The Unfinished Dance

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).

"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.

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!!!

Even if it had turned out very badly, "The Unfinished Dance" would have been an extraordinary film. Back in the late 1940's, making a large budget film was actually a more corporate decision than it is today. Which makes you wonder how something that is a weird mix of "The Red Shoes" and a pre-teen "Crime & Punishment" was ever approved for production.

Fortunately things turned out very well and for today's viewers the film's uniqueness is not the only reason to watch it. Most likely it was intended as a vehicle to showcase nine year old Margaret O'Brien's acting and dancing talents. O'Brien was an extremely hard working and motivated child actress, and "The Unfinished Dance" is the most accomplished of her many solid performances. She really gets to demonstrate her range, moving between her standard self-parodying cuteness and a convincing demonic side that should be quite a nice surprise to first-time viewers.

There are some extremely slick ballet scenes, with Cyd Charisse and Karin Booth (if it is not Booth's actual dancing they did a seamless job of matching close-ups and master shots). The Swan Lake scene is especially effective with the stage floor covered in mirrors to simulate the surface of the lake.

Little Meg Merlin (O'Brien) worships the featured dancer Ariane Bouchet (Charisse) at her ballet school. When guest dancer La Daria (Booth) displaces her for the season, Meg and her friend Josie (a very young Elinor Donahue) conspire to sabotage her performance by turning off the stage lights in mid-dance. Things go horribly wrong when Meg throws the wrong switch. La Daria suffers a career ending injury. Meg and Josie promise to keep Meg's involvement a secret.

This gives O'Brien the whole second half of the film to play the Raskolnikov role, as she is torn between satisfaction that her idol has reclaimed the top spot in the company and guilt because of the unintended consequences of her actions. The guilt becomes too much to bear when La Daria becomes her instructor and demonstrates far more interest in Meg's dancing than her idol Bouchet ever did.

"The Unfinished Dance" has a more contemporary shot selection than the standard 1940's-50's film. The story benefits from many close-ups of O'Brien's face, with the use of reaction shots more frequently than I can recall in any other film from this time period. O'Brien's expressiveness is nicely showcased and she is certainly up to the challenge.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

This movie is okay. A pleasant but saccharine MGM Technicolor musical film used as a vehicle for showing off beautiful Cyd Charisse's skills as a ballet dancer. But this film is actually a remake of a brilliant film, the truly thrilling "Ballerina" (aka "La Mort du cygne") a 1938 French film. This unforgettably romantic and atmospheric classic film about the price of art and ego starred the great dancers Yvonne Chauvire and Mia Slavenska along with a wonderful cast. The moody black and white photography vividly conjures the world of the Paris Opera House, both center stage and backstage. The film creates a world that is unforgettable.

If you liked "Unfinished Dance" don't miss the incredible original film.

"Unfinished" does have also have some interest for the rare glimpses of great dancers, George Zoritch among them, that it offers.