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02:06

The American

Name: The American
Director: James Napier Robertson
Genre: Documentary, Drama, Thriller
Released: 2023
Duration: 1 h 50 min
Cast: Talia Ryder, Diane Kruger, Oleg Ivenko, Natasha Alderslade, Natalia Osipova

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Documentary
Drama

2023
James Napier Robertson
110 mins
15

Summary

Biographical dance drama starring Talia Ryder and Diane Kruger. In 2009, Texan teenager Joy Womack travels to Moscow to enrol in the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. Initially told that she'll never be talented enough to earn a place in the main company, Joy grows increasingly and sometimes dangerously determined to prove herself.

IMDB

Review

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

Dave Golder

This powerful and often harrowing biopic is based on the story of American ballerina Joy Womack and her all-consuming ambition to become prima ballerina at the legendary Bolshoi Company. In 2009, a teenage Joy (played by Talia Ryder) is accepted into the Moscow Bolshoi Academy, but is flatly told by her tutor (Diane Kruger) that, though talented, she "dances like an American" and will never be accepted by the Company. But Joy is prepared to go to extraordinary - and often selfish - lengths to prove everyone wrong. Be warned: this is no cosy, Fame-style fairy tale about hard work reaping rewards. Joy endures not-so-casual racism, sexual predation, bleeding feet, sabotage, disgrace and eating disorders, all while abandoning her family and shamelessly using her friends. Director James Napier Robertson uses handheld camerawork offset against lush, stylised lighting to contrast the brutality of the training with the beauty of the dancing. Featuring choreography by Womack herself, this is a rich visual feast with a bitter, edgy core and an excellent ensemble cast led by a fully committed Ryder.

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7.0/10