Why Watch? Because the combination of animation, experiment, and Welles is a palpable one.

In 1977, experimental filmmaker Larry Jordan used work from 19th century French artist Gustave Doré and the thunderous tones of Orson Welles to bring Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s most famous epic poem to life.

It’s a potent story of a sea captain who kills an albatross while on the ocean and pays a hefty penalty. But chances are that you already knew that, having had to memorize it for freshman English class in high school. The version here, which is more than a bit different from Raúl daSilva’s 1975 take, is surreal at times but also direct. The engravings are wonderful, but there’s no denying that Welles is the star.

What does it cost? Just 40 minutes of your time.

Check out The Rime of the Ancient Mariner for yourself:

THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER (1977)

Trust us. You have time for more short films.

Hat tip to Criterion Cast‘s Ryan Gallagher for sharing this, and for Open Culture for spotlighting it recently.