| The Wishing Tree | |
| Director: | Tengiz Abuladze |
| Starring: | Lika Kavzharadze Soso Jachvliani |
| Music: | Bidzina Kvernadze Iakob Bobokhidze |
| Cinematography: | Lomer Akhvlediani |
| Distributor: | Cannon Film (US theatrical) Ruscico (DVD) |
| Runtime: | 107 minutes |
| Country: | Soviet Union (Georgian SSR) |
| Language: | Georgian, Russian |
The Wishing Tree (Georgian: ნატვრის ხე, Georgian: Natvris Khe, Russian: Древо желания| Drevo Zhelania) is a 1976 Georgian drama film directed by Tengiz Abuladze.[1] It won the Lenin Prize, the All-Union Film Festival main prize and other prizes. The film is based on Giorgi Leonidze's short stories.[2]
The textures of folk legend and striking visual allegory permeate The Wishing Tree, an episodic pastorale set in a pre-revolutionary Georgian village and spanning four seasons in the lives of various village characters. Some twenty-two stories are woven into the narrative, which centers on a beautiful young woman who is forced to marry a man she does not love; her unsanctioned love for another leads her to ritual disgrace and sacrifice.
The film score is composed by Georgian composers Bidzina Kvernadze and Iakob Bobokhidze.[3]
The film won several film festival prizes.
| Year | Prize | |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Main prize of All-Union Film Festival | |
| 1977 | Golden aurochs at VI Film festival in Tehran | |
| 1978 | ||
| 1979 | Shota Rustaveli Prize | |
| 1979 | David di Donatello for Best Foreign Film | |
| 1988 | Lenin Prize for Tengiz Abuladze |