The Wasteland Reviewer

The Wasteland Collection: The Red Shoes (1948)

What is one of the most influential films of all time? If you can find a film that so many of the all-time great filmmakers turn to as a mechanism of joy and influence, you know you have found a truly important film. The Archers, a.k.a. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, were a few of the most significant of filmmakers’ favorite filmmakers to ever create film. Their influences extend to the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s with the likes of Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola as well as auteur filmmakers of modern times like Baz Luhrmann. Their storytelling, visual flair, and creative process has become a thing of legend for so many amazing filmmakers for years to come. Their crown jewel and one of Scorsese’s favorite films of all time is The Red Shoes. A creative and meta-adaptation of the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tales about shoes that will make a young woman dance forever. 

What are the most significant elements of The Red Shoes that have stood the test of time? The ballet sequence to end all ballet sequences. For around 15 minutes, Powell & Pressburger craft a bit of pure cinema that could rival any music/dancing sequences in the history of cinema. Casting a true dancer like Moira Shearer in the film was a stroke of genius as she fully embodies the needed dancing skills to make such sequences come to life in such vivid and vibrant ways. This sequence is one of the most impeccably crafted, well-staged, and expertly choreographed sequences you will see. The production design is rich, abstract, and colorful. The costumes and make-up are so vibrant and striking that they wrap the audience in an evocative swaddling of craft. The dance is so beautiful and powerful with Shearer channeling so many emotions and raising them to the roof. When you watch this 15-minute sequence of perfection, you can see where its influence lies. The boxing sequences in Raging Bull draw from the majesty and drama that Powell and Pressburger have created. An American in Paris (and in turn La La Land) draw upon this sequence in their dreamlike and theatrical climaxes. Suspiria and Black Swan draw upon them with their striking visuals and sense of dread. 

What unexpected influence has The Red Shoes had on storytelling? The meta-approach to stories and sequels can be drawn back to films like this. When you take a fairy tale and make a film about the adaptation of said fairy tale while channeling the thematic elements of the source material into this “real world” setting, you have yourself quite the intriguing narrative. Anderson’s original story tells the tale of a young woman whose magic red shoes will not stop dancing and driving her to desperation. Powell & Pressburger’s heroine is driven deeper into her life as a dancer throughout this journey as she shuns the love of a man to chase her dreams of being the greatest of performers. Shearer’s Victoria channels these amazing skills through the performance of a ballet based on “The Red Shoes”. Witnessing this affliction in the “real world” materialize during a performance of this ballet is quite dynamic and engrossing. We see meta-stories like this quite a bit today with some direct drawing lines like Black Swan. Creatives like Wes Craven channeled such storytelling to revitalize his Nightmare on Elm Street franchise and launched THE meta-horror franchise of Scream. Revolutionary in so many ways. 

But what is the element of The Red Shoes that has made one of the biggest influences on film (along with so many of Powell & Pressburger’s films)? The use of color existed before The Red Shoes, but few films have set the standard for visual cinema quite like this. The vibrancy and richness of color is unmatched. It is quite shocking that films rarely look this good today. The 3-strip Technicolor is striking and dynamic. Cinematographer Jack Cardiff was a pioneer of photography as he assisted in crafting the dreamlike and lush colors. Many film musicals channeled this influence with An American in Paris and Singin’ in the Rain delivering vibrant, colorful experiences in the same type of way. Both films are more well known to the masses, but The Red Shoes’ influence begins to grow with filmmakers like Scorsese singing its praises. 

Is this the extent of The Red Shoes’ influences? Absolutely not. But for now, these three major threads create such impact that have rippled through the annals of cinematic history. Few movie musicals would have the same vibrancy and creativity without The Red Shoes. Dynamic and experimental storytelling found a home in the hands of Powell & Pressburger. This is one of the most gorgeous and breathtaking films of all time with its tragic and powerful story that will resonate with you long after those credits roll.