IMDb RATING
6.6/10
7.1K
YOUR RATING
The story of Rudolf Nureyev's defection to the West.The story of Rudolf Nureyev's defection to the West.The story of Rudolf Nureyev's defection to the West.
- Awards
- 1 win & 4 nominations
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaHayden Christensen, who trained extensively in ballet as a child, was first choice to star; however a persistent ankle injury prevented him from being able to perform to the standards demanded by Ralph Fiennes.
- GoofsIn a scene showing a close up of Nureyev's foot performing a tendu, the shoe he is wearing is a white split sole ballet slipper, a shoe that did not exist in the 1960s. Split sole ballet technique shoes have only been on the dance scene since the mid 1990s.
- Quotes
Claire Motte: You are with the company? Did you dance tonight?
Rudolf Nureyev: If I had danced, you would remember.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The White Crow: Ralph Fiennes and Oleg Ivenko in Conversation (2019)
- SoundtracksLa Bayadère 3rd Shade Variation
Composed by Ludwig Minkus
Arranged by Matthias Gohl
Performed by Ilan Eshkeri and The London Metropolitan Orchestra
Featured review
Mixed in some places but a brilliant conclusion
Based on the life of Rudolf Nureyev (portrayed by Oleg Ivenko): in different time segments, the life of the ballet great is depicted during his childhood in rural Eastern Russia; his late teen years training in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg); and the Kirov Ballet tour in Paris of 1961 during which Nureyev made a decision that changed his life significantly. The film is based on the novel "Rudolf Nureyev: A Life" by Julie Kavanaugh and is a British/French/Serbian co-production spoken in Russian, French, and English.
One of the enjoyable aspects of the film is following the young man's transition from a rural area into cities as grand as Leningrad and Paris and his awestruck fascination with the visual arts at his disposal. This can easily remind many viewers of their first travel experiences and having felt the same elation.
The three different time sequences are done concurrently which is sometimes jarring and unnecessary. The film would probably have been better if done chronologically with only occasional flashbacks.
Around the halfway mark of the film, Nureyev is showing a lot of irritability in a restaurant scene. It is at this mark that the viewer could feel equally irritated after having had enough of the frequent timeline changes and the film's reduced energy by that point. Also in that scene, while Nureyev is showing a strong reaction to class prejudice from other Russians, there was little to indicate this problem in earlier scenes. His rudeness seems to come out of nowhere.
Despite these criticisms, it is all worth it for the extended climactic scene at Paris' Le Bourget Airport (very well re-constructed to resemble its appearance in the early 1960s). Much like the final airport scene in "Argo", the one here has suspense, tension, and mystery even if the outcome is already well known.
"The White Crow" is a fine tribute to an artistic icon and a good depiction of the life of a genius in a restrictive, Communist country although it would have benefited to explore more on another restriction in Rudolf's life under Communisim - his homosexuality. Considering the film concluded when its subject was still very young, it is tempting to encourage a sequel for the remainder of such a very unique life of an extremely rare individual who radically changed fate for his own life and that of the ballet world. - dbamateurcritic
One of the enjoyable aspects of the film is following the young man's transition from a rural area into cities as grand as Leningrad and Paris and his awestruck fascination with the visual arts at his disposal. This can easily remind many viewers of their first travel experiences and having felt the same elation.
The three different time sequences are done concurrently which is sometimes jarring and unnecessary. The film would probably have been better if done chronologically with only occasional flashbacks.
Around the halfway mark of the film, Nureyev is showing a lot of irritability in a restaurant scene. It is at this mark that the viewer could feel equally irritated after having had enough of the frequent timeline changes and the film's reduced energy by that point. Also in that scene, while Nureyev is showing a strong reaction to class prejudice from other Russians, there was little to indicate this problem in earlier scenes. His rudeness seems to come out of nowhere.
Despite these criticisms, it is all worth it for the extended climactic scene at Paris' Le Bourget Airport (very well re-constructed to resemble its appearance in the early 1960s). Much like the final airport scene in "Argo", the one here has suspense, tension, and mystery even if the outcome is already well known.
"The White Crow" is a fine tribute to an artistic icon and a good depiction of the life of a genius in a restrictive, Communist country although it would have benefited to explore more on another restriction in Rudolf's life under Communisim - his homosexuality. Considering the film concluded when its subject was still very young, it is tempting to encourage a sequel for the remainder of such a very unique life of an extremely rare individual who radically changed fate for his own life and that of the ballet world. - dbamateurcritic
helpful•162
- proud_luddite
- Aug 24, 2019
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Beyaz Karga
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,828,784
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $78,782
- Apr 28, 2019
- Gross worldwide
- $7,622,595
- Runtime2 hours 7 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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