Blood Tea and Red String

Blood Tea and Red String is a 2006 American stop-motion-animated film, called by director Christiane Cegavske a "fairy tale for adults". It was released on February 2, 2006 after a production time of 13 years, having been filmed in various places in the West Coast and in two studios. The musical score was composed and performed by Mark Growden.

Blood Tea and Red String
DVD cover
Directed byChristiane Cegavske
Written byChristiane Cegavske
Music byMark Growden
Release date
February 2, 2006
Running time
71 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

The tale centers on the struggle between the aristocratic White Mice and the rustic Creatures Who Dwell Under the Oak over the doll of their heart's desire. The Mice commission the Oak Dwellers to create a beautiful doll for them. When she is complete, the Creatures fall in love with her and refuse to give her up. Resorting to thievery, the Mice abscond with her in the middle of the night. Filled with fantastical creatures and dazzling scenery, the Creatures Who Dwell Under the Oak journey through the mystical land to reclaim their love. The mice descend into debauchery as they become drunk on blood tea.

Reception

Critical response

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 92% based on 12 critics, with an average rating of 7.8/10.[1] Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "generaly favourable reviews".[2]

Brett D. Rogers of Frames Per Second magazine praised Blood Tea, calling it "exquisitely realized ... an antidote to modern digital precision and diluted creativity." The same review highlighted Mark Growden's score as suiting the film perfectly, "[w]rapping Blood Tea's intricate scenery and its characters' wordless dialect in a lingering, haunting layer of spectral sound."[3] Harvard's Deirdre Barrett also reviewed the film positively. “'Each man kills the thing he loves' seems to be message of the film," she wrote, "Mice, rats and spider compete for a doll and her exotic child with tragic consequences... The whole film had a dream or storybook feel. But it is the childhood nightmare or the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm. Its magic serves sudden, violent death as often as love or beauty. It’s a tale with childhood’s imagery but not a tale for children.”[4]

R. Emmet Sweeney of The Village Voice, called the film "a genuine piece of outsider art".[5]

Dennis Harvey of Variety called the film an "enigmatic, dialogue-free fairy tale", but cautioned that "few will think [it is] suitable for children".[6]

Release

On November 7, 2006, Blood Tea and Red String was released on DVD by Koch Vision, a division of Entertainment One.[7]

Bibliography
  • Gonzalez, Ed (September 18, 2006). "Review: Blood Tea and Red String". Slant Magazine.
  • Lee, Nathan (October 6, 2006). "A Dark Tale of White Mice, Sylvan Creatures and a Stolen Goddess". The New York Times. The New York Times Company.

See also

References
  1. "Blood Tea and Red String (2006)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  2. https://www.metacritic.com/movie/blood-tea-and-red-string?ftag=MCD-06-10aaa1c
  3. Rogers, Brett D. (January 15, 2007). "Blood Tea and Red String". Frames Per Second. Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved October 19, 2011.
  4. Barrett, Deirdre (January 1, 2007). "Blood Tea and Red String". International Association for the Study of Dreams. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  5. R. Emmet Sweeney (September 26, 2006). "'Blood Tea and Red String'". The Village Voice. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  6. Harvey, Dennis (February 23, 2006). "Blood Tea and Red String". Variety.
  7. "Blood Tea and Red String". DVD Talk. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
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