Review of Pina (2011) by Mike M — 20 Apr 2011

Achieves its best effects transplanting these pieces from the stage to the sundappled forests, traffic islands and industrial zones of Pina's native Wuppertal, in the process opening up some hugely controlled and mysterious gestures to the wider world, and testing the thesis that the emotions this choreography conveys are in fact more universal than perhaps first assumed.

Yet the pure feeling/sensation in Bausch's work only gets Wenders' film so far, the dancers' airy appraisals of their mentor failing to contribute to any deeper understanding of these spectacles.

.. It's a nice try, and an undeniably pretty example of blue riband arthouse cinema, but I emerged unconverted, my feet welded firmly to the ground.