First Hit: There are some absolutely extraordinary dance scenes and sequences and practice sessions in this film, but at 158 minutes it is long, very long.
I loved that you get to see a lot of different aspects of this ballet company; the building repair men, the costume makers, the beekeeper, the office staff, and of course the dancers.
The head Company Director Brigitte Lefere appears in a number of scenes and comes across as pretty full of herself and talks in circles which results in little being said. To her credit she does promote modern and contemporary choreographers while continuing to support the classics as well.
The scenes of dancers practicing by themselves gave light to both their love of the art and the difficult standards and practice they drive themselves to deliver an outstanding performance. Listening to choreographers count cadence, criticize and correct the dancers was interesting.
I loved the moment when one of them looked at his dancer and said; you’ve got the dance, technique, and moves down, now use your experience and bring it to life. There were dress rehearsal scenes that literally took my breath away with the unbelievable moves and expressions created by these dancers.
However, the head director's ramblings and self-important monologues (although she was suppose to be in conversation), took away from the film.
The only other downside of this film was its length. It could have been from 30 – 60 minutes shorter and made the same impact.
Frederick Wiseman was the director.
Overall: This was, at times, one of the most beautiful films on dance I’ve ever seen. However, it is long.