The Blue Bird (1976 film)

The Blue Bird
Theatrical Film Poster
Directed by	George Cukor
Produced by	Paul Maslansky
Written by	Hugh Whitemore Alfred Hayes Aleksei Kapler Lyrics by Tony Harrison Based on a play by Maurice Maeterlinck
Starring	Elizabeth Taylor Jane Fonda Ava Gardner Cicely Tyson Robert Morley
Music by	Irwin Kostal Andrei Petrov
Cinematography	Jonas Gricius Freddie Young
Edited by	Stanford C. Allen Tatyana Shapiro
Production company	Lenfilm
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date	April 5, 1976
Running time	99 minutes
Country	United States Soviet Union
Language	English Russian
Budget	$12 million
Box office	$3.5 million (US/ Canada)

The Blue Bird is a 1976 American/Soviet fantasy film directed by George Cukor. The screenplay by Hugh Whitemore, Alfred Hayes, and Aleksei Kapler is based on L'Oiseau bleu by Maurice Maeterlinck. It was the fifth screen adaptation of the play, following two silent films, the studio's 1940 version starring Shirley Temple, and a 1970 animated feature. Unlike prior adaptations, the film received little-to-no critical praise and was a flop at the box office.

Mytyl and her brother Tyltyl are peasant children who are led on a quest for the Blue Bird of Happiness by the Queen of Light, who gives them a hat with a magic diamond that allows them to call forth the souls of all things, both living and inanimate. On their journey, they are accompanied by the human personifications of a dog, a cat, water, sugar, bread, milk, light, fire, and the like. They visit the kingdoms of the past and future and the queendoms of night and luxury, at each place absorbing more wisdom. Eventually they discover the blue bird they've been seeking has been in their own backyard all along.

The film was shot on location in Moscow and Leningrad. Katharine Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine initially were signed to star, but both dropped out of the production before shooting began. At times both work and living conditions bordered on the primitive, and the non-Russian cast found it difficult to cope with the severe weather and mostly inedible food. James Coco, originally cast as Tylo, could digest only bread and butter and eventually suffered a gall bladder attack that necessitated his being replaced, and Elizabeth Taylor dealt with dysentery and dehydration throughout filming. Communication between the English and Russian-speaking crews was nearly impossible, and George Cukor frequently resorted to sign language in a feeble effort to make himself understood. He also encountered difficulties with Jane Fonda, who kept trying to engage the Russians in political discussions, and Cicely Tyson, whom he accused of trying to jinx the production by casting voodoo spells on the set.