Parents' Guide to

Ballet Shoes

By Nancy Davis Kho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Sisters learn value of love, work, and sacrifice.

Movie PG 2007 84 minutes
Ballet Shoes Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 6+

Based on 4 parent reviews

Ghjjjjj H.
Ghjjjjj H. Adult
June 4, 2017
age 7+

Waste of time-wouldn't recommend

This is a very bad movie. Complete waste of my time. Thought that since Emma Watson was in it it would be good. All the characters were very snobby and did not learn their lesson in the end. At the end of the movie, you might think that the plot if actually going somewhere, but it ends up that everyone gets exactly what they want and no lessons are learned. There is practically no plot and absolutely no character development. Characters are not good role models. I can't believe I wasted 1 and a half hours on this. I lost so many brain cells.
1 person found this helpful.
Mummy Roo
Mummy Roo Adult
January 20, 2014
age 10+

No Positive Role Models Here

This has no real positive message aside rom the sacrifice the 'foster mother' and other adults make. The girls who play are the ballet dancer and actress, are spoilt, obnoxious brats only interested in themselves and their own ambitious strivings. Jealousy rules. My 11 yr old daughter hated it and said she thought they were horrible characters. It could have been a great story, with a bit more sacrifice and generosity on behalf of the young girls.

This title has:

Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 4 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Adapted from the 1937 book of the same title by British author Noel Streatfeild , BALLET SHOES tells the tale of the three Fossil sisters, orphans whose benefactor Great Uncle Matthew (Richard Griffiths) brings to London in the 1930s to be raised by his niece Sylvia (Emelia Fox) and the formidable Nana (Victoria Wood) while he continues his world adventures. As money runs low for the family, Pauline (Emma Watson), Petrova (Yasmin Paige), and Posy (Lucy Boynton) enroll in a performing arts school so that they can get theater jobs to help augment the family income. But each grapples with problems -- Pauline with her ego, Petrova with her ambivalence towards acting compared with her true love of flying, and Pansy with white-hot ambition -- that leave the family's "happy ending" in jeopardy.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (4):
Kids say (20):

Ballet Shoes presents an interesting slice of life that may seem anachronistic to children raised in the era of celebrity worship, and may require some explanation of the term "working actor." As the sisters achieve success on stage and in film, the family's money prospects don't visibly improve; they must still take in boarders and worry about paying the bills between curtain calls. There are also some mixed messages about the value of ambition and hard work: The sister who dreams of landing another steady acting job is accused of being selfish, though it's clear that those jobs are keeping the family afloat. Another sister who shows real talent as a ballerina is chastised when she speaks of her ambition, becomes unsympathetic in her pursuit of it, but then is lauded when she lands a spot with a professional ballet.

The cast of this BBC production is top notch, and fans of Hermione in the Harry Potter movies will probably enjoy seeing Watson in the Pauline role, though her acting is upstaged by that of the girls playing her sisters. Costumes, soundtrack, and sets are as high value as one would expect from a BBC production, bringing 1930s London to life. And scenes of the girls working hard to improve at the performing arts school emphasize that perennial lesson -- that nothing worth achieving comes easily. Ballet Shoes is a fine family film and shows that girl power isn't necessarily a modern invention.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the sacrifices that each family member makes when they begin to run short on money. Which character sacrifices the most? Which of the three sisters do you like the best, and why? What do you think happened to Pauline, Petrova, and Pansy after the movie story ends?

Movie Details

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