THE WHITE CROW

Review: The story of the iconic dancer Rudolf Nureyev and his defection to the West in 1961.
Director: Ralph Fiennes
Actors: Oleg Ivenko, Ralph Fiennes, Louis Hofmann, Adele Exarchopoulos, Sergei Polunin, Olivier Rabourdin, Raphael Personnaz, Chulpan Khamatova, Zach Avery, Mar Sodupe, Nebojsa Dugalic and Yves Heck
Year: 2018
Genre: Biography and Drama
Conclusion: 4/5
This is quite an amazing film. I thought that Oleg Ivenko was fantastic in this role. He could obviously dance but he was also such a great actor who portrayed so much feeling. For Oleg Ivenko to prepare for this role he needed to learn English and Russian as he is from the Ukraine. Ralph Fiennes did an amazing job considering he directed it and acted in it. Apparently, he originally did not want to be in the movie, knowing from experience how difficult it could be to do both parts. According to IMDb as he tried to get financing for the film he kept being asked if he was going to be in it, and when he said no, “I could see the light fading behind their eyes,” because there were no other major names in it, “so finally I folded”. One of the main themes in this is having control and the freedom to do what you want. I remember a few years ago watching a one-off documentary about Rudolf Nureyev but I honestly couldn’t remember what the ending was or how the story played out. Especially near the end I actually found myself starting to feel quite tense.