Spoilers for “Pretty Lethal” ahead.
Director Vicky Jewson’s killer-ballerina thriller “Pretty Lethal” was released on March 25 on Prime Video after an exclusive premiere at South by Southwest Film & TV Festival. With an 88-minute runtime, the film follows five ballerinas who don’t like each other very much and their dance instructor going on a trip to Budapest for a prestigious dance competition, when their bus breaks down in a forest. Wet, tired and panicked, the group makes their way to an inn, where their instructor is shot and killed the night before their competition. Bones, Princess, Grace, Chloe and Zoe (Maddie Ziegler, Lana Condor, Avantika Vandanapu, Millicent Simmonds and Iris Apatow) are now stranded — and being witnesses to the crime they must fight off attackers, who find it most convenient to dispose of the dancers, in order to escape.
Although the concept of the movie isn’t completely realistic, the way the events unfold is believable — notably, the progression of the dancers from being completely terrified to aggressive and desperate. In the beginning, they are shocked, confused and naive, with Princess convinced the police would arrive to help, Grace drugged and Zoe unaware of the danger in the bathroom. The natural progression of events and the added details work to convince audiences that the events of the film are probable.
Early on, Ziegler’s character is shown to be more rebellious — with her septum piercing and attitude, Bones is shown to be rougher than a stereotypical ballerina. Ziegler is able to balance Bones’ grief and survival instincts in a realistic way, which enhances the film. At the death of her dance instructor, Bones’ face drops and focuses only on the dead body until she jerks with the realization that she too is in danger. Ziegler’s portrayal is more than convincing through her usage of dance skills in fight scenes. Bones doesn’t overpower men who are depicted to be taller and stronger than her, and instead uses her flexibility, adrenaline and the attackers’ ignorance to her advantage. As the dancers take down each man one after another, they incorporate new moves and parts of their dance routine, showing why they were set to perform in Budapest to begin with.
Furthermore, every aspect of “Pretty Lethal” balances beauty and gore, making for incredibly interesting visuals. Fight scenes have the dancers utilizing items they have in their dance bags, such as when the women follow Bones’ lead and stick blades in their pointe shoes, allowing them to dance and simultaneously cut the men down. In another scene, they use small scissors, used to alter their pointe shoes, to stab out the attackers’ eyes. The cinematography is smooth and continuous in capturing the ballerinas’ movements following Bones as she performs an fouetté as she slices a man’s neck.
“Pretty Lethal’s” usage of color adds a lot to the film’s campiness. The film begins with more neutral colors in the dance studio and the forest, the second they enter the inn, the lighting changes to evoke an uncomfortable mood. Everything feels cold and sticky, with warm greens and blues which contrast the neon pink and red blood, and along with lack of natural light, everything feels more constrained and claustrophobic. The pure white ballet dresses are stained in blood and dirt by the end of the film, making the dancers blend into the wreckage in the inn. Sound is used just as intentionally — Zoe is deaf, and the film blocks out all noise when following her. Overly theatrical music heightens tension and draws attention to the movements of the dancers. Each blow the ballerinas inflict is a performance, and the music reinforces that.
As engaging as “Pretty Lethal” was, the fast-paced, action-forward plot left some characters underdeveloped. Other than Bones, the other dancers are reduced to being characterized by a few traits — Princess being a spoiled rich girl and Grace being insanely religious. Although it doesn’t completely hurt the plot, it makes the group coming together at the height of the action less satisfying because audiences don’t really learn much about their dynamic. Princess comes back to rescue Bones after she fails to escape with the rest, showing how this violent experience and seeing her dance instructor get dismembered led to a shared bond, but their relationship isn’t expanded upon.
This flaw mainly weakens the characterization of Uma Thurman’s character Devora Kasimer, who owns the inn. Once an aspiring ballerina, Kasimer had her dreams crushed after a mobster shot her leg off because of her father’s debts. Decades later, the mobster’s son shoots the ballet instructor, which kicks off the movie’s events — and amongst the chaos, Kasimer finds her opportunity for revenge. But for a character with such an interesting backstory, the film waits until the very end to reveal anything substantial. Only through dialogue the film tries to hint at her backstory but with her final actions allowing for the dancers to have the opportunities she was robbed of her involvement leading up to that make her character feel flat. Kasimer barely interacts with the ballerinas, and only showcases her dismissive attitude towards the mobster’s son.
Since the movie centers the physical strength of the ballerinas, it unfortunately defaults to dialogue that repeatedly and explicitly reiterates the premise of the film. Near the end where Bones is has her toes nails ripped off, lines like “I put a smile on my face and I dance, Cause I’m a balle-f—ing-rina” that take away from the power of watching these dancers take on torture and violence — the film could have expressed the same themes without repetitive dialogue.
The big final fight scene encapsulates everything about the film, showcasing the ballerinas’ dance abilities and their determination to overpower anyone who stands in their way. To ward off the attackers, the women perform parts of the choreography they learned for the competition, using various positions to their advantage. It’s mesmerizing to see them so light on their feet, each movement precise. With its striking colors and entrancing fight scenes making up for the cringe elements, “Pretty Lethal” is a fun watch for audiences looking for action, with the ballerinas protrayed as both beautiful and deadly.
RATING: 3.5/5
