“The White Crow" - a film about Nureyev

[Ian Macmillan]

I can endorse Mary's hearty recommendation of The White Crow and, more to the point, so does my wife who knew Nureyev in his early London years.  Well worth 2 hours of your time.

[LinMM]

Well in the end we've had to split into two groups to see the film next week. So I will be going on Wednesday evening. 

And have passed on the info about the BBC 4 film this Monday. 

A week for some nostalgic Nureyev wallowing then. 

[sybarite2015@]

I saw this on Friday at my local Odeon and I really enjoyed it too. The acting and cinematography were both superb and the main actor played Nureyev very well. It is definitely the best film about ballet I've ever seen--I only wish it had covered his whole life and not just up to his defection.  Hopefully someone will make a sequel covering the second half of his life too. 4/5

 

 

 

[Josephine]

This was featured on Radio 4's Film Programme at the weekend, with some interesting comments about casting at 06:43 onwards.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0003cn5

 

[Richard LH]

7 minutes ago, Josephine said:

This was featured on Radio 4's Film Programme at the weekend, with some interesting comments about casting at 06:43 onwards.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0003cn5

 

I wonder if Polunin was considered for playing  Nureyev rather than Yuri Soloviev.....

[Stevie]

2 hours ago, Richard LH said:

I wonder if Polunin was considered for playing  Nureyev rather than Yuri Soloviev.....

 

2 hours ago, Richard LH said:

I wonder if Polunin was considered for playing  Nureyev rather than Yuri Soloviev.....

No doubting his talent and ability, but the question of his temperament, tact and reliability may have ruled him out ? 

[Pas de Quatre]

Polunin would be all wrong - both facially and physical proportions.  His way of dancing is very different to Nureyev's .

[Stevie]

25 minutes ago, Pas de Quatre said:

Polunin would be all wrong - both facially and physical proportions.  His way of dancing is very different to Nureyev's .

Polunin is slightly taller and heavier, but not a lot of difference. Oleg Ivenko is the same height and weight as Nureyev, but could this  be sufficient to tip the balance, they would have needed to stand side by side for anyone to notice.

 

[Jan McNulty]

I saw White Crow this afternoon.

 

I thought it started very slowly and initially I found the backward and forwarding of time confusing.  However it did draw me in and the last half hour was so tense I forgot to breathe a few times!  This was even though I knew the outcome!

 

I thought the cast were excellent throughout.  Oleg Ivenko certainly had charisma as Nureyev.

 

I would recommend this film.

[Shade]

Thanks for the review Janet it sounds like a good film 

[SheilaC]

It is a good film. I watched it yesterday after seeing the docudrama Dance to Freedom on BBC4 the night before. The two are complementary.

The docudrama explored the relationship with Soloviev more fully, indicating that the KGB blackmailed him into informing against Nureyev. His story is tragic, he was a better classical dancer than Nureyev, a truly wonderful dancer, but his dancing and health declined as he resorted to alcoholism. Now we know why. In the docudrama his widow spoke sadly of his situation. Dance to Freedom includes other famous dancers who were involved in the Kirov and the Paris ballet scene, talking about Nureyev and the situation.

White Crow  contains some wonderful acting. The little boy who played Nureyev as a little boy was compelling and was a very good dancer. Oleg Ivenko gives a riveting performance as Nureyev and as that remarkable teacher, Pushkin, who inspired the artistry of Baryshnikov as well as Nureyev, Ralph Fiennes is remarkable, totally convincing in his subtlety. The ballet shown was a little disappointing in quality but there were lovely shots of the Paris Opera ( but the stage used for the ballet excerpts was definitely not the Garnier stage) and of Leningrad/St Petersburg. Well worth watching.

[BeaverElliot]

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5460858/mediaindex?ref_=tt_mv_sm

https://www.cinemaclock.com/movies/the-white-crow-2018

(photos)

Edited March 29, 2019 by BeaverElliot

[LinMM]

Will get back later on this film  but very much agree with SheilaC in her comments above.....the two films are definitely complementary....highlighting slightly different aspects of the story.

[alison]

Desperately trying to find a showing of this which isn't at a completely silly time for me.  I may have to take an afternoon off, or something  

[Guest]

A big thank you to Ralph Fiennes for making this sensitive portrayal of Nureyev and his life and events leading up to his defection. I found it truly moving. Beautifully acted, shot and edited and excellently cast. 

[Odyssey]

I have just had the pleasure of seeing the film and can fully endorse all the praise it has garnered on this forum. The narrative is told in such an interesting way, successfully fusing the period of Nureyev’s defection, his childhood and mentoring by Pushkin. The editing at times is inspired - very moving when the film moved seamlessly between Nureyev staring out of his window in Paris to his Mother leaving the children at home while she went to gather wood.  It’s a long film, but there is no extraneous scenes and the attention to detail is impeccable. As has been said previously here, the casting is inspired. Oleg Ivenko looks uncannily like Nureyev in the scenes at the airport. Fiennes is wonderful with a restrained temperament and inner calm that contrasts so well with the fiery outbursts from his prodigy. I noted that the film is partially funded by the BBC, so I think it will be shown on tv soon. I would definitely want to watch it again. Although a very different film, it is in my opinion, on a level with The Red Shoes as the finest ballet film that has been made.

[maryrosesatonapin]

I have come late to this film, via Amazon prime.  I wasn't sure I wanted to see another dancer trying to be Nureyev.  Ivenko did as good a job as anyone could but Nureyev cannot be replicated.  I did wonder about the bit where Nureyev was seen to be seduced by Pushkin's wife - I don't think that is necessarily true?  If not, it seems a little unfair to Mr and Mrs P.  The Russian scenes were magical and the whole thing is very well done, and quite riveting.

Here is a photo of Nureyev's family - don't the actors chosen have a remarkable physical resemblance!

[LinMM]

The little boy who played Nureyev was quite remarkable as he had some of that same intensity that Nureyev had. I found the ending quite moving and the film was mostly beautifully made especially the black and white scenes. 

I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

[Naomi M]

13 hours ago, maryrosesatonapin said:

I have come late to this film, via Amazon prime.  I wasn't sure I wanted to see another dancer trying to be Nureyev.  Ivenko did as good a job as anyone could but Nureyev cannot be replicated.  I did wonder about the bit where Nureyev was seen to be seduced by Pushkin's wife - I don't think that is necessarily true?  If not, it seems a little unfair to Mr and Mrs P.  The Russian scenes were magical and the whole thing is very well done, and quite riveting.

 

According to Julie Kavanagh's Nureyev: The Life, it does seem to be true that Nureyev slept with Pushkin's wife. 

[Duck]

White Crow has made its way into cinemas over here, and I saw the film on Friday night.

Fabulous. I found it fascinating how the film switched seamlessly between 1960s events in Paris and flashbacks to Nureyev’s training and early childhood. I was particularly moved by the flashbacks to his childhood e.g.,, watching his mother leave to collect wood, observing other children play in the snow with him standing at the side, playing with his small wooden toy train, hugging his father in complete silence, his astonishment at the splendour of the opera house when he was six years old. And how some of these early experiences fed through to much later in life – e.g., looking at a painting at The Hermitage that showed a father and son (?) hugging each other, the quest to buy a model railway, the desire to be on stage.

I hadn’t read much about Nureyev beforehand as I don’t tend to be too keen on the classics, and so learnt a lot about him during the film. Not fitting in and not trying to do so either (was he the only one who didn’t wear a tie while on tour in Paris?), learning French so he’d be able to communicate in Paris, his deep interest in art works, reading Andre Malraux, etc.

The film evoked the atmosphere of the 1960s beautifully, from clothes and cars to furniture and music, it was as if being there myself. I loved the acting, too, both by Oleg Ivenko and by Ralph Fiennes. Also the little boy, with the intensity of his gaze, and his dancing was very impressive, too.

As for the events at the airport – absolutely captivating. I’d known the outcome but the details of getting there, wow. Also, I hadn’t previously realised how instrumental Pierre Lacotte was in that situation, nor that it seemed to be a spontaneous decision given the situation that he was put into at the airport rather than something that had been planned in advance (that’s at least how I’ve read it).

In summary, very impressed with every minute of the film.

 

[redshoesgirl2]

10 hours ago, Duck said:

White Crow has made its way into cinemas over here, and I saw the film on Friday night.

... I loved the acting, too, both by Oleg Ivenko and by Ralph Fiennes....In summary, very impressed with every minute of the film.

 

what about Polunin?

[jm365]

I had actually forgotten Polunin was in the film.  He made very little impression on me compared with almost everyone else.

[Jan McNulty]

8 hours ago, redshoesgirl2 said:

what about Polunin?

 

He was not in a major role so I can't really remember him from seeing the film some months ago.

[Duck]

10 hours ago, redshoesgirl2 said:

what about Polunin?

 

If my response to your post is delayed, it's because I actually needed to google which role he was playing in the film. That means I didn't recognise him there and then, and as a result I am unable to comment I am afraid.

 

 

 

[BeauxArts]

Polunin played Yuri Soloviev. He dyed his hair blond for the role. He did not feature very much in the film, which rightly belonged to Ivenko and the other leads.

[Naomi M]

Yes it was not a major role and Polunin's acting was not impressive, but the role of Yuri Soloviev is not a minor role, he did appear in some important scenes such as the night cruising with Pierre Lacotte and Clara Saint on the night they met (he was there to watch over Nureyev), the scene that they went to a toy store to purchase some railway figures and playing together in the hotel room, and the defection scene.

They shared the same hotel room in Paris.  

[LinMM]

Yes in the other film Soloviev had a bigger role but not in White Crow which was a shame I think ....not because of Polunin cast in the role But because of the greater story around Soloviev and the effect the whole defection had on him too... and his part as Nureyevs ‘minder’ as it were in Paris. Also Nureyev admired him as a dancer

[FionaM]

On 28/10/2019 at 14:55, Naomi M said:

Yes it was not a major role and Polunin's acting was not impressive, but the role of Yuri Soloviev is not a minor role, he did appear in some important scenes such as the night cruising with Pierre Lacotte and Clara Saint on the night they met (he was there to watch over Nureyev), the scene that they went to a toy store to purchase some railway figures and playing together in the hotel room, and the defection scene.

They shared the same hotel room in Paris.  

There are a couple of short scenes in the shared hotel room, one where it’s implied Nureyev/Ivenko is looking at Soloviev/Polunin’s naked body/bottom (!) and another scene when they are setting up the train set and Nureyev leans on Soloviev who shrugs him off. 
 

Polunin fans will be disappointed by how little there is to see of him in this movie.  As you say he is in a few scenes, but most are short and he has little to do as the focus rightly is on Nureyev and his story.

 

It’s an interesting movie to understand Nureyev’s motivation, and also as a reminder of the restrictions on Soviet people at the time.