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PINAMovie Reviews
German language dance film featuring the unique and inspiring art of the choreographer Pina Bausch, who died in 2009. Cast:Pina Bausch, Malou Airaudo, Jorge Puerta Armenta, Andrey Berezin, Damiano Ottavio Bigi, Clementine Deluy, Josephine Ann Endicot, Lutz FoersterDirector:Wim WendersRelease Date:December 23, 2011DVD Release:January 22, 2013From:NFP Marketing & DistributionRating:PGLength:1 hr 46 minIn 3D
Pina played in key cities to sensational reviews. • Anthony Lane wrote in the New Yorker, "You can trawl through cinema and find few more beautiful, more unforced, or more fleeting representations of the bourn between the living and the dead." • And Daniel Engber called the film for Slate, "...a triumph..." More Reviews Below...
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: OUTSTANDING(cg) "Wenders uses this old/new, interesting/gimmicky technology to play with the human perception of dimensionality as something subtle and profound... wow."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 232 words, 01/06/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "They had performed these dances many times before, but always with Pina Bausch present. Now they were on their own, in homage."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 604 words, 01/20/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (12 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: EXCELLENT " 'Pina' is, above all, an act of preservation, a memorial that is also a defiance of mortality -- completely alive in every dimension."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 562 words, 12/23/11
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Wenders clearly believes that all we need to know is in Bausch's work... best suited for dance buffs excited by an unexpected congregation of artistic pioneers."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 160 words, 12/23/11
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...the most exciting use of 3-D since 'Avatar.' The performance documentary takes us inside Bausch's extraordinary dances in a way that nothing else could."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 760 words, 01/13/12
John Anderson, New York Newsday: VERY GOOD(cg) "Wenders eschews conventional narrative and biopic boilerplate... The performances are captivating, and the filmmaking first-rate."(See all of John Anderson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 224 words, 02/17/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "They had performed these dances many times before, but always with Pina Bausch present. Now they were on their own, in homage."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 604 words, 01/20/12
Melissa Anderson, Village Voice: EXCELLENT "...gives us the supreme pleasure of watching fascinating bodies of widely varying ages in motion, whether leaping, falling, catching, diving, grieving, or exulting."(See all of Melissa Anderson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 401 words, 12/21/11
Greg Quill, Toronto Star: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a benchmark achievement... for his mastery of the mechanics that bring it to life, Wenders deserves a place with the great film visionaries of this or any other time."(See all of Greg Quill's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 560 words, 12/23/11
Guy Dixon, Toronto Globe & Mail: OUTSTANDING(cg) "Not only does 'Pina' excel in recording the modern dance dynamically... it lifts Bausch's compelling, beautiful work onto an entirely new stage."(See all of Guy Dixon's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 508 words, 12/30/11
Mike D'Angelo, LA Weekly: VERY GOOD "Even if you think this couldn't possibly be your thing, give it a chance.... it's one of a precious few recent 3-D films in which the extra dimension feels expansive..."(See all of Mike D'Angelo's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 209 words, 11/03/11
Glenn Sumi, Toronto Now: EXCELLENT(cg) "The performers, interviewed in unconventional ways - we see them, but hear them on a separate track - recall Bausch with affection and intelligence."(See all of Glenn Sumi's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 127 words, 12/15/11
KEY CITIES (10 Reviews)
Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: OUTSTANDING(cg) "You might call it arresting or spectacular, heart-rending or thrilling. But, as Bausch knew, none of the usual descriptors can do justice to the object."(See all of Stephanie Merry's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 482 words, 01/27/12
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: OUTSTANDING(cg) "A dance movie that brings the audience to the performance in a way a traditional documentary could never do... not to be missed."(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 316 words, 01/27/12
Caroline Palmer, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a remarkable -- and likely enduring -- tribute to an artist committed to creating dance theater drawn from humanity's deepest physical and emotional reserves."(See all of Caroline Palmer's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 324 words, 02/10/12
Richard Nilsen, Arizona Republic: EXCELLENT(cg) "Her advice for one of her dancers getting ready to go onstage: 'Don't forget, you have to scare me.' Bausch's art is one of love, pain, joy, loss and loneliness..."(See all of Richard Nilsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 660 words, 02/10/12
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: VERY GOOD(cg) "...an inspired simulacrum - a jewel-box that contains more of Bausch's kinetic soul than film has any right to. It's a parting gift from one artist to another."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 751 words, 01/20/12
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...unique and often sublime... a 3-D dance film that immerses us in the movement, letting us feel that we could reach out and touch these dancers..."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 385 words, 02/10/12
Shawn Levy, Portland Oregonian: EXCELLENT(cg) "...so exquisitely made and filled with such powerful beauty, it suggests thrilling new possibilities for the marriage of movies and dance."(See all of Shawn Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 252 words, 01/27/12
Jordan Levin, Miami Herald: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...masterful... uses the illusion of living, flexing proximity to immerse you in Bausch's dreamlike, emotionally vertiginous world."(See all of Jordan Levin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 642 words, 02/17/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (8 Reviews)
Melissa Anderson, Village Voice: EXCELLENT "...gives us the supreme pleasure of watching fascinating bodies of widely varying ages in motion, whether leaping, falling, catching, diving, grieving, or exulting."(See all of Melissa Anderson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 401 words, 12/21/11
Mike D'Angelo, LA Weekly: VERY GOOD "Even if you think this couldn't possibly be your thing, give it a chance.... it's one of a precious few recent 3-D films in which the extra dimension feels expansive..."(See all of Mike D'Angelo's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 209 words, 11/03/11
Noel Murray, AV Club: VERY GOOD(cg) "Bausch's work is as original as advertised, with staging that involves the addition of obstacles to the dancefloor: dirt, say, or a huge rock, or pouring water."(See all of Noel Murray's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 250 words, 09/09/11
Stephanie Zacharek, Movieline: OUTSTANDING(cg) "There's vast grace and beauty here... Wenders has made a movie the way choreographers and dancers make a dance: With muscle and with heart."(See all of Stephanie Zacharek's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 838 words, 12/21/11
Glenn Sumi, Toronto Now: EXCELLENT(cg) "The performers, interviewed in unconventional ways - we see them, but hear them on a separate track - recall Bausch with affection and intelligence."(See all of Glenn Sumi's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 127 words, 12/15/11
Curt Holman, Atlanta Creative Loafing: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...unquestionably a sincere and heartfelt homage, but audiences who don't know about Bausch may be disappointed that the film stints on biographical information."(See all of Curt Holman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 464 words, 02/15/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (5 Reviews)
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: OUTSTANDING "Using 3-D was a stroke of genius.... The images captured by the film are deeply scary for their loneliness and pain, and crazily thrilling for the intensity of their joy."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 269 words, 01/13/12
A.O. Scott, New York Times: EXCELLENT " 'Pina' is, above all, an act of preservation, a memorial that is also a defiance of mortality -- completely alive in every dimension."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 562 words, 12/23/11
Anthony Lane, New Yorker: OUTSTANDING "You can trawl through cinema and find few more beautiful, more unforced, or more fleeting representations of the bourn between the living and the dead."(See all of Anthony Lane's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,298 words, 12/12/11
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...the most exciting use of 3-D since 'Avatar.' The performance documentary takes us inside Bausch's extraordinary dances in a way that nothing else could."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 760 words, 01/13/12
Deborah Young, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "Wenders favors the stylistic device of making foreground figures stand out sharply from a deep background, giving the film a modern, painterly look."(See all of Deborah Young's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 718 words, 02/14/11
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...the most exciting use of 3-D since 'Avatar.' The performance documentary takes us inside Bausch's extraordinary dances in a way that nothing else could."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 760 words, 01/13/12
Emanuel Levy, Cinema 24/7: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...intriguing and fascinating... the most personal, intimate, and haunting dance film I have ever seen, including 'The Red Shoes.' "(See all of Emanuel Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 666 words, 09/15/11
A.O. Scott, New York Times: EXCELLENT " 'Pina' is, above all, an act of preservation, a memorial that is also a defiance of mortality -- completely alive in every dimension."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 562 words, 12/23/11
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: OUTSTANDING "Using 3-D was a stroke of genius.... The images captured by the film are deeply scary for their loneliness and pain, and crazily thrilling for the intensity of their joy."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 269 words, 01/13/12
14.9 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Pina's reviews are separated by an average 14.9 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Coverage:Pina's reviews cover 53.1% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 17,811 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 509 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 5 Days After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Pina's reviews on average broke 5 days after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Pina's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
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