Just because a theme is timeless doesn't mean you should expect it to work every time. "Ballerina" (or "Leap!" for the English title) is another Cinderella story crossed with a sports/competition-themed narrative, delivering the oh-so cherished message that a passion is worth fighting for no matter what, and that all it takes is to put your heart in it. Fine, tell me something I didn't know.
At first, it looked like something I could really enjoy, Felicie, the 11-year old orphan girl dreams to become a ballerina then thanks to a strike of luck (of the sneaky sort but I liked it) , she finds a way to the Opera, then a mysterious cleaner with the grace of a ballet dancer but a limp that screams "failed dream" puts her up, and trains her.And then, well, I quickly realized that there was nothing in the film, I hadn't seen before. Except maybe for the superb rendition of a 3D Paris circa 1880's (when the Eiffel Tower was in construction) and a magnificent use of lighting during the dance sequences.
Let's make it clear, the animation is top notch and has nothing to envy from a Pixar movie. But a lesser look with a better story would have been better, Felicie's journey doesn't do justice to its mesmerizing visuals and can only offer a series of predictable plot elements where the heroine will learn about losing and falling at least ten times before making a climactic grand jeté or spinning on a roof. It doesn't even do justice to the character of Felicie who seems to have a certain edge over the usual heroines, she's not perfect, she lies, she might even sound too "modern" for the film, but overall, her actions are only commanded by the usual script requirements whose purpose is to postpone the inevitable triumph, much to our frustration.
We know there will be a final showdown between Felicie and her nemesis, rich blonde girl who's pushed by her tyrannical mother, we know that it will all be a matter of "heart" rather than technical or physical training, and there will also be a moment where Felicie will say one word too many (to hurt Odette) and get punished by Karma. I expected better than refusing to practice the night before the final test just because the Russian jock told her she was "unique" and wanted to go out for the night, and of course, she had to tell her Odette that she wasn't her mother. Still, it took was to say "I'm sorry" but this film is as dully predicable as Rocky sequel. They have to make the right mistakes at the right moments.
"Ballerina" features other clichés such as the good-looking boyfriend, of course the fat insecure sidekick (with glasses) and the villainous mother who goes literally over the top once the film had founded a rather good resolution. I was wondering whether they needed some extra time or if the directors felt the film lacked action but they didn't even try to be innovative by keeping focused on the dance. No, had to be a " Fatal Attraction" confrontation with a Deus Ex Machina last-minute rescue from Felicie's best friend. Did the mother really think she could kill Felicie and get away with it? It's a real shame that a movie that could have encouraged vocations and provide many lessons about life had to be so formulaic to the point of emulating action movies.
I don't mean it had to be like "Black Swan" either but a better effort on the writing could have really helped it. And another aspect that bothered me, I don't know if it's also the case for the English version but the French version used an adult voice that was too low-pitched for a little girl, not to mention that she was talking like a 2000's teenager even saying such expressions as OK that could have been said by a girl in the 1880's Paris. Well, maybe that anachronism was deliberate and I'm looking too far but that's because I really wanted to enjoy it.
The film successes in the most difficult part, it looked great but it should have embraced its own message about discipline and write more extra drafts to add some density to the story and makes the characters or the situations a little less two dimensional.
At first, it looked like something I could really enjoy, Felicie, the 11-year old orphan girl dreams to become a ballerina then thanks to a strike of luck (of the sneaky sort but I liked it) , she finds a way to the Opera, then a mysterious cleaner with the grace of a ballet dancer but a limp that screams "failed dream" puts her up, and trains her.And then, well, I quickly realized that there was nothing in the film, I hadn't seen before. Except maybe for the superb rendition of a 3D Paris circa 1880's (when the Eiffel Tower was in construction) and a magnificent use of lighting during the dance sequences.
Let's make it clear, the animation is top notch and has nothing to envy from a Pixar movie. But a lesser look with a better story would have been better, Felicie's journey doesn't do justice to its mesmerizing visuals and can only offer a series of predictable plot elements where the heroine will learn about losing and falling at least ten times before making a climactic grand jeté or spinning on a roof. It doesn't even do justice to the character of Felicie who seems to have a certain edge over the usual heroines, she's not perfect, she lies, she might even sound too "modern" for the film, but overall, her actions are only commanded by the usual script requirements whose purpose is to postpone the inevitable triumph, much to our frustration.
We know there will be a final showdown between Felicie and her nemesis, rich blonde girl who's pushed by her tyrannical mother, we know that it will all be a matter of "heart" rather than technical or physical training, and there will also be a moment where Felicie will say one word too many (to hurt Odette) and get punished by Karma. I expected better than refusing to practice the night before the final test just because the Russian jock told her she was "unique" and wanted to go out for the night, and of course, she had to tell her Odette that she wasn't her mother. Still, it took was to say "I'm sorry" but this film is as dully predicable as Rocky sequel. They have to make the right mistakes at the right moments.
"Ballerina" features other clichés such as the good-looking boyfriend, of course the fat insecure sidekick (with glasses) and the villainous mother who goes literally over the top once the film had founded a rather good resolution. I was wondering whether they needed some extra time or if the directors felt the film lacked action but they didn't even try to be innovative by keeping focused on the dance. No, had to be a " Fatal Attraction" confrontation with a Deus Ex Machina last-minute rescue from Felicie's best friend. Did the mother really think she could kill Felicie and get away with it? It's a real shame that a movie that could have encouraged vocations and provide many lessons about life had to be so formulaic to the point of emulating action movies.
I don't mean it had to be like "Black Swan" either but a better effort on the writing could have really helped it. And another aspect that bothered me, I don't know if it's also the case for the English version but the French version used an adult voice that was too low-pitched for a little girl, not to mention that she was talking like a 2000's teenager even saying such expressions as OK that could have been said by a girl in the 1880's Paris. Well, maybe that anachronism was deliberate and I'm looking too far but that's because I really wanted to enjoy it.
The film successes in the most difficult part, it looked great but it should have embraced its own message about discipline and write more extra drafts to add some density to the story and makes the characters or the situations a little less two dimensional.