“Pina” is thoroughly hypnotic. Each dance in filmmaker Wim Wenders' new documentary about choreographer Pina Bausch is beautiful – both aesthetically and thematically.
In other words, the film is not only stunning visually but also emotionally. Moreover, each and every one of said dances tells an individual story that takes your breath away. However, tied all together, they make one extremely moving celebration of not only Bausch's life but also life in general.
Wenders and Bausch initially conceived “Pina,” which is now playing at movie theaters throughout the Valley, as a dance film like none seen before – one that would take absolute advantage of new 3D technology to put the viewer deep inside the choreographer's performance pieces.
After Bausch's untimely death in 2009, Wenders continued with the project, turning it into a tribute to the choreographer but still using 3D to take the audience into in her imaginative sets, such as a gliding monorail, a bare stage covered with chairs and a towering man-made waterfall.
In other words, “Pina” is a movie completely comprised of dance sequences that are interwoven with one another with the occasional comment about the choreographer from the men and women who are proud to perform her pieces. However, one need not be a fan of dance in order to enjoy the motion picture.
That is because Wenders makes magnificent use of the visual medium, allowing Bausch's pieces to take the viewer's breath away in both the physical manner in which they are performed and captured on camera and also the metaphorical manner in which they manage to speak to said viewer without any dialogue whatsoever.
Having said that, the movie is not for everybody. One of Bausch dancer's says it best, relaying that the choreographer was a painter and her dancers were her paint. The level to which someone is capable of appreciating art regardless of its form essentially sums up whether or not they are actually going to enjoy “Pina.”
For those that are, there could not be a more exhilarating or more entertaining cinematic spectacle than “Pina.” For those that are not, there are countless other motion pictures now playing that use traditional means to get a rise out of an audience.
“Pina” (PG – 104 minutes) is now playing at movie theaters throughout the Valley. Visit FirstLook.com for specific showtimes and locations.
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