Russian Resurrection Film Festival Review: The Bolshoi
The Bolshoi, directed by the renowned Valery Todorovsky (The lover, Hipsters) is about to hit our screens as part of the Russian Ressurection Film Festival and if you haven’t heard of it before, it’s time to broaden your horizons. The film follows the life and struggles of Julia Olshankaya (Ekaterina Samuylina & Margarita Simonova), a former street performer, as she attempts to dance her way through the Moscow State Academy of Choreography and onto the stage of the Bolshoi theatre. The opening shots are enough to draw you in even if your understanding of Russian and ballet is limited or, like mine, non-existent.
The film alternates between the past and the present. As adults, the dancers Julia (Margarita Simonova) and Karina (Anna Isaeva) struggle between the hardships and temptations of real life, and the life of the ballet. Between scenes of their daily dramas we witness Julia’s past, where the talented ten-year-old, played by Ekaterina Samuylina, was just sidling into the ranks of rich ballet students, trying to find her place.
The acting is raw and natural, and draws you in to their world with ease. Samuylina, playing the younger Julia, brought much-needed humor and lightness to the screen. Her endearing attitude and banter with her teacher, the older Galina Mijailovna (Alisa Freindlich) had people chuckling in their seats. However, the friendship forged between Julia and Galina is one that, although thoughtfully created, could have been expanded upon, as jumps between the past and present left important pieces of information out.
Though I loved to see the ballet from both child and adult Julia’s point of view, at times the transition between these left me confused and distanced from the magic of the film. The film provides beautiful insight into the Russian ballet and also the human relationships and tragedies that follow us throughout life. But for a film that tries to do so much it sometimes felt as though it was trying to do too much. In 132 minutes some relationships were explored deeply, some hinted at and some had me wondering why they were included at all. Yet something about the magic of dance, music and humanity all intertwined carried the movie beyond these minor shortcomings.
I left the cinema with a warm feeling conjured up by a talented cast, insightful director and incredible soundtrack. I would say the Russian Ressurection Film Festival is not to be missed.
7/10
The Bolshoi will be showing at the 2017 Russian Resurrection Festival, screening at ACMI from November 9 - 19.