WasAnnon Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

YouHeart I gave it a 7.5 out of 10

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

kz917-1 Documentary that follows the journey of several students across the world to compete at the Grand Prix and win scholarships prestigious schools and dance ballet at the highest level. Several parents seem to have more drive than the students. To them ballet is life, air and water. They live it, breathe it and if things don't go their way they just might be crushed. Some will crash others will triumph, either way there will be tears.

Red-125 First Position (2011), directed by Bess Kargman, is an excellent film about young ballet dancers. For reasons I can't understand, as I write this review, the movie carries an IMDb rating of a dismal 6.2. How can that be? Did the viewers who rated it "1" see the same film I saw?The movie follows seven young ballet dancers as they prepare for, and then compete in, the prestigious Grand Prix competition. As pointed out in the movie, many physical activities in which people participate involve natural movements for which the human body is well suited. Catching a baseball, swimming, or climbing a rope are not easy, but our species has the natural physical capabilities to do these things. Ballet dancing, especially en pointe ballet dancing, is not a natural activity for us. We simply are not constructed to (literally) walk on the tips of our toes. The feet have to be trained and remodeled to allow this activity to take place. And, of course, not only do ballet dancers dance on their toes, but when they are doing this they are supposed to make their movements elegant, graceful, and apparently effortless. Although male ballet dancers don't dance en pointe, their movements are also extraordinarily difficult. One young male dancer shows us his "foot stretcher," and tells us, "It hurts a lot."So, serious ballet dancing requires physical traits that are extraordinary, dedication so that ballet becomes central to your life, and the capability to absorb physical pain that would be "cruel and unusual punishment" if it weren't voluntary.Director Kargman has put together a documentary that takes us inside the lives of these young dancers. We meet their coaches, their families, and their judges. Also, of course, we go to the Grand Prix with the dancers, and we learn whether they succeed or fail.I thought the movie was honest, creative, and balanced. These young people are not "regular kids who happen to take ballet." They are dedicated, passionate, and fanatically determined to succeed. First Position brings us into the world of ballet training, and allows us to make our own decisions about the wisdom of encouraging your child to dance and compete at this level. It's a great film. Why does it have such a low rating?

jdesando First Position takes a front row in my line up of competition documentaries. It's exceptional because it doesn't overdo its reverence for ballet, nor does it play on a natural sympathy for young competitors from 9 through 19 years old. It would be easy to fawn over youngsters who have only two and a half minutes to persuade judges that they are the best among hundreds of ambitious artists.It keeps the tension of the race to the finals of the Youth America Grand Prix while it invests just the right amount of time with six selected dancers, some of whom fortuitously go to the finals and win, if not the gold , then full scholarships to dance academies, not a bad substitute at all. The camera follows, as is tradition, the endless practices with the demanding coaches, but this time both principals and teachers seem to enjoy the process as much as the awards. There's respectful, low key camaraderie among all the competitors, coaches, and parents that is unusual for these contests and documentaries about them.The range of contestants is the believable, not hyped part I liked so much. While cheerful ten year old Jules Fogarty clearly isn't into dance or the competition, sixteen-year old Joan Sebastian Zamora will earn a top spot at the Grand Prix finals in New York because he cares just enough. Such is the way ambition should work out in the best of all possible worlds.Best of all the dancers, for me, is 11 year old Aran Bell, whose ambition is matched by his awesome talent with a litheness only a dancer years older could have. Michaela, originally from Sierra Leone, is the most surprising talent, given the horrors she has seen and the physical challenges she must overcome.Director Bess Kargman, following six contestants for over a year, does simple magic with director of photography Nick Higgins, sometimes forsaking the competition footage for the more intimately personal, with arguably limited results when the winners are announced as we want to agree with the decisions. More time on stage might have enlisted our cooperation.A case could be made for the superiority of the ballroom dance Mad Hot Ballroom, poetry team Louder Than a Bomb, horse racing's First Saturday in May, or spelling bee Spellbound because they concentrate on the intensity of the actual competition and open up criticism of the contest itself. No such negativity appears here, a weakness for those who would like the reality of disappointment and hurt to extend beyond Michaela's sore foot.But for me, it's nice to be relaxed as we hope these young competitors still are.

aharmas In "Purple of Rose of Cairo", the heroine frequently visits the theatre to escape reality and live vicariously through the lives of the fantastic characters in the silver screen. In this modern-day inspirational tale, one can experience the road to dreams coming true for some of the people in the spotlight in this crowd pleaser. Ballet might not be everyone's favorite entertainment, but it sure ignites the passion of the children in the competitions, and it truly shines in the hands of very talented filmmakers.There is a lot to enjoy in this documentary that follows six children as they try to pursue their dreams to become professional ballet dancers. It's a rough road, where much will be sacrificed, and even the enduring support of parents and coaches might not feel that supportive. One can see how parents and coaches are trying to relive their own dreams, and a few times we wonder if what they are trying to sell us is really the real thing. Then we see their students dance, and magic explodes in the screen.There is plenty of underdog to cheer here. Every one of the chosen subjects is a very special individual, with origins as different as war-ravaged countries to obsessive parents... and there is not a dull moment in the 90 minutes that made it to the screen. There is certainly plenty of beauty here as human beings practice routines to shine within five very competitive minutes they are given in world famous competitions. It is easy to say one can hardly be disappointed as each performer gives their best.I can't recommend this enough: It's a heartwarming and quite charming work of art.