Mao's Last Dancer - DVD

Film: Actually, only life can write such a story: the young Chinese Li Cunxin (Chi Cao) was brought to the ballet academy in Beijing at the age of seven. After initially struggling with the harsh training conditions there, he has developed into one of the most talented dancers of his generation in the following years. In the early 1980s, Li Cunxin was given the unique opportunity to participate in a cultural exchange with the USA. In the company of Ben Stevenson (Bruce Greenwood) Li experiences a kind of devotion to dance and a freedom that has so far been denied him in his country. When he falls in love, he decides to stay in the US. But this wish cannot be fulfilled as easily as he imagines. Put under considerable pressure by his compatriots at the consulate, Li must make a grave decision that will have a significant impact not only on his life, but also on that of his family in China...

Director Bruce Beresford ("Miss Daisy and Her Chauffeur") brings to the screen "Mao's Last Dancer", a poignant blend of biography, dance film, drama and love story. Immersed in wonderful images and carried by great acting performances, Beresford has turned the poignant true story of Li Cunxin into quite great emotional cinema, which contains many great ballet sequences, but still can appeal to more than just dance lovers.

The performance of the celebrated dancer Chi Cao is particularly convincing, who in his first major feature film role can convince precisely not only in the dance scenes, but also in the dramatic moments. Next to experienced actors like Kyle MacLachlan ("Twin Peaks", "Desperate Housewives"), Bruce Greenwood or even Joan Chen, Chi Cao can definitely hold his own.

Besides the good cast, it is also the wonderful camerawork and the dancer's life story told in flashbacks that make this film so worth watching. Beresford has managed the feat of not watering down the biography, which was enormously successful as a book, in her film version, but rather staging it in a completely new language in a similarly poignant and captivating way as the book template. Therefore, if you appreciate visually powerful emotional cinema spiced with dance, drama and romance, you should not miss this film. Worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: The partly very beautiful images come thanks to good coloring and decent overall sharpness also in the home theater to good effect. With the sound pleases especially the powerful mix of music, but also the always well understandable dialogue. Otherwise, the tonal events remain rather restrained, but this suits the film quite well. Good!

Extras: The DVD provides a nearly 19-minute making of a worthwhile insight into the production, which went over large parts in China with a multilingual crew on stage. A little more interesting is the nearly 10-minute interview with the real Li Cunxin from the arte Journal, which, filled with photos and old video footage, provides a good overview of the true background of the film.

In addition, the bonus material offers the interested viewer 14 dropped and extended scenes with a total running time of just under 12 minutes, as well as five interviews (approx. 11 min.) with the director and his main actors, which have a high promotional character, but still hold some interesting information. Finally, there is the teaser and the German theatrical trailer. Good!

Conclusion: "Mao's Last Dancer" is visually powerful emotional cinema based on the gripping story of Chinese dancer Li Cunxin. For the home cinema the film was technically well converted and equipped with some worth seeing extras. Recommendable

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp