The Lord of the Rings has offered the world several animated adaptations, but a little-known 1991 short film teased what could have been the best one. Peter Jackson’s Hobbit and Lord of the Rings movies made J. R. R. Tolkien’s story a household name but took to live-action to express itself. Before that, however, Rankin/Bᴀss Animated Entertainment had made The Hobbit in 1977 and The Return of the King in 1980, both using distinctly of-the-times animation. The 1991 pilot, based on The Hobbit, may have beaten these in a few ways.

Meanwhile, Ralph Bakshi directed The Lord of the Rings in 1978. This animated picture was also by an American director and production team, offering a different style and perspective from Rankin and Bᴀss. Most recently, Warner Bros. released an anime picture as a part of their Lord of the Rings movie franchise. The The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim movie was the first Lord of the Rings animation done in the Japanese style and had its own merits. Yet Russia’s Treasures Under the Mountain could have been even better.

Russia’s 1991 The Hobbit Cartoon Showed A Lot Of Promise

Treasures Under The Mountain Should Have Been Made

A little-known Russian cartoon called Treasures Under the Mountain was made in 1991, showing promise that was sadly unexplored. The six-minute pilot was thought lost after being created before the collapse of the Soviet Union. However, its reemergence confirmed its joyful and unique animation style, more traditional than Rankin and Bᴀss’ and yet a refreshing break from U.S. children’s cartoons. The pilot was set to form the basis of more material, but this was sadly quashed, along with the Soviet live-action Lord of the Rings, in the political turmoil that followed.

Why The 1991 The Hobbit Adaptation Never Got Developed

Treasures Under The Mountain Didn’t Live Past Its Pilot

The 1991 Russian cartoon was left by the wayside when national unrest rocked the film and TV industry, along with most other professional fields. The Hobbit short, directed by Roman Mitrofanov, was abandoned in December when the USSR was dissolved. The six-minute clip exists as a prologue or pilot to a more complete retelling of Tolkien’s story. It stands well enough on its own two feet but teases the tantalizing possibility of more content in this style. This would have been a valuable addition to the world of Lord of the Rings adaptations, popularized by Peter Jackson.

Soviet Lord of the Rings is radically different from Jackson’s, with the live-action Khraniteli teleplay adapting both Tom Bombadil and the Barrow-wights, famously cut from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The Russian Hobbit animation probably would have offered similar treats. It looks, from the prologue alone, like a more faithful rendering of the book than the Jackson trilogy. The Lord of the Rings fans could have been delighted by Russia’s animated Hobbit above and beyond the current offering if it had received the time and budget needed.