Bolero: Dance of Life
Bolero: Dance of Life
| 16 June 1982 (USA)
Bolero: Dance of Life Trailers

The film follows four families, with different nationalities (French, German, Russian and American) but with the same passion for music, from the 1930s to the 1960s. The various story lines cross each other time and again in different places and times, with their own theme scores that evolve as time passes. The main event in the film is the Second World War, which throws the stories of the four musical families together and mixes their fates. Although all characters are fictional, many of them are loosely based on historical musical icons (Édith Piaf, Josephine Baker, Herbert von Karajan, Glenn Miller, Rudolf Nureyev, etc.) The Boléro dance sequence at the end brings all the threads together.

Reviews
MonsterPerfect Good idea lost in the noise
Contentar Best movie of this year hands down!
Myron Clemons A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.
Billie Morin This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows
Michael Grabauskas I happened to be in Paris when this film was released. I was able to see it three times in 2 weeks at a theater who did English Subtitles. What an incredible movie. Unfortunately, it was released within months of Blake Edwards "10" which also used "Bolero" as it's main theme and that movie went over big time in the US, so distributors had a problem getting this film out. I wish they would re-release it. The thing I enjoy the most about it is the director's multiple uses of the actors. Many play their characters children and grandchildren. It is also an incredible look at a time when the world was trying to blow each other up and it shows that people everywhere just want the same things. A brilliant film.
marjeta A great movie with excellent music!I liked how the characters speak their language, so the movie has English, French, German, Russian dialogues.Also, after watching it really carefully for the third time, I have determined that there are only two cases where mother&daughter or father&son are NOT played by the same actor/actress (as adults). With the story going through 3 generations with lots of characters, this can get pretty confusing.I recommend watching it several times. I saw something new every time so far.
teach25 I saw that movie when it came out, and it is a great movie. I have the music for it and I still listen to it after all these year. I had the music on a record then on a cassette and now on a CD. I am looking very hard to find this film on DVD. I want to share that movie with my friends.
ivansandick This effort of the French cinema-world to look beyond its own borders has been quite succesful in that the story covers three continents and breathes different cultures and different times, using very different musical genres. Though some storylines end in nothing (in a typically French way), there are enough plots to build up to a climax which Ravel could not have surpassed. In the final scene some people sit together and make music music together and only we know how closely related they are. The eyes (and arms!) of the conductor of a German army-band on Place de l' Etoile when two Parisian hookers smile at him, is unforgettable.