Russian: Мама, international title: Rock 'n Roll Wolf) is a musical film from 1976 and is a Romanian–Soviet–French co-production.

The storyline is loosely based on the famous plot about the goat and her kids, published as "The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids" in Grimm's Fairy Tales and known to Romanian audience as Ion Creangă's "Capra cu trei iezi" ("The Goat and her Three Kids") and to Russian audience as a folk tale "Волк и семеро козлят" ("The Wolf and the Seven Kids"). In the movie the number of goat kids is five. The script was written by Vasilica Istrate and Yuri Entin, and Elisabeta Bostan directed.

The movie was filmed simultaneously in three languages (Romanian, Russian and English). The cast was formed by dancers from Moscow Circus, Moscow Circus on Ice, and Bolshoi Ballet. In 1977, the movie won the Silver Cup at the Children's Film Festival in Venice.

Plot

The film begins with Rada returning home to her children, who have been left alone while she was gathering fruit. Singing neighbors praise her, but she confides in them her fear of Titi Suru, the wolf. Meanwhile, Petrika the donkey, a lynx, and the wolf’s nephew are watching Rada’s children, singing that Titi Suru is coming to quiet them. When Suru arrives, he sings that he’s actually friendly, though he subtly warns he’s still a wolf. Rada confronts him, defending her children as harmless. Afterward, Suru plots with his crew to kidnap Rada’s children.

When Rada sings her children a song to remind them only to open the door to her, Suru later attempts to mimic her voice, hoping to trick them into letting him in. His first attempt fails. Mattei, one of Rada’s children, sneaks outside, only to be chased by Suru’s crew before escaping onto a rock they can’t reach. Rada goes out to find him, but her voice becomes hoarse from the cold, so her children don’t recognize her song and won’t let her back in. Suru, now better at imitating her, tries again, almost fooling the children until Mattei returns and warns them not to open the door. Mattei is captured, and Suru sends Rada a ransom note. When Rada and the townspeople arrive at the frozen pond where Suru demanded the ransom, they reveal a trap: an ice hole. After Rada throws the bag, Suru falls in, and as he struggles in the freezing water, his crew saves him by freeing Mattei. Rada is reunited with her children, and Suru, now remorseful, promises to change.

Cast

• Lyudmila Gurchenko: Rada, the Goat (Auntie Masha in the Russian version)
• Mikhail Boyarsky: Titi Suru, the Wolf (The Gray Wolf in the Russian version)
• George Mihăiță: Petrika, the Donkey (unnamed in the Russian version)
• Florian Pittiș: The Parrot
• Violeta Andrei: The Swallow
• Oleg Popov: Father Martin, the Bear (unnamed in the Russian and English versions)
• Savely Kramarov: The Young Wolf, Titi Suru's nephew
• Valentin Manokhin: Rassul, the Lynx (unnamed in the Russian version)
• Paula Radulescu: The Doe-Rabbit
• Vasile Mentzel: The Rabbit
• Vera Ivleva: The Sheep
• Evgeniy Gerchakov: The Ram
• Lilianu Petrescu: The Lamb
• Natalya Krachkovskaya: The She-Bear
• Marina Polyak: The Squirrel
• Lulu Mihăescu: The eldest daughter
• Petya Degryarov: Matei, the eldest kid (Mityai in the Russian version)
• Timur Asaliev: Goga, the youngest kid (unnamed in the Romanian and English versions)
• Adrian Cristea: Goat kid
• Matei Opriș: Goat kid

List of songs

1. Dream (introduction) (Мечта (вступление))
2. Our beautiful village (Хороша деревня наша)
3. Swing (song of the beast) (Качели (песня зверят))
4. Dance of the goat and kids (Танец Козы и козлят)
5. Oh, the Goat will cry! (Ох, наплачется Коза!)
6. The Wolves are bad guys (Волки-бяки)
7. They will be afraid of us (Будут бояться нас)
8. Dance of the wolf's pack (Танец волчьей стаи)
9. Goats' Lullaby (Колыбельная Козы)
10. The parrot isn't a fool (song of the parrot)) (Попка - не дурак! (Песня Попугая))
11. Ding-dong, I'm your mother (Динь-дон, я ваша мама)
12. The disobedient Matei (Непослушный Митяй)
13. The fair (Ярмарка)
14. Don't be afraid of the distance (song of the swallow)) (Не страшат нас расстоянья (Песня Ласточки))
15. The meeting of Matei and the wolf's pack (Встреча Митяя и волчьей стаи)
16. Song of the bear (Песня Медведя)
17. Duet of the goat and the wolf at the fair (Дуэт Козы и Волка на ярмарке)
18. The parrot is a superstar (Попка - суперстар)
19. Dance of the donkey and the lamb (Танец Ослёнка и Овечки)
20. The pursuit of Matei by the wolf's pack (Погоня волчьей стаи за Митяем)
21. The kids today (Пошла молодёжь)
22. The goat and the wolf. Song of the wolf) (Коза у Волка. Песня Волка)
23. Feud and malice (Вражда и злоба)
24. Mummy (Мама)
25. Winter (Зима)
26. Song of the three/Song of the wolf's pack (Песня троих/Песня волчьей шайки)
27. Potpourri on the ice (Попурри на льду)
28. Tango of the wolf and the goat (Танго Волка и Козы)
29. Song about mother (final) (Песня о маме (финал))

External links

• Ma-ma at IMDb