“Sorrow will pass, believe me.
Life is so unimportant.
And from now onwards, you will dance like nobody ever before.”
When sitting down to watch a film that you not only love to death but call one of your top 10 films of all time is a hard one to review. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s 1948 film ‘The Red Shoes‘ is a much beloved film by countless critics and filmmakers, the most prominent one being Martin Scorsese, who helped with the restoration process for this film. So how does one give this film the credit it so rightly deserves?
[Warning: This review contains spoilers for The Red Shoes.]
The film is loosely based on the Hans Christian Andersen story of the same name and follows the rise of dancer Vicky Page (Moira Shearer) who just wants to dance and be the best in the world. She meets Boris Lermontov (Anton Walbrook), who is the charismatic and ruthless Svengali-esque head of the Ballet Lermontov, who agrees to take her on as a student because he sees a glimmer of something within her.
We also follow Julian Craster (Marius Goring), a brilliant up-and-coming composer who is to write the next ballet, The Red Shoes, for Lermontov and it is to feature Vicky as the star of the show. When the show is being worked on and practiced with the whole company, Julian and Vicky constantly butt heads with one another which then shows them that true love awaits the two of them. The show is a rousing success and Boris is happy about this. He is not happy about the affair between the two lovers, especially being furious at Julian for distracting his leading dancer.
Julian is fired and Vicky leaves the dance troupe to marry Julian and live with him in London. Boris allows Vicky to dance wherever and whenever she wants, with the only exception being The Red Shoes, which he vows to never show again unless she is the star. Ultimately Vicky has to choose between her love for Julian and her love for the dance. Julian realizes her choice is the dance, she runs off with an irresistible urge to go to the theater with the red shoes on and jumps in front of an oncoming train. As she lays dying on the stretcher, she asks Julian to take the shoes off, which mimics the ending to The Red Shoes ballet. The film ends with the ballet still being performed without Vicky, a spotlight on the spot where she would have been.
A beautiful, poignant, breathtaking and wonderful film, ‘The Red Shoes’ is a masterpiece in cinema and art itself. To think this film was almost lost due to wear and tear and severe mold issues is saddening, to say the least. Thankfully, Martin Scorsese and many others came in with their love and admiration for the film and painstakingly restored this film to near perfection, with Scorsese even saying that it truly has never looked this good before, even when it was out in theaters. The way the film uses the Technicolor process is amazing, with astounding choreography by Jack Cardiff and the music by Brian Easdale brings you right into the dance itself, making you a part of it.
The Criterion Collection, yet again, does not disappoint with this release. The supplements are in no short supply, with a great commentary track with film historian Ian Christie, featuring interviews with stars Marius Goring and Moira Shearer, cinematographer Jack Cardiff, composer Brian Easdale, and Scorsese himself. Martin Scorsese also shot a 5 minute restoration demonstration where he shows how they had three times the work when it came to restoring this film digitally. Profile of “The Red Shoes,” is a 25 minute documentary on the making of the film, featuring interviews with members of the production team. A 15 minute interview during the 2009 Cannes Film Festival with Thelma Schoonmaker Powell, discussing the film, her husband and the restoration process itself.
Jeremy Irons makes two appearances, reading excerpts from the Powell and Pressburger novelization of ‘The Red Shoes’ and also reading the original Andersen fairy-tale which is accompanied by an animated film of Hein Heckroth’s painted storyboards, with ‘The Red Shoes’ ballet as an alternate angle. We also get rare behind the scenes photos, rare publicity stills and a gallery of Scorsese’s own personal collection of ‘Red Shoes‘ memorabilia. Finally, as is usual with the Criterion Collection, we get the theatrical trailer and a booklet featuring an essay by critic David Ehrenstein and a description of the restoration by UCLA film archivist Robert Gitt.
Ultimately, the one constant theme everyone takes from ‘The Red Shoes‘ is the whole question of “would you die for your art?” And within this film, we see that the art is so important that it is worth dying for because how else could you truly live?
The Red Shoes, the singular fantasia from Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is cinema’s quintessential backstage drama, as well as one of the most glorious Technicolor feasts ever concocted for the screen. Moira Shearer is a rising star ballerina torn between an idealistic composer and a ruthless impresario intent on perfection. Featuring outstanding performances, blazingly beautiful cinematography by Jack Cardiff, Oscar-winning sets and music, and an unforgettable, hallucinatory central dance sequence, this beloved classic, now dazzlingly restored, stands as an enthralling tribute to the life of the artist.
Disc Features
- New high-definition master from the award-winning 2009 digital restoration (with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition)
- Introductory restoration demonstration with filmmaker Martin Scorsese
- Audio commentary by film historian Ian Christie, featuring interviews with stars Marius Goring and Moira Shearer, cinematographer Jack Cardiff, composer Brian Easdale, and Scorsese
- Profile of “The Red Shoes,” a documentary on the making of the film, featuring interviews with members of the production team
- Video interview with director Michael Powell’s widow, Thelma Schoonmaker Powell, from the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, in which she discusses Powell, the film, and the restoration
- Audio recording of actor Jeremy Irons reading excerpts from Powell and Pressburger’s novelization of The Red Shoes
- Collection of rare publicity stills and behind-the-scenes photos
- Gallery of items from Scorsese’s personal collection of The Red Shoes memorabilia
- The “Red Shoes” Sketches, an animated film of Hein Heckroth’s painted storyboards, with the Red Shoes ballet as an alternate angle
- Audio recording of Irons reading the original Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Red Shoes”
- Theatrical trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic David Ehrenstein and a description of the restoration by UCLA film archivist Robert Gitt
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