The Company
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Movie Reviews of The Company
Movie Review: The Ballet's The Thing!
Summary: 4 Stars
The ballet: A centuries-old art of expressionism created though various means of physical movements and intellectual stimulation as a form of dance. It is also a form of recreation, where art often imitates life, and vice versa. At the prestigious Joffrey Institute in Chicago, ballet is seen as more than just an art form viewed through life. It is a way to communicate to the soul, and this art speaks to this very inner sanctimonium of the soul in more ways than one, as Antonio Antonelli (Malcolm McDowell), tries to reach his students through unorthodox methods, as well as "force-feeding" his energetic young charges to think outside the box. Getting his students to accept his stern and rudimentary ways of instruction is going to take an eternity, as this young troupe has a mind of their own. Spending much of their time carousing and partying is their idea of "instruction", so it seems, but, as the old adage goes, "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy", for a little R & R (including a good dose of TLC) in combination with a hefty amount of genuine elbow grease, is bound to make this particular Joffrey troupe stand head and shoulders above the competition (including the Windy City's very own Sears Tower). The cast of "The Company" rises to the occasion as well, including stellar performances from Neve Campbell, as well as Malcolm McDowell, and others. For performing arts theatrics at its finest, nothing beats a production of "The Nutcracker" or of "Swan Lake", for that matter. Move over guys, 'cause there's a new ballet in town. You're both in good company with "The Company", which is in production now, at an art house cinema locale near you!Movie Review: Understated but very effective
Summary: 4 Stars
At first glance this movie is a strange beast. Not quite drama, not documentary, not even docudrama. Maybe it can best be described as a series of slightly fictionalized vignettes that follows a few months in a real-world ballet company. Despite the lack of plot, high drama, character development, or other things we usually expect from movies, The Company never fails to be fascinating in its portrayal of the lives of the dancers and the inner-workings of their profession.The filmmaker's restrained approach gave the movie a sense of realness absent in conventional dramas, yet doesn't dilute it's power. After all, the events depicted really happened, and the dancers on screen are dancers in real life. The movie makes its points with small, finely-observed moments that says much. For example, when a star dancer snap her Achilles Tendon, she was quickly replaced. As she was carried off stage it seemed that's the last we will see of her since that injury effectively ends her career. But later at a public performance we see her limping to the side of the stage to watch her replacement dancing in her role.
The reasons for these people's tremendous dedication were never explicitly articulated in the movie. Some find this as a lack of depth. But I feel words are not necessary, nor adequate, to illustrate it. Simply take a look at the power and the grace the dancers display on stage, one would understand their passion and sacrifice.
As a bonus, the DVD has a worthwhile commentary track, in which Altman and Campell discuss the the actual Joffrey company and its dancers in relation to the movie. Interesting and informative.
Movie Review: Wonderful dancing, but little else
Summary: 4 Stars
Not quite a documentary, not convincing as fiction - what, exactly, is "The Company" intended to be? I enjoyed the movie, but after watching it, I still don't know the answer to that question.
The movie's sequence (you can't really call it a story) is primarily centered around a series of rehearsals and performances by Chicago's Joffrey Ballet company, in particular those of its star dancer, Ry (Neve Campbell - I'm guessing at the spelling of her character's name). The performances on and off stage are wonderful without exception, and the behind-the-scenes portions of the movie give us at least a taste of what's behind the beautiful dance steps and costumes.
Unfortunately, though, that's really all we get - a taste. We never get to know any of the dancers in any depth or see more than a very superficial view of what their art means to them. There is ostensibly a side story involving Campbell's character and her past and future boyfriends, but neither the story nor any of the characters are sufficiently developed to make that portion of the movie very interesting.
The delightfully stern and arrogant dance coach (Malcolm McDowell) is the only clearly developed character; the scenes involving him are amusing enough to be worth waiting for. But the real showstoppers are the dance recitals themselves, and the finale is well worth sitting through the good and mediocre scenes that precede it.
Movie Review: Wonderful dancing, but little else
Summary: 4 Stars
Not quite a documentary, not convincing as fiction - what, exactly, is "The Company" intended to be? I enjoyed the movie, but after watching it, I still don't know the answer to that question.The movie's sequence (you can't really call it a story) is primarily centered around a series of rehearsals and performances by Chicago's Joffrey Ballet company, in particular those of its star dancer, Ry (Neve Campbell - I'm guessing at the spelling of her character's name). The performances on and off stage are wonderful without exception, and the behind-the-scenes portions of the movie give us at least a taste of what's behind the beautiful dance steps and costumes.
Unfortunately, though, that's really all we get - a taste. We never get to know any of the dancers in any depth or see more than a very superficial view of what their art means to them. There is ostensibly a side story involving Campbell's character and her past and future boyfriends, but neither the story nor any of the characters are sufficiently developed to make that portion of the movie very interesting.
The delightfully stern and arrogant dance coach (Malcolm McDowell) is the only clearly developed character; the scenes involving him are amusing enough to be worth waiting for. But the real showstoppers are the dance recitals themselves, and the finale is well worth sitting through the good and mediocre scenes that precede it.
Movie Review: a new approach
Summary: 4 Stars
The key to understanding this movie is that it is completely based on unspoken dialogue. Thus, it crosses boundaries in cinema genres and defies categorization.Through Altman's brilliant artistic direction, the audience is left to put the puzzle together, and piece the story together. Those who had watched 'Center Stage', and eagerly anticipated 'The Company' would have to watch this recent film with an entirely different frame of mind.
In 'Center Stage', the plot was convulated and sickeningly predictable topped with a script that is filled with deliberate dialogue that points out every plot twist and turn. The audience is TOLD what is happening and why through the characters' script. Conversely, 'The Company' makes a convincing attempt to create a realistic story, which is following a company's (yes, clichéd as it may be) trials and tribulations throughout a year. Realistic script and subtle details in exquisite camerawork result with the audience filling in the blanks and filling out the plot.
The fullness and richness of the plot is left to the audience to decipher from the details in 'The Company', unlike most dance movies that cater to a lazy mind. It helps to realise that the point of 'The Company' is to create an accurate portayal of the dance world, not a chick flick drama juxtaposed over the dance world.