The White Crow Parent Guide

While being interrogated about his protégé’s defection to the West, Alexander Pushkin (Ralph Fiennes) explains that he doesn’t think Rudolf Nureyev (Oleg Ivenko) planned to defect. “I think it’s likely he had an explosion of character. That’s who he is.”

The White Crow devotes its two-hour run time to depicting Nureyev’s “explosion of character”. He is deemed a “white crow” - a Russian idiom for a person who is unusual, extraordinary, and different from others. Unusual Nureyev certainly is – born on a train to a peasant woman from the provinces in 1938, he vaults through the Soviet dancing hierarchy to become one of the USSR’s most famous ballet dancers. And then, on a tour of Europe in 1961, Nureyev defects at the Paris airport.

The film begins with a Soviet investigation into the loss of Nureyev, jumps around through the events of his life, and concludes with the tense scene at the airport. And, en route, it illuminates Nureyev’s life and the events and characteristics that put him on the path to life in the West. Nureyev is clearly unsuited to life in a Communist state. Self-confident to the point of arrogance, he is unwilling to sublimate his artistic goals to those of the Soviet bureaucracy, even spitting at one official who insists that he must accept an assignment to a provincial dance company. And his curiosity, his endless thirst for knowledge and experience, cannot be satisfied in a political system that censors what its citizens read and controls where they travel. When Nureyev says, “I want to be free”, his primary point is not political; he is making an artistic statement. His greatest desire is to dance, in any place and in any way he chooses. And a system which stifles that desire is one in which he cannot flourish.

The White Crow by and large does a good job of telling Nureyev’s story. Ukrainian ballet dancer and novice actor, Oleg Ivenko is able to combine balletic ability with enough acting skill to believably portray the great dancer. And the locations and period details are both immersive and enjoyable. But viewers might find the use of rapidly switching flashbacks annoying. And anyone who dislikes subtitles will want to stay away from this film: several scenes are spoken in Russian.

Parents or teachers considering The White Crow for viewing with teens will want to carefully consider the film’s sexual content. When Nureyev injures his foot in a fall, Xenia Pushkin (Chulpan Khamatova), Alexander’s wife, insists on nursing him back to health. While Nureyev is recovering, Xenia seduces him, rubbing his groin and placing his hand on her breast. Nureyev is a reluctant partner from the outset and his unease grows over time. In a comment that parents will find particularly disturbing, Xenia attempts to soothe Nureyev by saying,“You’re only guilty if you choose to be.” On top of this adulterous relationship, Nureyev is also having a same sex relationship with a German dancer, Teja Kremke (Louis Hofmann). One scene involves a post-coital moment in bed, followed by Kremke getting up and displaying full frontal nudity.

The sexual content will doubtless deter viewers looking for a family friendly experience. And that’s an unfortunate choice on the part of director Ralph Fiennes. For although this film is no extraordinary white crow, it’s a perfectly competent biopic that provides an intriguing look at a great artist trapped in a political prison who chooses to fly free.