| Once Upon a Time | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Roberto Gavioli Rolf Kauka |
| Produced by | Rolf Kauka |
| Written by | Roberto Gavioli Rolf Kauka |
| Music by | Peter Thomas |
| Distributed by |
West Germany: Constantin Film |
| Release date(s) | December 12, 1973 (West Germany) October 1, 1976 (United States) |
| Running time | 83 minutes |
| Country | West Germany |
| Language | German |
Once Upon a Time (German: Maria d'Oro und Bello Blue) is a 1973 West German animated musical film written and directed by Roberto Gavioli and Rolf Kauka. The story is based on the German fairytale "Frau Holle", or "Mother Hulda".
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Maria is the only daughter of wealthy widower Mr. Bottle who's hobby was a home brewery which he brew homestyle beer and ales, and her only companion is her dog, Bello Blue. Maria is a kind-hearted and gentle-natured girl who always helps others and is well-loved.
One day a girl named Mary-Lou and her Gypsy Con Artist mother arrive in town. Mary-Lou is the exact opposite of Maria, in that she is nasty, spoilt and selfish. Mary-Lou's mother poses as a fortune teller to tell people their future. She then meets Mr. Bottle, and tells him that great misfortune will befall him if he doesn't get married. Mary-Lou offers herself, but her mother stops her and marries Mr Bottle herself. Mary-Lou and her mother torment and abuse Maria by treating her like a servant. Maria's father is helpless to stop their abuse on Maria, and Maria copes as best as she can, because she does not want to bother her father.
One day during a royal hunt, the prince of their kingdom separates from his fellow hunters as he chases after a white stag. Eventually he loses sight of the stag, but catches sight of Mary-Lou bathing in the woods and viciously chastising and belittling in a abusive manner to Maria by eventually slapping her. When Mary-Lou stalks off into the forest to change, the prince approaches the crying Maria to comfort her. Mary-Lou reappears, and thinking that the prince is just a common hunter, tries to ruin things by pretending to have a severely sprained ankle, but then just Mary Lou steals his horse and rides off. The prince and Maria spend some time alone together and fall in love. The prince gives Maria a garnet stone necklace, telling her that it will bring them together again. They part ways.
One night Mary-Lou sees Maria admiring her garnet stone necklace by a well. Jealous with anger, Mary-Lou grabs the necklace and drops it into the well,viciously laughing at her and storming away leaving Maria to cry over the loss.
In the royal castle, the king who is a avid Beekeeper gives the prince his approval to marry a common girl. A proclamation is made to the people that the "girl with the garnet stone" has to go the castle, where she will wed the prince. All the girls of marrying age quickly find garnet stone necklaces and rush to the palace. Mary-Lou and her Gypsy mother manage to get a garnet stone from the local cobbler who falls madly in love with Mary Lou, but when they go to the palace Mary-Lou realises that the prince is the hunter from the forest, falls through a trapdoor along with one of the King's bee hives and realizes that the necklace needed to become queen is the one that was given to Maria.
Maria herself is unaware of the proclamation. Mary-Lou slyly offers to help Maria retrieve the necklace from the bottom of the well. When Mary-Lou reveals her intentions, the two girls struggle and fall into the well. There they meet a Frog King, who tells them that the necklace has been taken by the magical Mrs. Holle.
The two girls end up in the magical realm of Mrs. Holle. They make their way to Mrs. Holle's house via a Steam Trian made of a tea pot and dishes meeting up with two whirling, waltzing "Chinamen", a Kangaroo Army and other various magical creatures and things in need of help. At each point Maria happily helps the creatures, while Mary-Lou refuses. When they end up at Mrs. Holle's house, Mrs. Holle explains that they have to stay a while, because the door leading to their world is closed. Maria agrees to stay and help Mrs. Holle with her chores, but Mary-Lou leaves to find her own way back. Maria gets help from Mrs. Holle's toddler servants, while Mary-Lou runs into all amount of trouble including force feeding one of the toddlers and causing the toddler to urinating all over Mary Lou . In the end Mary-Lou reluctantly returns to the house, and Mrs. Holle sends both girls back home.
The entire village watches as the two girls are magically returned from the well. Mrs. Holle appears in the sky and says, "What you have done of your own accord, you both shall receive your just reward." Maria's clothes transform to a beautiful gown, and the garnet stone necklace appears around her neck. As for Mary-Lou, pitch and water falls on to her as well as the hunchback cobbler who ends up marrying Mary Lou. The prince arrives, and is reunited with Maria, taking her to the castle to be married along with Mr. Bottle who became the Royal Brewer to the King and shared the King's love of beekeeping.
In West Germany, Gamma Films released Once Upon a Time in black and white during 1973; a colour version released in West Germany and Italy in 1975. The film opened in the United States on October 1, 1976 through G.G. Communications;[1] this English-dubbed version was released on Region 1 DVD on November 7, 2006. A comic book adaptation, drawn by Gino Gavioli (the director's brother), was published in Kauka's magazine Fix und Foxi shortly before the film's release. The Fix und Foxi short "Symphonie in Müll" ("Symphony in Garbage") initially accompanied the feature in theaters. Once Upon a Time is also known as Der Zauberstein ("The Garnet Stone") in German, and Cinderella's Wonderland in the UK.