Bolshoi Babylon

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Bolshoi Babylon
Directed byNick Read
Produced by Mark Franchetti
CinematographyNick Read
Edited by
  • Jay Taylor
  • David Charap
Music by
  • Colin Smith
  • Simon Elms
Distributed by Altitude Film Distribution
Release date
  • 14 September 2015 (2015-09-14)(TIFF)
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
Languages
  • English
  • Russian
Box office$91,098 (UK)

Bolshoi Babylon is a 2015 British documentary film directed by Nick Read. It is about the history of Russia's Bolshoi Theatre, including Pavel Dmitrichenko's 2013 acid attack on Sergei Filin. It premiered on 14 September at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Contents

Interviews

Release

Bolshoi Babylon premiered on 14 September 2015 at the Toronto International Film Festival. [1] In the US, it was theatrically released on 27 November 2015, [2] after which it aired on the pay television station HBO on 21 December 2015. [3] It was released 8 January 2016 in the UK, where it grossed $91,098. [4]

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, reports that 78% of 18 surveyed critics gave the film a positive review; the average rating is 6.4/10. [5] Metacritic rated it 61/100 based on six reviews. [6] Dennis Harvey of Variety wrote that the film "is inevitably diverting as a well-shot partial peek behind the scenes, but reveals far less than intended." [7] Leslie Felperin of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that the documentary becomes most interesting when it explores the theatre's internal politics. [8] Geoffrey Macnab of The Independent rated it 4/5 stars and wrote that it "induces a sense of awe" about the theatre company. [9] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian rated it 4/5 stars and wrote, "This enthralling documentary reveals the extraordinary upheavals at the Bolshoi Ballet as the tip of Russia’s rage iceberg". [10] Brian Siebert of The New York Times called it "more attractive than illuminating", as it is "surprisingly short on drama" considering the subject matter. [11] Laura Bleiberg of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "These twin tracts of darkness and light, the sordid and the sublime, quite effectively submerge the viewer into a closed world." [12]

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References

  1. ↑ "Bolshoi Babylon". Toronto International Film Festival . Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  2. ↑ "Bolshoi Babylon". Indiewire . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  3. ↑ Cooper, Matt (20 December 2015). "Monday's TV Highlights: 'Bolshoi Babylon' on HBO". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  4. ↑ "Bolshoi Babylon". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  5. ↑ "Bolshoi Babylon (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "Bolshoi Babylon". Metacritic . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  7. ↑ Harvey, Dennis (24 September 2015). "Film Review: 'Bolshoi Babylon'". Variety . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  8. ↑ Felperin, Leslie (17 September 2015). "'Bolshoi Babylon': TIFF Review". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  9. ↑ Macnab, Geoffrey (7 January 2016). "Bolshoi Babylon, film review: Life backstage is portrayed in revealing and intimate detail". The Independent . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  10. ↑ Bradshaw, Peter (7 January 2016). "Bolshoi Babylon review – breaking pointe at the ballet company". The Guardian . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  11. ↑ Seibert, Brian (20 December 2015). "Review: 'Bolshoi Babylon,' Russia's Famed Ballet Troupe in a Scandal's Glare". The New York Times . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  12. ↑ Bleiberg, Laura (26 November 2015). "Review 'Bolshoi Babylon' exposes the beauty and darkness of the ballet company". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 15 March 2016.
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