Who's Afraid of the Wolf?

Every night, Terezka's mother reads her the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Although it gives her bad dreams, it is her favourite story. But a crisis begins to develop in her apparently stable family life. A triangle drama develops as her mother, a promising singer who gave up her career to get married, is encouraged by her mother to re-establish relations with her former boyfriend, a successful musician. Simon, a friend from nursery school, suggests to Terezka that her mother may be an alien. As the domestic drama enacts itself in the 'real' world, Terezka's interpretation merges it with the world of fairy tales and imagination. Writer-director Maria Procházková (Shark in the Head) is also an animator, and here treads a delicate path on the border of fantasy, supplementing her story with drawings and animation. Beautifully handled, it is a film of considerable charm, considerably enhanced by its lush visuals and Jan P Muchow's impressive score. It is not a children's film, notes its director, but one for adults to watch with children. Peter Hames