A police detective in a South American country is dedicated to hunting down a revolutionary guerilla leader.A police detective in a South American country is dedicated to hunting down a revolutionary guerilla leader.A police detective in a South American country is dedicated to hunting down a revolutionary guerilla leader.
- Awards
- 1 win & 3 nominations
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe story is inspired by the Maoist insurgency in Peru known as the Shining Path. Its leader Abimael Guzmán, who was known by the nom de guerre President Gonzalo, was captured in an apartment above a ballet studio in the capital city of Lima in 1992. The ballet teacher Yolanda was based on Maritza Garrido Lecca, the woman in whose apartment Guzmán was found. Bardem's character was inspired by Benedicto Jimenez and Gen. Antonio Ketin Vidal, the leading figures responsible for Guzmán's capture.
- GoofsWhen Sucre & Llosa arrest the young woman in orange, she has been handcuffed to the ceiling of the car. But then en route, soldiers simply drag her out of the backseat. No handcuff keys. No bolt cutters.
- Quotes
Agustín Rejas: I'd like to have a list of staff with access to the President's chambers.
Calderón: Luckily there are only two of them. The first is named 'Fuck', the second is named 'Off'.
- Crazy creditsThe producers would like to thank ... the residents of Narcisos Street ...
- ConnectionsFeatured in Revealing 'the Dancer Upstairs' (2003)
- SoundtracksViagens Interditas
(1995)
Written by Pedro Malgheas (as Pedro Ayres) and Rodrigo Leão
Performed by Madredeus
Licensed by Dpte. de Productos Especiales de
(p) EMI Odean, S.A., Madrid, Spain, 2001 exclusive rights holder
Featured review
The film's trailer, which rain endlessly for months in advance at my local art house, and the reviews, etc., have emphasized this as a political thriller. But in fact it's really in the tradition of "Casablanca," where politics is a constant background to only part of the hero's motivation. I did expect someone to say "Round up the usual suspects!"
Awkwardly in this day and age, the Latino actors in the film's unnamed Latin American country (it was filmed in Ecuador and Madrid) all speak (accented) English, with subtitles to indicate when characters are speaking an Indian dialect, i.e. when the hero lawyer/detective is using his heritage to solve the complex case of politically-motivated murders.
But it's the complex layers that make this more interesting than Costa-Gavras' didactic "State of Siege" that is repeatedly referred to as an inspiration, both to director John Malkovich and the revolutionaries, and making this akin to HBO's "The Wire" in showing how a flawed cop can stick to his professionalism amidst deadly-serious bureaucratic and real politics.
The cop's simplistically drawn Beverly Hills matron-type wife turns out to incidentally help him uncover a clue, as he gradually comprehends the cynicism of a revolution that uses unexpected types of cells for suicide missions, with resonance for the MidEast as well, as ideologues are more diabolically dangerous than criminals.
That the dancer is actually downstairs is emblematic of the film's genre confusion.
Awkwardly in this day and age, the Latino actors in the film's unnamed Latin American country (it was filmed in Ecuador and Madrid) all speak (accented) English, with subtitles to indicate when characters are speaking an Indian dialect, i.e. when the hero lawyer/detective is using his heritage to solve the complex case of politically-motivated murders.
But it's the complex layers that make this more interesting than Costa-Gavras' didactic "State of Siege" that is repeatedly referred to as an inspiration, both to director John Malkovich and the revolutionaries, and making this akin to HBO's "The Wire" in showing how a flawed cop can stick to his professionalism amidst deadly-serious bureaucratic and real politics.
The cop's simplistically drawn Beverly Hills matron-type wife turns out to incidentally help him uncover a clue, as he gradually comprehends the cynicism of a revolution that uses unexpected types of cells for suicide missions, with resonance for the MidEast as well, as ideologues are more diabolically dangerous than criminals.
That the dancer is actually downstairs is emblematic of the film's genre confusion.
- How long is The Dancer Upstairs?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,377,348
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $106,142
- May 4, 2003
- Gross worldwide
- $5,227,348
- Runtime2 hours 12 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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