X
  • 2021
  • PG-13
  • Neon
  • 1 h 35 m
  • 2021
  • PG-13
  • Neon
  • 1 h 35 m

Summary Alvin Ailey was a trailblazing pioneer who found salvation through dance. Ailey traces the full contours of this brilliant and enigmatic man whose search for the truth in movement resulted in enduring choreography that centers on the Black American experience with grace, strength, and unparalleled beauty. Told through Ailey’s own words a...

Directed By: Jamila Wignot

  • 2021
  • PG-13
  • Neon
  • 1 h 35 m
  • 2021
  • PG-13
  • Neon
  • 1 h 35 m

Ailey

Metascore Generally Favorable Based on 18 Critic Reviews
77
User Score Available after 4 ratings
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Summary Alvin Ailey was a trailblazing pioneer who found salvation through dance. Ailey traces the full contours of this brilliant and enigmatic man whose search for the truth in movement resulted in enduring choreography that centers on the Black American experience with grace, strength, and unparalleled beauty. Told through Ailey’s own words a...

Directed By: Jamila Wignot

Where to Watch

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 18 Critic Reviews
77
83% Positive
15 Reviews
17% Mixed
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Generally Favorable Based on 18 Critic Reviews
77
83% Positive
15 Reviews
17% Mixed
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
100
Aug 6, 2021
Ailey weds forthright interviews and archival footage of abstract beauty with those sweeping dance sequences to conjure a haunting portrait of what it means to be an artist — from the triumphs to the empty, lonely feeling that you’re never as good as you’re supposed to be.
By Chris Vognar FULL REVIEW
90
Jul 29, 2021
Wignot handles details of the legend’s tumultuous biography with great care, honoring his talents while acknowledging the toll they took on him. But perhaps the greatest gift of this tightly conceived and beautiful doc lies in its appreciation of the divinity of dance.
By Lovia Gyarkye FULL REVIEW
83
Jun 20, 2021
As a personal portrait, “Ailey” is lacking for charming anecdotes or nuggets of wisdom from the artist himself. But a true artist speaks through his work, and it’s appropriate that the revelations in “Ailey” arrive via the dance scenes.
By Jude Dry FULL REVIEW
75
Aug 3, 2021
The film brings a more human understanding of a figure so noteworthy he has earned mononym status for the title. Though we only see him in still images and old performance videos in Ailey, he seems much closer.
FULL REVIEW
70
Jun 20, 2021
Ailey, directed by Jamila Wignot, doesn’t always answer the questions you expect it to. It can be a tantalizing watch, but it’s a poetic and meditative documentary that often skimps on the nuts and bolts.
By Owen Gleiberman FULL REVIEW
67
Aug 5, 2021
The impressionistic documentary Ailey communicates this visionary auteur’s comprehension of the art form: through his own words; through the words of others, most notably, his muse Judith Jamison and fellow choreographer Bill T. Jones; and, with great potency, film clips of archived performances (some of them original performances!) of his work.
By Steve Davis FULL REVIEW
50
Jul 19, 2021
Not even Alvin Ailey’s peers can articulate the innovations and soulfulness of his choreography half as well as his work itself.
By Jake Cole FULL REVIEW

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Details

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Production Company Insignia Films, American Masters Pictures, Artemis Rising Foundation, Black Public Media, Ford Foundation - Just Films, ITVS International, Impact Partners, XTR
Release Date Jul 23, 2021
Duration 1 h 35 m
Rating PG-13
Genres
Website https://insigniafilms.com/Ailey
View All Details

Awards

Sundance Film Festival
• 1 Nomination
São Paulo International Film Festival
• 1 Nomination
Black Reel Awards
• 1 Nomination

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