--- title: "The Red Shoes" year: 1948 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-red-shoes" fi1m_id: "the-red-shoes" imdb_id: "tt0040725" tmdb_id: 19542 wikidata_id: "Q625780" fi1m_score: 92 critics_score: 84 critics_reviews: 9 published: "2026-09-12" updated: "2026-09-18T08:37:57.405994+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The Red Shoes (1948) Directed by Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger · 2h 13m · MPA NR · Drama, Romance ## Identity The Red Shoes - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/the-red-shoes - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** the-red-shoes - **IMDb ID:** tt0040725 - **TMDB ID:** 19542 - **Wikidata ID:** Q625780 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040725/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/19542, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q625780 **Fi1m score: 92** · Critics 84 from 9 reviews *In a sentence:* The dancing is magnificent; someone should still have a word with the management > Powell and Pressburger make a dancer’s ambition feel urgent, seductive and dangerous. We would recommend *The Red Shoes* to anyone, despite dialogue that occasionally sounds too pleased with its own seriousness. ## Synopsis Victoria Page (Moira Shearer) is a ballerina whose ambitions place her under the influence of ballet producer Boris Lermontov (Anton Walbrook). Lermontov’s devotion to art leaves little room for competing loyalties, and Victoria finds herself caught between dancing and love. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger follow her through a ballet world in which professional success and personal happiness become increasingly difficult to reconcile. The backstage drama includes a central ballet that gives shape to the dancer’s private fears and desires. Marius Goring plays Julian Craster, with Robert Helpmann as Ivan Boleslawsky and Léonide Massine as Grischa Ljubov. ## Review The difficulty with films about artistic obsession is getting us to believe that the work deserves so much upheaval. *The Red Shoes* clears that hurdle whenever Moira Shearer dances, and we would happily recommend it to someone who has never cared for ballet. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger take Victoria Page’s ambition seriously without making her producer’s demands seem reasonable. They also give the dancing enough time to explain why she might submit to them. The trouble comes when the characters have to explain the same things in words. Anton Walbrook makes Boris Lermontov’s devotion to ballet difficult to dismiss. A merely bullying producer would make Victoria’s predicament too easy; Walbrook gives him enough conviction that we understand the appeal of being taken seriously by him. His possessiveness becomes more alarming because the devotion is persuasive. Shearer keeps Victoria from disappearing beneath his opinions, and her assurance as a dancer is essential: we believe that she has something worth protecting before the dialogue tells us how much it matters. Jack Cardiff’s Technicolor photography gives the ballet’s artificial world colour strong enough to hold our attention on its own. Production designer Hein Heckroth supplies settings that can escape the practical limits of a stage, making the passage into fantasy seem inviting before it becomes unsettling. Heckroth also designs the costumes, and their place within those settings feels carefully judged. The visual extravagance helps us understand the attraction of Lermontov’s world. The central ballet goes further, letting the performance show Victoria’s inner life rather than merely displaying her skill. We were frightened by it, because the dancing stays precise while the space around the dancer becomes increasingly unreal. Reginald Mills’s editing makes those changes feel continuous, so we follow the movement instead of stopping to work out how one setting has become another. Brian Easdale’s score gives the passage its musical coherence without making it feel safe. It is a sustained piece of storytelling through dance, and Shearer keeps it human even when the surroundings cease to be. The dialogue is the reservation. Powell and Pressburger occasionally give their characters declarations about art that sound too grand for conversation, particularly when the dancing has already made the point. Marius Goring’s Julian Craster has a harder time holding our attention beside Lermontov, and the romantic scenes can feel constrained by the need to put Victoria’s choice into words. Goring keeps the personal stakes clear, but we sometimes want the film to let Shearer move again. In the backstage genre, a performance often serves as the reward for getting through the quarrels. Here it makes the quarrels harder to dismiss, because we have seen what all that discipline can produce. The film takes seriously the frightening prospect of giving another person authority over something we need to do. Walbrook’s conviction is essential to that idea, but it is Shearer’s dancing that makes us understand the temptation. Give it an uninterrupted evening and a screen large enough to follow Shearer’s dancing. There is no need to arrive knowing anything about ballet. The other jobs can wait until the dancing is finished. *Fi1m score 92, published 12 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics respond warmly to The Red Shoes, with praise concentrated on its Technicolor photography, music, production design and dancing. The central ballet sequence is the clearest point of agreement: the reviews admire how it turns a stage performance into a surreal expression of the ballerina’s inner life. Moira Shearer’s performance draws particular praise, while the conflict between artistic ambition and personal happiness gives the film a seriousness that many find compelling rather than forbidding. Reservations concern the drama surrounding the dancing, though the spread is largely positive with one marked dissent. Variety finds the opening hour a commonplace backstage melodrama before the ballet transforms it. The New Yorker goes further, admiring Shearer and finding the ballet interesting but judging the whole unstimulating, with excessive length, inflated dialogue about art and unflattering colour. Most critics instead see the visual richness and obsessive emotions as central to the film’s force. ## Straight answers **Is The Red Shoes worth watching?** *The Red Shoes* is worth watching for almost anyone, ballet enthusiast or not, and we scored it 92. Moira Shearer's dancing and Jack Cardiff's Technicolor make Victoria Page's ambition feel urgent and dangerous, and the central ballet frightened us. The reservation is dialogue that occasionally sounds too pleased with its own seriousness, particularly once the dancing has already made the point. **How long is The Red Shoes, and what is it rated?** *The Red Shoes* runs 2h 13m and is rated NR by the MPA in the US. It is a drama and romance film. **Where can I watch The Red Shoes in the US?** *The Red Shoes* is streaming on HBO Max, The Roku Channel, Tubi, Pluto TV and Amazon Prime Video in the US, and it is also available to rent from Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video from $3.99. It leaves HBO Max on 30 September. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How does The Red Shoes compare to All That Jazz?** *The Red Shoes* is the warmer and more inviting of the two, while [*All That Jazz*](https://film.one/film/all-that-jazz) is the harsher and harder to like. Powell and Pressburger let the dancing explain why a performer might submit to a possessive producer; Fosse shows the cost of that life from inside a showman's exhausted body. Start with *The Red Shoes* if you want seduction, *All That Jazz* if you want the bill. **What should I watch after The Red Shoes?** After *The Red Shoes*, try [*The Young Girls of Rochefort*](https://film.one/film/the-young-girls-of-rochefort) (1967, Fi1m 84): For colour, choreography and performers whose feelings need more room than conversation. Then [*All That Jazz*](https://film.one/film/all-that-jazz) (1979, Fi1m 84): An exacting showman turns rehearsals into a study of work consuming a life; and [*The Piano*](https://film.one/film/the-piano) (1993, Fi1m 88): For another woman whose music matters more than the men around her understand. ### Reviews we read (11) - **The Times**, Kevin Maher (★★★★★): The critic calls it one of the most influential movies in history and a perfect work of art about the price of success, with visual references echoed by later directors. It praises the story of ambition and its personal costs through the ballerina's journey. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/the-red-shoes-1948-film-review-a-perfect-work-of-art-about-the-price-of-success-fddg7l9c6) - **Empire**, David Parkinson (90/100, inferred): The critic hails the film as a luminous masterpiece for its glorious Technicolor glamour and refinement of the backstage musical form. He singles out the ravishing visuals, intense performances, and impressive technical credits including choreography, score, and production design. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/red-shoes-review/) - **Slant Magazine** (90/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's sensual power and vivid Technicolor as a prime example of the erotics of art, highlighting its lyrical structure and the groundbreaking subjective ballet sequence. The review celebrates the masterpiece's exploration of art versus life as a sublime achievement of classical filmmaking. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/the-red-shoes-4k-review-michael-powell-emeric-pressburger-criterion/) - **The Guardian**, Philip French (90/100, inferred): The critic hails the restored 1948 classic as blazing on screen, profoundly serious yet erotic, as a parable of art's destructive demands on the artist. The central ballet sequence stands out as a masterful, surreal dramatisation of inner longings comparable to Hitchcock. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/dec/10/the-red-shoes-film-review) - **The Telegraph**, George Campbell Dixon (75/100, inferred): The original release review finds the film captivating in its remote ballet world and enchanting colour, with the Andersen-inspired ballet sequence a highlight thanks to strong performances and music. It notes the painful ending and lack of humour as minor drawbacks outweighed by visual beauty and charm. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/dance/11245710/red-shoes-1948-film-review.html) - **The New Yorker**, John McCarten (40/100, inferred): McCarten finds the embedded ballet sequence interesting and praises Moira Shearer as the ballerina, but deems the picture as a whole unstimulating due to its dialogue and length. He criticizes the extravagant talk about art and the dismal complexion given by the color. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1948/10/23/1948-10-23-107-tny-cards-000026388) - **The New York Times**, Bosley Crowther: Crowther calls it one of the most beautifully and dreamily presented films about ballet, a flowing romantic color picture with rich settings, evocative music, and good dancing combined in a smooth, rhythmic creation. He singles out Moira Shearer for her accomplished and radiant performance as the lead ballerina. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1948/10/23/archives/the-screen-in-review-the-red-shoes-a-british-film-about-the-ballet.html) - **Variety**: The review notes that the first 60 minutes are a commonplace backstage melodrama, but the superb ballet sequence based on the Hans Andersen tale is staged with breathtaking beauty, color, artistry, and imagination. It praises the three principal dancers as beyond criticism and highlights the Technicolor, locations, and musical score. [Read](https://variety.com/1947/film/reviews/the-red-shoes-1200415736/) - **The Skinny**, Juliet Buchan (★★★★★): The critic praises this re-release of the 1948 classic as a dark fairytale about a ballerina torn between art and love. She singles out the sublime ballet sequence and the compelling performance of the obsessive producer Lermontov. [Read](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/the-red-shoes) - **Consequence** (90/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a masterpiece about the intersections of art, life, and obsession, describing it as a terrifying and visually stunning work that urges viewers to die for art. They single out the hallucinatory central ballet sequence as one of the greatest ever committed to film. [Read](https://consequence.net/2016/02/the-red-shoes-and-the-beauty-of-obsession/) - **Eye for Film**, Jennie Kermode (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's focus on the lead character's internal conflict between art and personal happiness, along with its stunning visuals and innovative dance sequences. The remastered version remains highly compelling and watchable decades later. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-red-shoes-film-review-by-jennie-kermode) ## Details - **Director:** Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger - **Director:** Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger - **Writer:** Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell - **Story:** Emeric Pressburger - **Cinematography:** Jack Cardiff - **Editor:** Reginald Mills - **Music:** Brian Easdale - **Production design:** Hein Heckroth - **Costume design:** Hein Heckroth - **Producer:** Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger - **Cast:** Anton Walbrook as Boris Lermontov; Marius Goring as Julian Craster; Moira Shearer as Victoria Page; Robert Helpmann as Ivan Boleslawsky; Léonide Massine as Grischa Ljubov; Albert Bassermann as Sergei Ratov; Ludmilla Tchérina as Irina Boronskaja; Esmond Knight as Livy - **Runtime:** 2h 13m - **Certificate (MPA):** NR - **Release (the US):** 22 October 1948 - **Genres:** Drama, Romance - **Also in:** [Best Picture winners](https://film.one/collections/oscar-best-picture.md) (Nominee, 1948); [The classics, without the homework](https://film.one/collections/classics-without-the-homework.md) - **Budget:** $500,000 - **Box office:** $10 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mHgGU4AbOA ## Where to watch in the US - HBO Max: streaming, leaving 2026-09-30 - The Roku Channel: free, hd - Tubi: free, hd - Pluto TV: free - The Roku Channel: add-on, hd - Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd - Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: rent $5.99, sd - Apple TV: buy $14.99, sd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $19.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-12.* Also available in: CA, DK, ES, FI, GB, IE, NO, NZ, PH, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Academy Awards 1949: Best Film Editing (nominated); Best Picture (nominated); Best Story (nominated); Best Art Direction, Color (won); Best Original Dramatic or Comedy Score (won) ## If you liked this - *The Tales of Hoffmann* (1951): Powell and Pressburger give music and dance still more freedom from stage-bound realism - *The Young Girls of Rochefort* (1967), Fi1m 84: For colour, choreography and performers whose feelings need more room than conversation — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-young-girls-of-rochefort.md) - *All That Jazz* (1979), Fi1m 84: An exacting showman turns rehearsals into a study of work consuming a life — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/all-that-jazz.md) - *The Piano* (1993), Fi1m 88: For another woman whose music matters more than the men around her understand — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-piano.md) - *Black Swan* (2010), Fi1m 82: Another dancer under pressure, with the ballet world’s anxieties pushed into horror — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/black-swan.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/the-red-shoes