Wow, a ballet noir!
Written and directed by Ben Hecht, this is certainly an interesting film.
Ballet dancer Andre Sanine (Ivan Kirov) is suspected of murdering his first wife. Ballet teacher Judith Anderson and poet Lionel Stander certainly think so.
Andre is handsome with a speaking voice like Joel McCrea's. However, he hears music in his head, and it gives him the urge to kill. Another dancer, Haidi (Viola Essen) is sure he's cured. She falls in love with him, and they marry. The ballet company goes on tour. For awhile, all is well. Then problems develop.
Some good dancing and some wild acrobatics by Kirov are highlights of this film, but nothing - nothing - can compare to the dialogue. And coming out of raspy voiced Lionel Stander, it is really something. Try this: "The lunacy of great artists usually produces masterpieces, not murders."
Kropotkin: You're only one man suffering. When the masses suffer, then the suffering counts.
Lionel (Lionel Stander as Lionel Gans): The suffering of the masses is a minor phenomenon beside one man's tears....
Kropotkin (George Shdanoff): The masses would never get married if the poets didn't tell them how beautiful it was....
and: "The lunacy of great artists usually produces masterpieces, not murders."
This was Ivan Kirov's only film. He was a dancer whose career was interrupted more than once by knee problems. He also did some acting, and eventually developed his own act and also started a dance school. He had a magnificent build, and he is certainly right for this offbeat role.
Recommended just for being unusual.
Written and directed by Ben Hecht, this is certainly an interesting film.
Ballet dancer Andre Sanine (Ivan Kirov) is suspected of murdering his first wife. Ballet teacher Judith Anderson and poet Lionel Stander certainly think so.
Andre is handsome with a speaking voice like Joel McCrea's. However, he hears music in his head, and it gives him the urge to kill. Another dancer, Haidi (Viola Essen) is sure he's cured. She falls in love with him, and they marry. The ballet company goes on tour. For awhile, all is well. Then problems develop.
Some good dancing and some wild acrobatics by Kirov are highlights of this film, but nothing - nothing - can compare to the dialogue. And coming out of raspy voiced Lionel Stander, it is really something. Try this: "The lunacy of great artists usually produces masterpieces, not murders."
Kropotkin: You're only one man suffering. When the masses suffer, then the suffering counts.
Lionel (Lionel Stander as Lionel Gans): The suffering of the masses is a minor phenomenon beside one man's tears....
Kropotkin (George Shdanoff): The masses would never get married if the poets didn't tell them how beautiful it was....
and: "The lunacy of great artists usually produces masterpieces, not murders."
This was Ivan Kirov's only film. He was a dancer whose career was interrupted more than once by knee problems. He also did some acting, and eventually developed his own act and also started a dance school. He had a magnificent build, and he is certainly right for this offbeat role.
Recommended just for being unusual.