Rumplestiltskin (Das Zaubermännchen)

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More About

• Boulder Public Library
• Joel Haertling
• Das Zaubermannchen

We might think that with our modern sensibilities, horror movies and special effects, we've seen everything creepy and weird there is to see on the big screen. But we forget that fairy tales aren't all Disney cartoons and catchy songs: The Little Mermaid experienced stabbing pain every time she took a step, and despite what the 1989 film would have you believe, she ends up dissolving into seafoam on the waves because she refused to kill her prince when he married another.

Maybe the creepiest fairy tale is that of Rumple-stiltskin, who helps a young woman whose prince has given her impossible tasks -- but his help comes with a price, and the price is her firstborn child. A 1959 East German version of that story, Rumplestiltskin (Das Zaubermännchen), is the first in the Boulder Public Library's Cinematic Settings of Fairy Tales series; it examines the distinctions between hard work and laziness, and whether it's better to value money or less tangible things, such as relationships. Other films in the series will include The Adventures of Prince Achmed (the world's first full-length animated feature film), a French version of Beauty and the Beast, and The Magic Cloak of Oz. Film program coordinator Joel Haertling has selected films you probably haven't seen before, and they're not available at your local Blockbuster, so seize the opportunity to see these cinematic treasures.

All screenings are free and open to the public; Rumplestiltskin plays at 7 p.m. on Monday, September 8. The Boulder Public Library is at 1000 Canyon Boulevard in Boulder. Call 303-441-3197 or visit www.boulder.lib.co.us/events/films.html.