Ah, Harry Potter fans can rejoice! We've already seen Daniel Radcliffe show off his chops in several other films (and on stage), and now Emma Watson, aka Hermione Granger, stars in this new BBC adaptation of Ballet Shoes based on the beloved novel by Noel Streatfeild. Set in 1930s London, this lovely film revolves around the hopes and dreams of a trio of sisters—the adopted children of the eccentric (and absent) Professor Brown (Richard Griffiths, another Harry Potter alum)—who struggle to balance their own desires for individual creative adventures with the need to keep their precarious household together. Raised by Brown's niece (Emilia Fox), the sisters are surrounded by an oddball collection of lodgers taken in to help stretch the family budget (the extraordinary supporting cast includes Harriet Walter, Marc Warren, Gemma Jones, and Dame Eileen Atkins)—from whom the sisters take many sincere life lessons. But it's the charm of the siblings themselves that makes this film truly special: Pauline (Watson) wants to be an actress, Petrova (Yasmin Paige) longs to be an aviator, and Posy (Lucy Boynton) loves ballet. Ballet Shoes is a movie to cherish, a rare and wonderful film about young girls and their ambitions. Highly recommended. (M. Johanson)
Ballet Shoes
Koch, 84 min., PG, DVD: $24.99, Sept. 2 Volume 23, Issue 5
Ballet Shoes
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