Hector Hugh Munro

A man travels to the country house of a distant aunt in search of peace and quiet. But when he arrives, he learns of a tragedy that happened there which keeps the house and the family frozen in time.

On a train journey, Saki meets Mrs De Ropp, an oppressive aunt and guardian to an unruly brood. Inspired by the meeting, he imagines a tale of repressed children who find solace in their childish wonder, and are saved by their imagination.

Sredni Vashtar is a 1981 short film, written, produced and directed by Andrew Birkin, based on the short story of the same name written by Hector Hugh Munro. The story concerns a slowly dying ten-year-old boy named Conradin, who lives with his strict cousin and guardian, Mrs. De Ropp. Conradin rebels against her and invents a new religion for himself, which centres on idolising a polecat-ferret he calls Sredni Vashtar; a vengeful, merciless god. The film won the BAFTA award for Best Short Film, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film.

A neighborhood boy (Bill Barrett) might have the solution to his problems, though. For two silver candlesticks, he promises to give Conrad a rare, vicious, growling and cunning animal with supernatural abilities, which supposedly was coveted in the past by Egyptian pharaohs, Borneo pirates and even Napoleon Bonaparte himself. Eventually the trade is made, Conrad gets the creature.

David Bradley creates a faithfully suspenseful adaptation of a story by Saki which boasts an inadvertent post-modern attitude.