The Company is composed of stories gathered from the dancers, choreographers, and staff of the Joffrey Ballet. Most of the roles are played by company members. While a small subplot relates a love story between Campbell's character and a character played by James Franco, most of the movie focuses on the company as a whole, without any real star or linear plot. The many company stories woven together express the dedication and hard work that dancers must put into their art, although they are seldom rewarded with fame or fortune.
The part of Alberto Antonelli was reportedly inspired by the real life dancer and choreographer Gerald Arpino.
Production
Development
The Company was an idea of Campbell's for a long time—she began her career as a ballet dancer, having been a student at Canada's National Ballet School. Altman was initially reluctant to direct the film, reportedly remarking, "Barbara, I read your script and I don't get it. I don't understand. I don't know what it is. I'm just the wrong guy for this." The director eventually relented, however, and The Company turned out to be his penultimate film. Neve Campbell and James Franco prepared for their roles as restaurant workers by training under Mickaël Blais, the chef of Marche, an upscale bistro in Chicago.
Excerpts of the following dance pieces are included in the film:
Alwin Nikolais's "Tensile Involvement"
Gerald Arpino's "Light Rain", "Suite Saint-Saëns", and "Trinity"
Moses Pendleton's "White Widow"
Robert Desrosiers's "The Blue Snake"
Arthur Saint-Leon's "La Vivandière"
Lar Lubovitch's "My Funny Valentine"
Laura Dean's "Creative Force"
Reception
Box office
The Company was given a limited release on December 25, 2003, earning $93,776 in eleven theaters over its opening weekend. The film ultimately grossed $2,283,914 in North America and $4,117,776 in foreign markets, bringing its worldwide box office total to $6,401,690—well below its estimated $15 million budget.
Critical response
The Company received a mostly positive response from critics. The film currently holds a 71% positive "Fresh" rating on the review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, with the consensus, "Its deliberately unfocused narrative may frustrate some viewers, but The Company finds Altman gracefully applying his distinctive eye to the world of dance." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times praised the film, awarding it stars out of four. Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine similarly declared it the best movie of 2003. Elvis Mitchell of The New York Times called the film "enjoyably lithe and droll" and attributed a "great deal of the film's appeal" to McDowell's performance, while opining that the film "doesn't stick with you as a whole."
