2021 Directed by Jamila Wignot
Alvin Ailey was a visionary artist who found salvation through dance. Told in his own words and through the creation of a dance inspired by his life, this immersive portrait follows a man who, when confronted by a world that refused to embrace him, determined to build one that would.
Stephen Ives Geralyn White Dreyfous Regina K. Scully Jenny Raskin Judy Kinberg Sally Jo Fifer Michael Kantor Amanda Pollak Bryn Mooser Roberto Grande Lauren Haber Patty Quillin Kathryn Everett Nancy Blachman Tony Hsieh Mimi Pham Sarah Blachman Emily Blavatnik
USA
Sundance Film Festival, Satellite Screenings
USA
Tribeca Film Festival
USAPG-13
UK12A
USAPG-13
USA
USA
UK12
UK
USA
"How important is that to you? To say 'through my movement.... through my body... I am me.'" -Choreographer (sorry didn't get her name)
- 2021 Ranked: boxd.it/aL2Ys
- Sundance 2021 Ranked: boxd.it/b1NDo
Powerful.
All I knew was that Alvin Ailey was an important dancer and this film made me care about him and develop a deeper appreciation for him and honestly a deeper appreciation for dance in general. There is a real flowy, dancey quality to the direction of the film that makes you feel calm and engaged that I really love. The footage of the dance is wonderful but the voluminous archival footage of early black lives in America is an important and rewarding contribution. I love that this…
this is not just a film about dance or a dancer, it's a human story, powerful, touching: it opens a window on ailey’s life, on the choices and the difficulties of a boy whose talent is a blessing and a curse in the same time. scene after scene we feel like it was our, the dedication, the sacrifice, the pressure to achieve success. his story is remarkable and inspiring, one to be shared over and over again
I danced for a while when I was younger and I always loved to learn the history of dance and Mr. Alvin Ailey has always always held a special place in my heart. Beyond innovative and the father of modern dance. This documentary does a great job in educating its audience about Ailey but overall I think it could’ve done some things much better. Loved all of the archival footage of his famous dances. Revelations is so special and I hope to see it performed by the Ailey Dance Company one day!
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL - Film #34
Alvin Ailey (1931 - 1989) always wanted to be a dancer, but he'd get made fun of as a boy. He was a dancer, director, choreographer, and activist, but he didn't like to be pinned down as a choreographer. The documentary has a chilling rendition of "Wade in the Water" as well as a heartfelt introduction from actress Cicely Tyson, whose recent passing made her inclusion even more meaningful.
Acquired by Neon at Sundance
☆"This was our march to freedom."☆
I very much wish this was my thing. But it's not my thing. If this is your thing, cool, you might like this thing. Though I did not, because this thing is not my thing.
If this is your thing -- okay I'll stop now -- then you should thank PBS and its American Masters series that it's now available to watch for free at this link for a limited time. Please support public media by donating here.
Director Jamila Wignot brings the story of the namesake artist in Ailey, dancer and choreographer Alvin Ailey, founder of the eponymous American Dance Theater in 1958 at age 27. Incorporating audio recordings never previously released by…
Not a strong doc but as a former black child with extremely black parents Alvin Ailey looms large. Revelations was the first live performance I remember seeing and even though I haven’t thought about it in forever, it all came back very viscerally during this film and I cried (many times). What an extraordinary person he was! Best of the best.
A respectable if not surface level, safe look into one of dancings more important figures.
Ailey avoids the hardest moments and steers into inspirational and hopeful emotions head first.
We understand that talent and work that Ailey had to endure but we don’t get to know him very much.
There’s some good interviews here and some pretty awesome dance footage of the day, as an introduction it works OK enough.
My first real disappointment at Sundance. I might write it off to festival fatigue. But watching assembled footage without clarity on whether or not some of the childhood footage was authentic or not gave me questions in places that the film attempted to provide answers. There's no doubt Alvin Ailey was an incredible talent, I think more than anything my own fatigue and expectations got in the way here.
Missed it at Sundance so I'm glad I could catch it after it got acquired by Neon. Definitely a solid doc. I feel bad that I hadn't heard of Ailey before, though I'm ignorant of the dance world in general, so this is great for awareness. Frankly, it made me excited for Barry Jenkins' planned biopic. He'll nail it. They should cast Colman Domingo as Ailey, that'd be a guaranteed Oscar. You heard it here first.
As humans we spend our lives trying to communicate ourselves — our emotions and our histories and the histories of our communities — in so many different ways. Alvin Ailey spoke the universal language of dance fluently, elegantly communicating with us through the body. He helped so many Black people see ourselves and our histories on stage. He showed us that our ancestors live in the movement of our limbs, in the sounds of our voices, in the art we make alone and together. But it was never enough.
This movie was a spiritual experience. It reminded me of how beautiful and painful it is to be alive and human, of always having a part of yourself that can’t be fully expressed.
Sundance ‘21 #5
Feels very long, but aside from that issue it's an outstanding portrait of an American legend. All the more legendary, mind you, for his resistance to being held up as exceptional, when what he really wanted was an elevation of all dance, of all dancers, of all creatives, of all people.
Thankfully, rather than lean into what too many documentaries opt for, this one steers clear of hagiography, and presents a document just as interested in Ailey as in the company - in multiple senses of the word - that he gathered and inspired. The Black joy on display, of all shapes, types, and sizes, was magnificent.
I wish it moved with a more engaging pace and rhythm (ironic, given its focus), but this is certainly a well-made, important piece of modern documentary film.
Just a superb documentary. The main thing documentaries about art and artists need to do is convince you that they are a great artist worth documenting, and the best way to do that is just show their art. And this film certainly does that. So much of this is watching Ailey's choreography and the ballets and it's all utterly superb. And the way it juxtaposes that choreography with his life is truly amazing. Yes, most documentaries do that, but damn this is something else. And I really loved how it used the contemporary Alvin Ailey American Dance School rehearsing for a production about Ailey as a framing device.
My only complaint is that this wasn't longer. It felt a little rushed, especially at the end, and I feel like there's probably enough material to make a whole documentary miniseries about Ailey. But, focusing on what we got, it's truly something to behold. Watch it if you can, please.
