Alegria

The breathtaking imagery and vibrant characters of Alegria the live show are abandoned by its director, Franco Dragone, who misguidedly reinvents it from the ground up for this movie. The result is NOT Alegria (only tantalizing, tiny glimpses of the live experience are seen). Instead a clumsy "story" is grafted on to its delicate artistry, set in an unconvincing "real" world which blurs rather than expands the boundaries of Cirque Du Soleil. By introducing new characters far less compelling than the original stage stars (what must they have made of this betrayal?), Dragone seems to have decided to "explain" Alegria's purpose. This is like explaining a joke - the result falls flat, its poetry and clarity of purpose are muddied - or worse, articulated by characters not so much conversing as making speeches to each other. Thus the skills of a mime of genius like Rene Bazinet are fatally compromised. One of the strengths of the show Alegria was that its language was that of athletic and balletic grace, exquisite mime and haunting music. There was no dialogue, which freed it from political boundaries. This is why the show was a huge international hit and this movie was not. Here the engaging grotesques are firmly separated from ourselves, the audience. The twilight magical world we thought they occupied is revealed to be the cheap side of town. They speak dialogue with little wit or poetry. There is a half hearted attempt to design a skewed reality outside the Big Top but the magic is overwhelmed by a welter of bad ideas and sugary emotion and lovers of Alegria the show are underwhelmed as a result. Truly this should not have been released

What an absolute gem. This is so unlike anything that I have seen before and I was sure that it was just not going to be my thing. WOW was I ever wrong. The thrill of the Cirque du Soliel with their extremely talented acrobats and clowns are joy enough, but then you have Frank Langella hamming it up wonderfully as Fleur the ringmaster and Heathcote Williams as the dark Marcello. The best though has to be Rene Bazinet in the lead role of Frac. What a masterstroke of casting. This is a mime artist in a speaking role who steals the show. I had never heard of him until seeing this and cannot understand why he has never been picked up by other directors. Talk about missing a great opportunity. Let's hope that this man will pop up and thrill us all again.

Alegria is a joy and should have been made more prominent at the time of release. This just does not deserve to go un-noticed, it's way too special.

If there is a single problem with "Alegria," the first feature film from the hugely successful (and rightfully so) Cirque du Soleil enterprise, it's that a concrete narrative structure doesn't seem to fit in the avant-guarde troop's world. A large part of the charm of the stage productions is the abstraction--the audience can fill in the blanks with whatever story pleases them, or simply sit back and enjoy the show. And while on one hand the story of "Alegria" is a charming one--a boy-meets-girl fable entwined with the plight of a group of children forced to labor under a cruel taskmaster--its presense detracts from the surreal nature of the Cirque experience.

That's not to say there isn't plenty to enjoy here, for there is. There are several fine performances here, with standouts coming from Frank Langella as the ringmaster and concerned father of the girl and Heathcote Williams as the despicable villian. Brian Dewhurst, a vetran of multiple Cirque productions and one of their most versatile talents, has a nice bit part as a depressed bartender. Benoit Jutras (another regular on the Cirque payroll) has created a beautiful and dramatically correct score for the film. The film posesses moments of beautiful, sad, and disturbing imagry, and when we do see the Cirque cast in action, it's a joy as always.

"Alegria" may not be an entirely successful foray into new territory, but when so many filmmakers rely on what's "reliable" and "safe," you certainly can't blame them for trying.

Well, although it is a high grade for a not-very-known-movie; this is a great performance by the Cirque Du Soleil (The biggest and greatest cirque now existing) by mixing "Romeo and Juliette" and the currently-touring-show "Alegria". This is one of the 2 movies that the Cirque has made, and even though it doe not has a lot of budget they make a enjoyable movie. There's a great performance by Julie Cox, who before this was a little unknown, and she might not have a lot of fame but after this it gave her a good point in her "Resumeé". And this other unknown-movie actor Rene Bazinet, who had formerly played in another Cirque show, "Saltimbanco", who gives a funny and charming performance. It isn't a Must-see movie but a pleasant-to-see.

I saw this movie by accident. After only seeing about half of it, I didn't rest until I found a copy. I don't know much about the Cirque du Soleil, but this film is absolutely beautiful. It's poignant, intense, and above all, just plain good. It's a simple story set against a decidedly different backdrop. It's a good date movie, and one that I would watch over and over again. Perhaps the most incredible thing about the move is Jean Bazinet, who plays the lead. He is absolutely astounding as Frac, the mime. Enough of my words. They don't do this film justice.