Freedom in Art A featured film analysis of The White Crow (2018) Written by Elizabeth Coulter1,2,3 Department of English, 2Department of Germanic Languages & Literatures 3 Second-year undergraduate of Victoria College, University of Toronto
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Freedom in Art The main theme of The White Crow is the idea that freedom can be found through art. The film follows Rudolf Nureyev’s determined pursuit for the freedom to be the best of himself which he does through his art: ballet. The subthemes of ‘solitude and selfishness,’ ‘discipline, obligation, and obedience,’ and ‘The West versus The Soviet Union’ with the motif of ‘the train’ playing throughout work together to demonstrate Nureyev’s personal path to freedom.
The Train The motif of the train, mostly in the form of a Trans-Siberian train, is visually presented and referred to throughout the film in connection to Nureyev. From the very first scene of the film, we learn that Nureyev was born on a Trans-Siberian train, a fact which Nureyev reminds us of at the end of the film when he says: “I can live anywhere. Remember, I was born on a train,” suggesting that the train is a representation of movement, as Nureyev moves both physically from the Soviet Union to the West, but also from a poor background to a world famous ballet dancer. An interpretation of the train perhaps more in keeping with what sets Nureyev apart from everyone else is the idea of the train as a symbol of progress. In traditional Russian literature, the train is a symbol of advancement, as Russia lagged behind the West for a long time before rapidly catching up, starting under Peter the Great. As such, the train, a product of industrialization that made movement and the modernization of such a huge country dramatically easier, from a Russian perspective came to represent modernity. In many of the flashbacks of Nureyev as a child there is a train or the young Nureyev plays with a toy one. Upon arriving in Paris, one of the first things Nureyev does is to find a shop where he can acquire a trainset which he later visits to get a trainset of the Trans-Siberian Express. To Nureyev, the train is important to him as a symbol of development and improvement which is what he strives for for himself with his ballet. Screenwriters’ Perspectives Vol. 1 No. 1 2020
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