Part performance art, part installation art, Pina stretches what you know about modern dance and the settings it is performed under. You will be amazed by the chorography and the williness of the dancers to excute her movements. You will need to put the DVD on subtitles to understand what the dancers say about Pina (all but one are non English speakers) but even without the subtittles, you will be transfixed.

Pretentious Euro-schmerz: "Woe is me, so much I suffer. I'm so 'allein'!" Pina herself, judging by the scant few minutes she's on the screen, was an electrifying performer, but her followers come off as distinctly lower caliber. It's notoriously difficult to transfer the vitality of dance to the screen, and here I don't think even Wenders fully succeeds. Also, he could have provided more of an introduction for non-specialists. The music, on the other hand, is very worth while; so skip this and get the music CD instead. P.S.: The New York "Times" dance critic gave this ensemble a "MISS" grade in its New York appearance this winter.

I really loved this. I have always enjoyed wim's work, his style is my style, but way more current. ART is great because everyone who experience it in different ways, but they always are affected,,,GOOD OR BAD. I wish I could have seen this on the big screen and in 3D. I am sure that is the "best" to experience it. The music is exceptional and move me in a many joyful ways. I actual watch it 1st with no description narrative from wim. then watch a 2nd time with wim's narrative which really added a depth I didn't notice the 1st viewing. I found this art experience a very spiritual one and look forward to many more viewing.

[Disclaimer: I'm no expert on dance, and I saw this not as a video, but on the big screen at the Pickford Film Center.] I don't always have the patients for "art-anguish" if it doesn't feel substantial. This did, both in the motion of the dance and its economy. I never felt like it got too artsy-fartsy. There are even some moments of whimsical humor thrown in there. Throw in the various settings around the town where it was filmed (Wuppertal, Germany I believe) and it become much more interesting than just another performance on a spotlighted stage. Although I wasn't thinking about the cinematography at the time, the settings worked well and complemented the choreography. I enjoyed and appreciated this and recommend it to those who are curious.

I watched the first 15 minutes and gave up on it. I didn't get it, and found it obscure and dark.

Pretty much all experimental art comes across as pretentious when when you can't relate to it. Everything about this documentary is innovative. They way it was shot was bleeding edge at the time (this shown in detail in the extras). The score is diverse and contemporary. The choreography is a collection of the life's work of one of the most innovative 20th century artists in any medium. Wim Wenders (largely considered on of the most visually compelling living film makers) contemplated how to make this movie in a way that would do Pina's work justice for 20 years. The movie is it's own work of art. The amount of collaboration necessary to pull this of is huge - all detailed in the extras. As a film maker and visual artist I feel this is in the top handful of art documentaries ever made.

Director Wim Wender did a great job in bringing Pina's dancing to the big screen. This is a great documentary for lovers of modern dance. However, being modern dance, many performances are very abtract and personal. It may not be everyone's cup of tea. I personally failed to understand or enjoy some of the pieces.

Lovers of dance may find this film to be Oscar nomination worthy - I certainly did not. I found it to be pretentious and overall painful to watch. While I am not a huge fan of interpretive dance, I was hoping the 3-D element would bring something to the stage that would be at least palatable...nope. I have no idea why the filmmakers thought 3-D was even necessary. If you lean more towards the artsy-fartsy type and for whatever reason happen to have a 3-D home theatre set-up (not sure if those two mix) then this is the film for you...otherwise stay clear!!!