Nijinsky [Blu-ray]

Director: Herbert Ross Herbert Ross

Overview

The deeper, broader issues behind the rise and fall of one of the world's greatest ballet dancers and choreographers, Vaslav Nijinksy (1888-1950), is not at the fulcrum of this two-hour British biographical drama. Director Herbert Ross and screenwriter Hugh Wheeler base the film on Nijinsky's diaries and his wife's book Nijinsky but what they portray are the years between 1912-1913 and Nijinsky's affair with Sergei Diaghliev, his mentor and the impresario and founder of Ballets Russes. With the life of the great man (played by dancer George de la Pena) explained via the dominant, impossible personality of Diaghliev and the love of his wife (Leslie Browne), there is no room for larger questions. The business and politics and especially the homosexuality that are involved with the art of ballet are also given primary focus.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/28/2012
UPC:	0887090034708
Original Release:	1980
Rating:	R
Source:	Olive
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Language:	English
Time:	2:09:00
Sales rank:	18,977

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

George de la Pena	Vaslav Nijinsky
Alan Bates	Sergei Diaghilev
Leslie Browne	Romola de Pulsky
Alan Badel	Baron de Gunzburg
Carla Fracci	Tamara Karsavina
Colin Blakely	Vassili
Ronald Pickup	Igor Stravinsky
Ronald Lacey	Leon Bakst
Vernon Dobtcheff	Sergei Grigoriev
Jeremy Irons	Mikhail Fokine
Frederick Jaeger	Gabriel Astruc
Anton Dolin	Maestro Cecchetti
Janet Suzman	Emilia Marcus
Stephan Chase	Adolph Bolm,Adolph Bolm
Henrietta Baynes	Magda
Sian Phillips	Lady Ripon
Charles Kay	Argentinian Ambassador
Tomas Milian Jr.	Young Man on Beach
Monica Mason	Maria Piltz
Valerie Aitken	Lydia Nelidova
Genesia Rosato	Ludmilla Schollar
June Brown	Maria Stepanova
Blaise Mills	Lisl
Kim Miller	Marie Rambert
Dean McMillan	Page
Mart Crowley	Baron Adolphe De Meyer
Olga Lowe	Signora Cerchetti
Geoffrey Hughes	Gavrilov
Patricia Ruanne	The Doll
Ben Van Cauwenbergh	Max Froman
Tomás Milian	Actor
John Lanchbery	Conductor,Composer

Technical Credits

Hugh Wheeler

Herbert Ross	Director
Hugh Wheeler	Screenwriter
Nora Kaye	Producer
Stanley O'Toole	Producer
Harry Saltzman	Executive Producer,Producer

Editorial Reviews

Although Nijinsky as a whole is not satisfying, portions of it are exceptional. Not surprisingly, these portions include the sequences in which dancing is a primary focus. With the wonderful George de la Pena holding forth in these sequences, supported by a very fine corps, the dances are stunning and exciting. de lan Pena deserves a great deal of credit for their success, as his technique and interpretations are simply marvelous to behold; but he must share credit with director Herbert Ross, who demonstrates once again that he is a master at filming ballet, a feat that is far more complicated than it may at first seem. The physical production is also quite lovely, with fine work from all departments. If de la Pena is perhaps not as fine a dramatic actor as he is a dancing actor, he still acquits himself well in the dialogue scenes and has a sure handle on his character. Even better is Alan Bates as his lover Diaghilev, adding a combination of power and nuance to his scenes that is quite effective. Leslie Browne is not ideal casting as Nijinsky's wife; her dance background serves her very well, but she doesn't have the correct temperament that the drama requires. Nijinsky runs into problems in general when it is away from the ballet stage; although it deserves points for portraying an honest homosexual relationship in 1980, it does so in a rather coy, indirect manner. In addition, the script eventually indulges in melodrama that undercuts its overall effectiveness. Still, Nijinsky is worth watching, if only for the graceful power of de la Pena in flight.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler