Birds of Paradise

Competition brings out the best in some people... but it can destroy others.

'Black Cygnet'.

This is very much what you would expect from a dark ballet story in terms of the rivalry, backstabbing, abuse, sex, drugs, etc. It has a dreamlike quality to it, wonderful dancing, and a cool setting though that keeps it somewhat interesting even when its not entirely original or unique.

This is very well shot with good camera moves. The score and production design help the experience so much and are effective. The storytelling is nuanced. The direction was on point. I really enjoyed the way the information was delivered.

The tone was great. Sometimes I expected it to go some ways but it surprised me.

Sometimes the movie moved between genres which I thought made the storytelling better and helped the experience. The performances were great too.

The choreography was amazing. It was beautiful but it also was a big part of the storytelling and was meaningful and symbolic and poetic.

It does what it wanted to do in an effective way imo.

This is personal but the movie made me think about greatness in our society, and what it even means. Maybe there are more ways to interpret the word. I think with paying attention it is not hard to understand it during the first watch, but I also enjoyed the second watch a lot too.

No pun intended - or maybe not the way you think. On the other hand, if you've read a few of my reviews, you may have already guessed that I sometimes mean multiple things with what I write. In this case, it is about the numbness ballet dancers go through (especially with their feet), but also the numbness some viewers may feel with movies about ballet.

We have seen a few of them - and this may not have too many new things that it can introduce. But the interplay between the two main characters, their relationship that is not entirely clear, but also the visual interpretation of certain things, does give it an edge.

Not the best movie ever, but a really nice effort and really well acted too. The story and the amount of passion thrown at us is really something in a good sense. Still you have to suspend your disbelief and fill in some gaps to be thoroughly entertained. Yes the movie does not give you all the answers - but you can deduct from some of the behavior what it tries to tell you.

Criticism and all that included of course. Passion and fanaticism go hand in hand sometimes! Not to mention expectations from the outside ... whatever is your driving motor ... and whatever is inside your head, for better or worse.

The story of this movie does not exist, there are some moments of astonishment but nothing more.

There is no story to follow, there is nothing to rely on to make a plot twist, turning them into moments of wonder, which cause curiosity and are the highlight of the script. There is never a development of each character, there are many characters that end up discarding and the end is left to interpretation. However, there are things to highlight such as the performances, especially that of Kristine Froseth, the choreography and the coordination are good.

It's a shame that the talent of those involved is wasted by a script so lazy and boring that it says absolutely nothing.