La danza inconclusa

When Cyd Charisse made THE UNFINISHED DANCE (1947) she was still a young starlet in the MGM stable, before her rise to stardom in 1950s Arthur Freed musicals like SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952), THE BAND WAGON (1953), BRIGADOON (1954), and SILK STOCKINGS (1957). (You can tell it's from her "early years" by the way her face is made-up.)

Fans and admirers of Charisse will want to check out this film for a chance to see her at home in the world of ballet. Many dancers in Hollywood were tap dancers, but Cyd Charisse came from a ballet background. The ballet influence is evident in her work in things like BRIGADOON, for instance, but in THE UNFINISHED DANCE we get to see Cyd Charisse do some real ballet, in a tutu and everything.

The real focus of the movie, however is Margaret O'Brien, MGM's child actress extraordinaire. THE UNFINISHED DANCE is a Hollywood remake of a fascinating French film LA MORT DU CYGNE (a.k.a. "BALLERINA") (1937). It concerns the girls of a dance academy and a sort of tragic mistake. O'Brien is a young dancer who idolizes ballerina Charisse and perceives a visiting prima ballerina (Karin Booth) as a threat. With her idol's best interests at heart, O'Brien sabotages Booth's performance. Booth suffers a career-altering injury and O'Brien is haunted by her guilt, even as Booth becomes a mentor for her at the academy.

Margaret O'Brien was a major child star in the 1940s and MGM adapted LA MORT DU CYGNE as a vehicle for their young actress. What's impressive is that MGM got ten-year-old Margaret O'Brien to actually learn ballet. O'Brien had never been known as a dancer, but she does her own dancing here and is convincing enough. Karin Booth, too, seems to do her own dancing on camera.

MGM adds Hollywood gloss to the plot from the original French film. The tragedy isn't quite so tragic. The irony not quite so defined. While it's a darker role than some would expect from Margaret O'Brien, it's not *too* dark. Danny Thomas plays O'Brien's gentle, vaguely ethnic, de facto guardian and sings a couple of cutesy tunes. The ballet sequences are staged in glorious Technicolor.

The plot is probably good enough for those who haven't seen the French film, although I personally feel the remake suffers by comparison. I prefer the French film for aesthetic and thematic reasons. I would highly recommend checking out LA MORT DU CYGNE ("BALLERINA") if the opportunity arises. It seems to be rather obscure but I caught it on Turner Classic Movies a few years back.

I am a grandma now, but as a five year old, I viewed this movie in a very small town theater. After I saw this movie with a five year old's eyes, I not only wanted to be a ballerina, but I wanted to be Margaret O'Brien. Not being able to have dance lessons, I danced on my own. My aunt made me a beautiful outfit, and I was in heaven. Now, move ahead 20 years. I have a daughter who wanted to dance, and of course I sent her for lessons. She is now a very successful, and talented dance teacher. I would love for her to see this movie, but I don't know where, or how to get it. This movie has not only been an influence on one generation, but on two. I wish there were more movies of this calaber. Simple, but oh so good.

Oh, I was so thrilled when I saw a Margaret O'Brien film on the TCM slate for today!!! And then when it came on in COLOR!!! My daughters were in dance lessons most of their lives and one continued to dance even after becoming a mom and a teacher. They would love to see this old movie. Since I am watching the movie currently, I can't comment on the overall, but I am thrilled to see such a young Danny Thomas! He looks a little like Mandy Patinkin. Just watching makes me smile and think of my own childhood, dancing, dreaming. Just know out there, that you can still find this movie on TCM. The Technicolor is vibrant and the values are old-fashioned and lovely. The blacker elements are still to come -- hang in there and watch it with me...all the way to the end!!!

"The Unfinished Dance" is a color MGM film made in 1947 that depends on the star power and dancing ability of little Margaret O'Brien. Here she plays Meg, a nine-year-old ballet student enamored of the gorgeous prima ballerina, played by Cyd Charisse in a very early role. When the company brings in "La Darina" (Karin Booth) to do some performances, O'Brien is determined that she not succeed. In order for the dancer to be humiliated, she plans, with the help of a friend (Elinor Donahue), to douse the lights during her ballet. It all plays out, except that a trap door opens by mistake, and La Darina's career is over. When La Darina turns to teaching and takes a big interest in Meg's dancing, Meg's guilt becomes unbearable.

The ballet segments are beautiful, and while the intensity of O'Brien's performance may not be for everyone, she is excellent. I confess that she's always been a favorite of mine. Danny Thomas, in a role written for Danny Kaye, makes his debut in this film. It's a somewhat saccharine role, but he appoints himself well.

Charisse is good as a shallow, ambitious dancer who really isn't worthy of Meg's adoration, and Karin Booth is lovely as La Darina, and she's absolutely stunning to boot.

Not to everyone's taste, but a nice niche film from MGM.

The genius of this movie is how it deconstructs backstabbing, bribery and alliances-making by portraying adorable little girls in tutus enacting an all out war among the pre-teen chorus of a New York Ballet. The object they're leveraging around? Sabotage of a prima ballerina by one girl who desperately supports a rival. It may sound cute, but the outcomes are very serious. When you see an 8 year-old child leaning on a roommate and angling bribes, it really takes all of the "honor" out of strong-arm tactics.

On the other hand, the most adorable scene is when a 3 year-old performs an audition for a tiny tot solo. You'll giggle out loud (even my grandfather did).

For anyone who would like to catch this movie, it's on rotation on TMC, a basic cable channel (I think that's Turner Movie Channel, but correct me if I'm wrong please).