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Dan Heller's Movie Review of The Company |
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"The Company" holds many quiet surprises, many of which can be easily
missed if you're not paying close attention. Fortunately, the well-known
veteran filmmaker, Robert Altman, and a couple high-profile actors will
help bring attention to this subtle cinematic peek into some days in the
life of the world of professional ballet. And while the movie is quite
enjoyable to watch, its qualities ironically are better appreciated in
the whole of the film, not in its parts.
In essence, "The Company" is just a series of snippets of the real
live cast of the Joffery Ballet of Chicago, performing, rehearsing,
and candidly interacting with one another, but without much substance to
anything they say or do. It's hard to say what the film is about, since
there is very little plot to speak of. Many Altman films are more about
character profiles, but even that aspect is very light here. That's not
to say there aren't people interacting with one another in interesting
ways, but you don't come away with a sense that you've gotten much out
of them. It's as though the film was made from the clippings from the
editing room floor where they chop the parts out of the film stock where
the actors aren't acting, just standing around talking... and you can't
hear them.
If one had to describe the plot of the film, minimal as it is, one would
say that it centers around a few characters in the ballet's company.
The only interesting character to speak of is the art director, played
by Malcolm McDowell. His role is interesting, partly because his presence
punctures the more tepid and intentionally downplayed supporting roles,
and because his role is a commentary about the industry itself. He's
ego-centric, self-absorbed, high on high-status, and has very little
to actually contribute to the company. He waltzes from scene to
scene, barking orders, changing dance steps, flaunting his powerful
position, and all without cost or penalty. Everyone accepts his
suggestions, and you can't tell whether it's out of fear, or
of dismissive indifference, knowing that once he's gone they're just
going to return to how they were doing it before.
He is challenged twice by a few who refuse to take it anymore, and he, of
course, doesn't follow through with any sort of discipline or reprimand,
showing us that he seems to be well-aware of his limited autonomy.
With that said, the film leads you to believe that the real story is that
of Loretta Ryan, played by Neve Campbell, who plays one of the up and
coming dancers in the company. She unseats some of the veteran dancers,
who are getting older and injured as the years clearly indicate on
their faces and bodies. Her upward movement within the company goes
without incident, or even comment, and is so understated that you
sense it is almost more of a by-product of others' withering than of
her own accomplishments. Early in the film, she is at the tail end of a
relationship with a co-dancer, who dumps her for no reason apparent to
us. She quickly meets "some guy" in a bar, who she slowly introduces
to her dancing world. This transition is so uneventful, and their
relationship seemingly devoid of dialog and interaction, other than
the obvious things like dinners and sharing a few moments, that you
aren't given anything to work with. They're in a relationship that
doesn't seem to impact her life in any way whatsoever. Like the rest
of the film, it looks like there might be a story developing, but one
never does.
Robert Altman is best known for his very sophisticated portrayals of
people in their subcultures, both comedic or serious, and always with
very deep characters and complex interrelationships, which though
confusing at first, all come together as the film crescendos to a
climactic ending. Much like that sentence. Yet, in "The Company",
Altman's traditional style is conspicuously missing, as is his wit,
and sense of story. (The closest thing to this film was his 1994 film,
"Prêt-à-Porter", which was equally as weak as this.) Here, the majority
of the writing and production were that of Neve Campbell and Barbara
Turner, whose previous works are clearly represented in this film.
Despite my lack of enthusiasm for "The Company" as a film, it still
left me glad I saw it. The ballet performances are good, and especially
so if you are a fan of the art. For those not into ballet, it's certainly
worthwhile, since it's not what your mom took you to see when you were
a kid. As a film, however, I compare it to a flash of light: it's made
up of massless photons, none of which have any weight or substance alone,
but as a whole, they produce a light that has its own energy nonetheless.
You can find this movie on the internet database here:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0335013/
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