"The Red Shoes" DVD
Created by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, "The Red Shoes" (1948) is one of my favorite films, and the Criterion Collection DVD’s special features helped me to achieve a deeper appreciation of this masterwork. The movie centers around Ballet Lermontov, which is run by the autocratic Boris Lermontov. A ballerina named Vicky Page and a composer named Julian Craster join the company, and Lermontov eventually gives Vicky the principal part in a ballet. When the new ballet is a huge success, Vicky sees her dreams coming true. As for Lermontov, he plans to mold Vicky into a great dancer, but when Vicky and Julian fall in love, Lermontov realizes this jeopardizes his plan. Inevitably, Lermontov and Julian clash, and Julian winds up leaving the dance company. Vicky is then left in the impossible situation of trying to reconcile her passion for ballet with her love for Julian.
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