Synopsis
Two dancers at an elite ballet academy in Paris must compete for a contract to join the highly coveted Opéra National de Paris as they confront their competitive nature, sexual awakenings and how far they would go to win.
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Cast
- Diana SilversKate Sanders
- Kristine FrosethMarine Durand
- Eva LombyGia
- Jacqueline BissetMadame Brunelle
- Solomon GoldingLuc
- Daniel CamargoFelipe
- Caroline GoodallCeline Durand
- Nassim LyesJamal
- Roger BarclayLucien Durand
- Osiel GouneoBenjamin Mouton
Recommendations
- 80
Variety
As Birds of Paradise reveals its (admittedly predictable) secrets one by one, it does so with style and a merited sense of confidence so assertively that even the biggest skeptics of the genre might pause before dismissing it as just another slight YA entry. - 75
IndieWire
Whatever compromises were required of Smith, she holds fast to the soul of a movie that ultimately cares less about how high Kate and Marine can fly than it does the exotic truths they might only be able to learn as they fall. - 70
Screen Rant
Froseth and Silvers keep both of their complicated characters and the bond that lies between them grounded, mixing well with the sensual tone Smith has created. Those looking for a sexy, intriguing drama might be happy to call up Birds of Paradise for some nighttime viewing. - 70
Los Angeles Times
Seth’s cinematography is stunning, meeting the mood of each contrasting moment but set within a cohesive look that gives the film a dreamy, unreal quality. - 67
The Playlist
While the film’s more artistic sequences feel out of place and not entirely thought through, Diana Silvers and Kristine Froseths’ performances make the ballet dram compelling, though not entirely en pointe. - 60
The Guardian
Birds of Paradise, then, settles into a weird, slightly unsettling middle-ground – beautiful yet hollow, intriguing yet distanced, skillfully performed without much of a beating heart. Like its principal dancers, its a portrait of contrasts, though the friction here doesn’t generate much heat. - 50
Movie Nation
The dance sequences, what few there are, have more daring to them than the plot of the picture. The back-stabbing and bonding and breaking down are all so tame that you wonder why they bothered. - 50
The New York Times
Structured around a countdown to the ultimate prize, the story is a soapy slog of sabotage and betrayal. Sex and drugs are as prevalent as pliés, the absence of a likable character as irksome as the constant conniving.
