ReviewYuli film review: like a Cuban Billy Elliott, Carlos Acosta biopic recalls the ballet dancer’s struggles and successes
- Dance great stars as himself, directing a homecoming show in Cuba based on his rise to fame from the slums of Havana in ex-dancer Iciar Bollain’s film
- Director anchors Yuli with the overbearing, combative relationship between Acosta and his father, Pedro, and it breezes past pivotal events in dancer’s life
3/5 stars
From poor beginnings in the slums of Havana, Carlos Acosta rose to become one of the most celebrated ballet dancers in the world, and the first black dancer to portray Romeo for The Royal Ballet in London.
In Iciar Bollain’s film Yuli, Acosta stars as himself, directing a homecoming show in Cuba based on his rise to fame. While he rehearses key moments from his childhood with the cast of dancers, the film transports us back in time, reliving his struggles, and eventual successes.
Acosta never wanted to be a dancer. The youngest child in a poor, mixed-race family – the film gives him two older siblings, when in truth he was the youngest of eleven – he wished for little more than to play in the streets with his friends.
He is forced into ballet by his overbearing father, Pedro (Santiago Alfonso), a proud, resentful man who calls his son “Yuli” after a warrior god worshipped by his slave ancestors. Pedro is determined to see Carlos honour his heritage and escape a life of poverty, even if it means never seeing him again.
Spanish-born actress-turned-filmmaker Bollain anchors Yuli with this overbearing, combative relationship between father and son, reducing her film to a Cuban Billy Elliott, albeit with their roles reversed.