Bolero: Dance of Life

1981 "The film is a musical epic and it is widely considered as the director's best work with Un Homme et une Femme."
Bolero: Dance of Life
7.3| 3h4m| en| More Info
Released: 27 May 1981 Released
Producted By: Les Films 13
Country: France
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

The film follows four families, with different nationalities (French, German, Russian and American) but with the same passion for music, from the 1930s to the 1960s. The various story lines cross each other time and again in different places and times, with their own theme scores that evolve as time passes. The main event in the film is the Second World War, which throws the stories of the four musical families together and mixes their fates. Although all characters are fictional, many of them are loosely based on historical musical icons (Édith Piaf, Josephine Baker, Herbert von Karajan, Glenn Miller, Rudolf Nureyev, etc.) The Boléro dance sequence at the end brings all the threads together.

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conrado-3 I was in Strasbourg, France in 1981 when this film first came out and saw it in a movie theater. It was a compelling film and spoken not only in French, but German, Russian and English, according to the character's language. I loved the story, the music (my favorite rendition of Bolero), the incredible dancing, the acting. I even acquired the soundtrack and a VHS of the movie after seeing it, even though I don't typically acquire copies of movies once I have seen them. This film is and will always be my favorite film of all time. I happened to be studying the subject of international human rights law in Strasbourg at the time, so it seemed fitting to see this movie about WWII and the humanitarian aspects of the finale of the film. Our world has become so interdependent that other directors should take note of this little-known film and its use of multiple languages to great effect.
landl-2 I am so excited that I have at last been able to access some information about this wonderful film. I saw it once in the early eighties in Canada and have been trying to find it in video/DVD stores here in Australia ever since I returned home in 1986! What I need to know is----is it in English? I can't remember if it was in French and sub-titled or what. Can someone please advise? I have tried to get it in our video stores but no-one has ever heard of it.When I saw it in Canada, it was called "Bolero-The Dance of Life". Do others remember it called that? I am not familiar with the title "uns et les autres,les", but that doesn't matter. I want it whatever it is called. Thanks Lee
Claudio Carvalho Along three generations, the lives of different families in Russia, France, Germany and United States of America, all of them connected to music and dance, are affected by the World War II. In Russia, the Bolshoi ballerina Tatiana Itovitch (Rita Poelvoorde) loses her husband, the musician Boris Itovitch (Jorge Donn), in the Russian front. She raises alone their son, the professional dancer Sergei (Jorge Donn), who escapes from Soviet Union and coming to have a daughter, the also ballerina Tania. In France, the Jewish violinist Anne Meyer (Nicole Garcia) marries the pianist Simon Meyer (Robert Hossein), and both are sent to a concentration camp, where Simon dies. On the train travel to the camp, Simon leaves their baby son on the trails and he is raised by a priest, becoming the lawyer Robert Prat (Robert Hossein), who has a professional singer son. Also in France, in Paris after the war, the singer Evelyne (Evelyne Bouix) is accused of sleeping with the enemy, and moves to Dijon, where she has a daughter, Edith (Evelyne Bouix). In Germany, the pianist and conductor Karl Kremer (Daniel Olbrychski) leaves his wife Magda Kremer (Macha Méril) and their son to fight in the war. In USA, the famous pop singer Jack Glenn (James Caan) leaves his wife Suzan Glenn (Geraldine Chaplin) to join the army and entertain the troops in London. Their gay son Jason Glenn (James Caan) and daughter, the singer Sara Glenn (Geraldine Chaplin) become important persons in the show business. Their lives are entwined in a Red Cross presentation of the Ravel's Bolero in Paris. "Les Uns et les Autres" is the masterpiece of Claude Lelouch and is one of my favorite movies ever. First time I saw it I was amazed with such a magnificent story. The direction, the story, the cast, the soundtrack, the location, everything works perfectly in this overwhelming film. The long scenes are fantastically well filmed and Claude Lelouch was certainly inspired when he made this wonder. Only a couple of months ago, this DVD was released in Brazil by the Brazilian distributor "Classicline" and yesterday I saw it again, for my delight after twenty and something years. The unknown Sharon Stone has a minor uncredited participation in the end of the movie, watching the show on TV in bed with Jack Glenn. "Les Uns et les Autres" is a highly recommended movie, for lovers of arts and cinema. My vote is ten.Title (Brazil): "Retratos da Vida" ("Pictures of the Life")Note: On 10 February 2014, I saw this wonderful movie again.
Michael Grabauskas I happened to be in Paris when this film was released. I was able to see it three times in 2 weeks at a theater who did English Subtitles. What an incredible movie. Unfortunately, it was released within months of Blake Edwards "10" which also used "Bolero" as it's main theme and that movie went over big time in the US, so distributors had a problem getting this film out. I wish they would re-release it. The thing I enjoy the most about it is the director's multiple uses of the actors. Many play their characters children and grandchildren. It is also an incredible look at a time when the world was trying to blow each other up and it shows that people everywhere just want the same things. A brilliant film.