Nureyev
- Director: David Morris; Jacqui Morris
- Producer: Jacqui Morris; Trevor Beattie
CGiii Comment
Some strange decisions were made in pre-production...and, unfortunately, were carried through...to the end.
Siân Phillips is both the narrator and [weirdly] the voice of Nureyev himself...it doesn't make a whole lot of sense!
Similar to the atrocious film by Ralph Fiennes - The White Crow - this is neither a complete nor accurate telling of Rudi's story...like everyone, Rudi could be difficult at times...but, he was so sociable, amiable...yet, filmmakers seem to focus on him being rather pompous. At times he had to be, he was the greatest dancer of his generation [and others] and he was made into a reluctant political chess piece...
Out of the public gaze, he was a lovely, lovely man...full of warmth and laughter. There are glimpses of the real Rudi...and, perhaps, the filmmakers ought to have found and dredged through more archives to find [and show] the real man. There is so much [private] film of Rudi in personal collections that [still] remain to be seen...everything shown in this film is practically available on YouTube...hence, no surprises. There is footage of the last photo-shoot he did...where is it!?!
As an introduction to Rudolf Nureyev...it does a passable job. As for giving a true essence of the man, it - sadly - fails. The decision to incorporate a contemporary ballet [of his life] should have been a separate film...all it does is detract...from the man, from his story, from his dancing.
Perhaps...one day...someone will make a film about this lovely man. He was a friend, so missed.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
This striking and moving documentary from BAFTA nominated directors Jacqui and David Morris traces the extraordinary life of Rudolf Nureyev. From his birth in the 5th class carriage of a trans-Siberian train, to his dramatic leap to freedom in the West at the height of the Cold War, and unprecedented adulation as the most famous dancer in the world. The film highlights Nureyev's unlikely yet legendary partnership with Margot Fonteyn and charts his meteoric rise to the status of global cultural phenomenon. Nureyev's life plays out like the sweeping plot of a classic Russian novel. His story is Russia's story. Blending never-before-seen footage, with an original score by award-winning composer Alex Baranowski and spellbinding newly choreographed dance tableaux directed by Royal Ballet alumnus, Russell Maliphant, Nureyev is a theatrical and cinematic experience like no other. This is a portrayal as unique as the man himself. There will never be another Nureyev.
Cast & Characters
Dana Fouras as Nureyev, Farida
Illya Koltobskoy as young Nureyev
Marlon Dino as Male Tartar Dancer
Leon Poulton as Dancer
Lucia Lacarra as Female Tartar Dancer
Jordan Kennedy as Dancer
Faith Prendergast as Dancer
Daria Kostritsa as Dancer
Rimma Onatskaya as Udeltsova
Maria Fonseca as Dancer
Danil Bondarev as baby Nureyev
Ilya Vashenko as Dancer
Aysa Malliphant as Dancer
Grace Jabbari as Dancer
Sasha Sabybin as Dancer