The Company (2003)

Ensemble drama centered around a group of ballet dancers, with a focus on one young dancer (Campbell) who's poised to become a principal performer.

Director:

Robert Altman

Writers:

Neve Campbell (story), Barbara Turner (story),

Stars:

Neve Campbell, Malcolm McDowell, James Franco

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Neve Campbell	...	Loretta 'Ry' Ryan
Malcolm McDowell	...	Alberto Antonelli
James Franco	...	Josh
Barbara E. Robertson	...	Harriet (as Barbara Robertson)
William Dick	...	Edouard
Susie Cusack	...	Susie
Marilyn Dodds Frank	...	Mrs. Ryan
John Lordan	...	Mr. Ryan
Mariann Mayberry	...	Stepmother
Roderick Peeples	...	Stepfather
Yasen Peyankov	...	Justin's Mentor
Davis C. Robertson	...	Alec - Joffrey Dancer (as Davis Robertson)
Deborah Dawn	...	Deborah - Joffrey Dancer
John Gluckman	...	John - Joffrey Dancer
David Gombert	...	Justin - Joffrey Dancer

Storyline

An inside look at the world of ballet. With the complete cooperation of the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, Altman follows the stories of the dancers, whose professional and personal lives grow impossibly close, as they cope with the demands of a life in the ballet. Campbell plays a gifted but conflicted company member on the verge of becoming a principal dancer at a fictional Chicago troupe, with McDowell the company's co-founder and artistic director, considered one of America's most exciting choreographers. Franco plays Campbell's boyfriend and one of the few characters not involved in the world of dance.

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Plot Keywords:

ballet | dancer | ballet dancer | dance | joffrey ballet of chicago | 

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Genres:

Drama | Music | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 on appeal for brief strong language, some nudity and sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Metropolitan Films [fr] Sony Classic

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 May 2004 (Germany)

Also Known As:

A Companhia

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$4,339 (Hong Kong) (9 July 2004)

Gross:

$12,525 (Hong Kong) (9 July 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sony Pictures Classics, Capitol Films, CP Medien AG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min 112 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Robert Altman's first foray into High Definition Video.

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Goofs

When Ry gets out of the bath behind the screen, it's clear she's wearing a body stocking.

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Quotes

Alberto Antonelli: Hit the wall! I want you to move!

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Crazy Credits

The title is not shown until the end of the opening credits.

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Connections

Referenced in O Lucky Malcolm! (2006)

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Soundtracks

"My Funny Valentine"
Music by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart
Arranged by Marvin Laird
used by arrangement with Williamson Music and Chappell & Co.
Performed by Marvin Laird and Clay Ruede

User Reviews

A Dance of a Movie about Dance

The DVD extras with some movies make the film seem better than it did just watching it. "The Company" is a good example.

I'd wondered, briefly, why star Neve Campbell also got producer credit. The DVD 'making of' documentary explains that the whole project was her idea; she'd been a dancer long before she took up acting, and wanted to combine the two. She chose Altman to direct, because of his skill at portraying relations and interactions among people in groups.

Altman did a fine job depicting dance, both rehearsals and performances. Campbell showed she can still dance. Malcolm McDowell gave a great performance as the acerbic company director. The Joffrey dancers were brilliant. Altman has created a dazzling cinematic album of what the world of dance is like at the beginning of the 21st century.

But the story arc was weak. This was no accident. In a recent (October 2004) interview, Altman said:

Question: "Why do you think you're drawn to stories about big groups of people sharing the same space? Did it have anything to do with growing up in such a large, close-knit family?"

Robert Altman: "Possibly. I don't know. That's a little too cerebral for me. I'm not much interested in stories anyway. I'm more interested in reactive behavior."

That sums up "The Company" very nicely. The movie is a montage of scenes of "reactive behavior" among realistic characters, and in this it is more like real life than a more structured story would have been.

Of course there is some story structure here, involving the creation of a new dance. This story is engaging, because the outside choreographer is a fey flake, and dance disaster seems foredoomed. But the dancers, being good soldiers, follow his orders diligently. And despite all expectations, at least all of my expectations, their climactic performance is superb.

But this story is not central to the movie. Again like life, it unfolds amidst all sorts of other organizational and interpersonal drama.

And for this reason the movie left me unsatisfied. Part of what I look for in movies, and in books, is a story arc: a beginning, a middle, and an end. I look for this precisely because life is rarely that neat. Many directors deliver this arc (and many more try to, and fail). Robert Altman chose not to try. He is free to do that, and I am free to rate this movie 7/10.