Bolero
Seen it?1981 | 184 min | Drama, Music
Weeknight Watchearly ratingWhy it’s a Weeknight Watch
With soft box office and little lasting buzz, it's a mixed bag. Fine if it's on; don't plan your night around it.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Made for anyone who loves a strong drama. If you loved tick, tick... BOOM! or Dreamgirls, start here.
- The mood
- Thoughtful and character-driven.
- The pace
- Unhurried and epic, at 3 hr 4 min.
- What might put you off
- It's long: 3 hr 4 min.
- It's in French, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
The film follows four families, with different nationalities (French, German, Russian and American) but with the same passion for music, from the 1930s to the 1960s. The various story lines cross each other time and again in different places and times, with their own theme scores that evolve as time passes. The main event in the film is the Second World War, which throws the stories of the four musical families together and mixes their fates. Although all characters are fictional, many of them are loosely based on historical musical icons (Édith Piaf, Josephine Baker, Herbert von Karajan, Glenn Miller, Rudolf Nureyev, etc.) The Boléro dance sequence at the end brings all the threads together.
How it earned its rating
- CriticsSolid
60% on Rotten Tomatoes
- AudiencesNot counted
Not measured yet: not enough ratings
- AwardsNot counted
No major awards or nominations
- Box office & staying powerBelow par
$24 million worldwide; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactBelow par
About 14K people sought it out in the past year
More like this
tick, tick... BOOM!
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Dreamgirls Saturday SpecialAnother musical drama, and a Saturday Special.
A Complete Unknown
Friday Night FlickAnother drama, and a Friday Night Flick.
A Chorus Line
Sunday Safe BetAnother musical drama, and a safe bet for a quiet night.
TÁR Friday Night FlickAnother critically acclaimed music film.
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Cast & crew
Directed by Claude Lelouch
- Robert HosseinSimon Meyer / Robert Prat
- Nicole GarciaAnne Meyer
- Geraldine ChaplinSuzan / Sara Glenn
- Daniel OlbrychskiKarl Kremer
- Jorge DonnBoris & Sergei Itovitch / Lead Dancer of Boléro
- Rita PoelvoordeTatiana & Tania Itovitch
- Macha MérilMagda Kremer
- Évelyne BouixEvelyne / Edith
- Francis HusterFrancis
- Raymond PellegrinM. Raymond