In early 2013, it was announced that choreographer and dancer Benjamin Millepied, known as the man behind the ballet of Black Swan, would take over as director of the Paris Opera Ballet. Reset finds Millepied on the eve of his first gala with the Opera, designing and refining his inaugural choreography for the esteemed institution. As a film, Reset possesses of the same artistic assuredness as its subject as he blocks out the preliminary steps for his choreography. It explores various concepts of space simultaneously: the digital space, the space of the opera house (each scene opens with a declaration of which studio it’s in) and the space of the stage, the distance from stage right to stage left. It’s a portrait of a watershed moment for one of the ballet's oldest institutions and one of its brightest new stars, both on the cusp of great transition.
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Reviews
Good start, but then it gets ruined
If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.
The film may be flawed, but its message is not.
One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.
This is an inside look at the challenges of putting together a ballet. Benjamin Millepied takes on quite a challenge as he works as Artistic Director at the Paris Opera Ballet, the world's oldest national ballet. Previous directors were Serge Lifar and Rudolf Nureyev, tough shoes to follow in! Benjamin has some really strong ideas working for him, however. First of all he wants all his dancers to get the most pleasure and enjoyment from their work with him. Historically, entering a Ballet company is almost equivalent to joining an elite special forces company. Continual selection and judgment. This does not leave room for reflection or getting enjoyment from your day to day work. The film shows us scenes of typical scenes of the selection of young dancers, precise and calculated. Many dancers hide injuries for fear of rejection. These can later become career ending without early treatment.We follow a time line of the all the events that must come together for a successful finish. Dance rehearsals, selection of the musical score, props, integration with the lighting and the actual stage. Benjamin's assistant is tireless in her attention to detail to get everything integrated and obstacles overcome without any undue friction.Benjamin believes in working with his dancers, showing them exactly how certain moves should work. Positive reinforcement works wonders to bring out the best and not being afraid to make mistakes. He wants his dancers to reflect their audience not what was expected from previous centuries gone by. Various scenes take us into the actual creative process of thinking, dancing, sketching upside down on a studio floor.The most powerful scenes for me were from the final rehearsal where it all comes together with such magic. Despite threats of strikes and other external events, the opening night arrives. Benjamin ensures that everyone takes the stage that worked on the Ballet.
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