The Twelve Months

The Twelve Months

Year: 1956

Runtime: 55 mins

Language: Russian

Directors: Ivan Ivanov-Vano, Mikhail Botov

FamilyFantasyAnimation

A poor girl is given an impossible command by her wicked stepmother: to gather the fragile snowdrops that bloom in a winter forest. As she ventures into the icy woods, she unexpectedly meets twelve brothers who are the personified twelve months, each representing a different part of the year, turning her daunting quest into a magical encounter.

Warning: spoilers below!

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Timeline – The Twelve Months (1956)

Trace every key event in The Twelve Months (1956) with our detailed, chronological timeline. Perfect for unpacking nonlinear stories, spotting hidden connections, and understanding how each scene builds toward the film’s climax. Whether you're revisiting or decoding for the first time, this timeline gives you the full picture.

1

Decree for Snowdrops

The queen issues an impossible winter quest during a botany lesson at the palace. She declares that whoever brings a basket of Snowdrops will receive gold and a fur coat, ignoring that Snowdrops bloom in spring. The decree sets the plot in motion as greedy hands reach for the forbidden flowers.

Winter Palace
2

The stepmother and daughter's plan

A poor country stepmother and her daughter fix their minds on the reward and hatch a plan to secure it through the stepdaughter. They send the girl back to the wood to gather brushwood so she can fulfill the royal decree. Their dream of wealth motivates deceit and risk.

Winter Countryside / Wood edge
3

The glade of the Months and the ring

In a frosty glade a fire burns and twelve brother Months sit nearby. The girl pleads for help and April grants her an hour to gather snowdrops. She returns home with the flowers and a magic ring that will summon the Months in danger, a lifeline for later.

Winter Glade in the wood
4

The ring is stolen and the snowdrops go to the palace

While the stepdaughter sleeps, the stepsister steals the magic ring. The stepmother and daughter deliver the snowdrops to the queen and weave a tale of a magical winter place to explain their find. The queen accepts the flowers and prepares to reward them.

Next day Palace
5

The queen seeks verification

The queen challenges the two women and demands the truth about where the snowdrops came from. They invent a tale of a wonderful place where winter blooms, mushrooms, and berries grow. The queen decides to accompany them into the woods to verify their tale.

Before departure to the woods Wood beyond the palace
6

Confrontation in the wood and the ice-hole

In the forest the stepdaughter reveals the ring was stolen and refuses to reveal the location of the snowdrops. The queen orders guards to seize the stepdaughter, strip her fur coat, and threaten execution, and she discards the magic ring into an ice-hole. The stepdaughter recites the magic words and escapes as the ice seals over.

During the inquiry Wood
7

The seasons arrive and the court is undone

The spring and summer arrive, followed by autumn, and then winter. The court grows dry and warm, but the season's reversal triggers a brutal blizzard. The fur coats are blown away by the storm, and the queen's power falters as winter fully takes hold.

Spring to Winter In the woods and court vicinity
8

January's bargain and the stepmother's downfall

An old man in a white fur coat, January, offers each of them a single wish. The queen wishes to return home, while the stepmother and daughter request fur coats, but greed leads to their transformation into dogs harnessed to a sledge. They fail to get far, trapped by their vanity.

Mid-winter Wood
9

The soldier meets the rightful heroine

The soldier comes to the warmth of the brother months' fire and meets the stepdaughter, now in new furs with a team of snowy horses. He suggests borrowing the horses to return home, and the queen demands payment, but the stepdaughter refuses the bribe and offers kindness instead. The soldier explains that courtesy wins the day, and the stepdaughter lends the horses when asked politely.

New Year period Months' fire in the wood
10

Homeward bound through courtesy

With the soldier's guidance, they head back to the castle on the borrowed horses and warm coats. The queen learns that power comes from courtesy and kindness, not coercion. They all go home, leaving the months behind at a New Year’s fire, and the perilous quest ends in a safe return.

After journey home Castle

Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 09:32

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The Twelve Months Summary

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Characters, Settings & Themes in The Twelve Months

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