Search

Suzanne Farrell: Elusive Muse

1997, Movie, NR, 115 mins

Suzanne Farrell: Elusive Muse: Review

SUZANNE FARRELL: ELUSIVE MUSE
starstarstarstar
Imagine an obsessive love between a shy, sheltered Midwestern teenager and a married, middle-aged man of the world whose vivacious fifth wife has recently been cruelly crippled by polio. The stuff of overheated melodrama, with a nasty hint of Lolita-ism? Perhaps. But it's also the story of ballerina Suzanne Farrell, one of the great classical dancers of our time (she retired in 1988, age 43), and the late George Balanchine, the choreographer whose vision of a uniquely American style of dancing -- equal parts Russian classicism and jazz-inflected brashness, delivered with daredevil speed and abandon -- changed the shape of 20th-century ballet. Anne Belle and Deborah Dickson (whose previous documentaries include BALANCHINE'S BALLERINAS) let the poised and quietly articulate Farrell take center stage, though there's rich material in the supporting interviews: Her mother, in particular, is quite a piece of work. In-the-know ballet fans will gripe about the gossip Bell and Dickson choose not to pursue, but they'll also thrill to the old footage of Farrell and her contemporaries on stage, in class and rehearsing. That this unsensational documentary, set against the backdrop of a world utterly alien to the average viewer, was nominated for an Academy Award speaks volumes about the story's universal appeal. And the aura of serene sadness that surrounds Farrell is truly haunting. leave a comment --Maitland McDonagh
Advertisement

Advertisement

Related Websites

You might be also interested in the following websites:

Most Popular TV Shows

  1. NCIS
  2. Dancing with the Stars
  3. The Game
  4. Biggest Loser
  5. American Idol
more popular tv shows

Most Popular Celebrities

  1. Morgan Freeman
  2. Tiger Woods
  3. Drew Barrymore
  4. Jake Gyllenhaal
  5. Robert De Niro
more popular celebrities

Most Popular Movies

  1. The Twilight Saga: New Moon
  2. The Blind Side
  3. 2012
  4. Old Dogs
  5. A Christmas Carol
more popular movies

Top Videos

  1. Victorias Secret
  2. Glee
  3. Biggest Loser
  4. Desperate Housewives
  5. NCIS
more top videos