The Red Shoes main backdrop
The Red Shoes main poster

The Red Shoes

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8.0/10 • 692

1948-09-062h 13m

DramaRomance

Dance she did, and dance she must - between her two loves

In this classic drama, Vicky Page is an aspiring ballerina torn between her dedication to dance and her desire to love. While her imperious instructor, Boris Lermontov, urges to her to forget anything but ballet, Vicky begins to fall for the charming young composer Julian Craster. Eventually Vicky, under great emotional stress, must choose to pursue either her art or her romance, a decision that carries serious consequences.

Directors
Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Writters
Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell
Editors
Reginald Mills

Top Billed Cast

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  1. Anton Walbrook

    Anton Walbrook

    Boris Lermontov

  2. Marius Goring

    Marius Goring

    Julian Craster

  3. Moira Shearer

    Moira Shearer

    Victoria Page

  4. Robert Helpmann

    Robert Helpmann

    Ivan Boleslawsky

  5. Léonide Massine

    Léonide Massine

    Grischa Ljubov

  6. Albert Bassermann

    Albert Bassermann

    Sergei Ratov

  7. Ludmilla Tchérina

    Ludmilla Tchérina

    Irina Boronskaja

  8. Esmond Knight

    Esmond Knight

    Livy

  9. Jean Short

    Jean Short

    Terry

Reviews1

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CinemaSerf Avatar

CinemaSerf

Sep 7, 2022

8/10

Moira Shearer is just excellent in this fine example of the cinematographer and choreographer's arts - all under the able and inspired direction of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. She is the aspiring ballet dancer "Victoria" who must train under the positively brutal rule of acclaimed tutor "Lermontov" (Anton Walbrook). This maestro, however, expects undiluted devotion and so when this young woman also falls in love - with composer "Craster" (Marius Goring) she finds herself out of favour. Facing the toughest of choices, she chooses love - but even married, she is still torn. When she returns a few years later to visit - her new husband having now completed the eponymous ballet - the imposing "Lermontov" proves he can still pull her strings and she faces an heart-rending choice. P&P have created a masterpiece of rich and colourful cinema. They have turned a relatively simple Hans Christian Anderson story into a maelstrom of love, ambition, power, control - you name it, it features here somewhere. Emotions run high, cruelty runs rife and all under the baton of Brian Easdale who has created his own "Ballet of the Red Shoes" score. Both Walbrook and Goring were underestimated actors, in my view. They had an adaptability that demonstrated a surety of foot as their characters illustrate traits that at best celebrate humanity, at worst denigrate it badly. The dancing is frequently mesmerising with the media of theatre and cinema merged seamlessly to give us a really breathtaking experience. I felt vested in the fate of this young woman, I felt vested in the nasty Lermontov - which would I have chosen? This is a great film, marrying the vivid imagination of a timeless creative source with a visionary and highly entertaining ensemble adaptation. Recently staged by the Sadler's Wells Company of Sir Matthew Bourne, but good as that was - this still knocked spots off it.

Media

  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster
  • The Red Shoes poster

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Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
$500,000.00
Revenue
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Keywords
dancenew lovelondon, englanddance performancecomposerballet dancerballetred shoes