Ballet Shoes (2007) (TV)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Sandra Goldbacher

Writers:

Noel Streatfield (novel)
Heidi Thomas (screenplay)

Release Date:

26 December 2007 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Family

Tagline:

Dreams do come true...

Plot:

The story of three orphan girls (Pauline, Petrova, and Posy), adopted by an eccentric explorer, Great Uncle Matthew, and his niece Sylvia, in 1930s London.

Plot Keywords:

London | Dance | 1930s | Talent | Teenage Girl In Ballet Suit

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Emilia Fox	...	Sylvia Brown
Victoria Wood	...	Nana
Emma Watson	...	Pauline Fossil
Yasmin Paige	...	Petrova Fossil
Lucy Boynton	...	Posy Fossil
Richard Griffiths	...	Great Uncle Matthew
Marc Warren	...	Mr. Simpson
Lucy Cohu	...	Theo Dane
Gemma Jones	...	Dr. Jakes
Harriet Walter	...	Dr. Smith
Eileen Atkins	...	Madame Fidolia
Heather Nicol	...	Winifred
Mary Stockley	...	Miss Jay
Teresa Churcher	...	Clara
Skye Bennett	...	Young Sylvia

MPAA:

Rated PG for smoking.

Runtime:

90 min | UK:180 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG | Australia:G | New Zealand:G | Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

Bloomsbury, London, England, UK

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Emilia Fox plays the part of Sylvia Brown in this adaptation. Emilia's mother, Joanna David, played the part of Theo Danes in the 1975 BBC adaptation of the same story.

Quotes:

[Miss Jay meets Pauline and Winifred after their Alice auditions]
Miss Jay: Well done, you two. Right, Pauline is to play Alice
[pauses as girls gasp]
Miss Jay: and Winifred is to be engaged as understudy.
Pauline Fossil: [starts to say] What?
Winifred: [interrupts] When I finished my dance, people clapped! Nobody clapped her, there was just silence!
Miss Jay: Dance is important, but Pauline looks right for Alice.
Winifred: She looks right for everything, she always will!
[looks at Pauline and murmurs]
Winifred: Pretty face... blonde hair...
[...]

Movie Connections:

Remake of "Ballet Shoes" (1975)

A joy to watch

This reminded me of the Sunday afternoon dramas that the BBC used to show when I was young. There was nothing to dislike about this; it had charm, an improbable story, over-the-top characters and a real feel of the period it was set in - the thirties.

There were lots of familiar faces; it was good to see Peter Bowles back on TV and anything with Victoria Wood has to be good. Emma Watston sustained the reputation she built up in the Harry Potter films - she is definitely going to be a big-name actress in the future. My personal accolade of Best Actress, however, went to Yasmin Paige who played Petrova, the girl who wants to be the aviator. You heard it here first folks - she is going to be a famous actress - and I'm not even her mother!