How the Story of Ballerina Should Be Told

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Once again, I got played by a trailer. The teaser for Ballerina was cut like a deadly waltz—Eve moving with elegance, taking down enemies with a kind of lethal grace that had me instantly hooked.

But the full movie? Kinda like that secondhand Porsche Boxster I bought last year. Looks pretty decent on the outside, but the inside’s a total mess. Ballerina felt like a dance with no soul—flashy moves, zero emotion. There’s action, sure, yet the story was a complete mess.

Let's Talk About What Went Wrong

The film lost me right from the beginning. One glance at the warmly depicted father-daughter playtime and I already knew what was coming. It’s the same tired trope—parent dies heroically to kick off the main character’s journey. Her dad dies saving little Eve, and we’re supposed to be moved. But honestly? I’ve seen this exact scene in so many movies it’s become cinematic wallpaper.

And what really confused me was how little the film actually worked on the whole “ballet” element. The trailer gave me hope that Eve’s fighting style would weave ballet into combat in a way that’s both beautiful and deadly. And yeah, that's what it looks like. But the film never explains why she fights that way. Ballet is a deeply expressive art form, full of pain, discipline, and beauty. (Black Swan knew this!) But here, it’s treated like nothing more than set dressing. What a waste of a unique concept.

Then there’s the whole subplot of sisterhood between Eve and Lena. At first, Lena is set up as this intimidating, almost villainous force. I thought she’d be Eve’s main challenge—the big boss. I was so ready for their showdown. But then? Out of nowhere, they suddenly have a heart-to-heart, “Hey sis!” moment, and Lena gets blown up before she even flexes her full potential. It’s like you’re promised a heavyweight title fight only for the contender to get knocked out by a falling spotlight before the bell even rings. Frustrating.

The biggest letdown had to be the so-called “fight” between Eve and John Wick. The trailer hyped it up like an epic clash between two legends. What we got instead was a half-hearted sparring match that ended with John suddenly “understanding” Eve and joining her side. A supposed showdown turned out to be nothing more than a playhouse scuffle. The marketing totally overhyped it, and the movie didn’t even try to deliver, which completely drained the charm from both characters. 

If I Could Rewrite Ballerina...

Here’s how I’d fix it.

First, let’s talk about Eve and her dad. Instead of killing him off in the first five minutes, how about giving them a complicated relationship? Think Ellie and Joel from The Last of Us Part II. Maybe Eve does something rebellious, they argue, and just when she’s ready to make things right—boom—he’s taken away. That gives her more than just grief, but guilt and regret, which are far more powerful motivations for revenge and growth. That kind of emotional fuel sticks with the audience way more than a generic tragic backstory.

Second: if you’re calling the movie Ballerina, you better make ballet matter. I’d love to see a major assassination take place during an actual ballet performance. Picture this: spotlights, music, dancers twirling—and Eve’s among them, using ballet movements as part of her deadly choreography. A spin becomes a strike. A jump turns into a kill move. Her weapon’s hidden in a prop. That’s how you integrate ballet and action in a way that’s fresh, visually stunning, and actually relevant to the story.

Third: ditch the sister drama. That whole “sisters who fight then reconcile” trope is tired. Instead, make Eve the lone woman in a brutal, male-dominated world of assassins. Let her go head-to-head with people stronger, faster, meaner—and have her earn every inch of respect. That makes her journey more compelling, her victories more satisfying, and her character far more powerful.

And last but not least—give us the showdown we were promised. Don’t just tease it, deliver it. A full-on, gritty battle between Eve and John Wick. Think The Killer by John Woo: both fighters locked in a clash of not just skills, but ideologies. Maybe Eve loses, but she gains John’s respect through sheer grit. That kind of mutual recognition hits way harder than a cheap “I see myself in you” moment. And who knows—maybe they'll team up in the future, not out of convenience, but because they’ve been through hell and survived each other.

At the end of the day, great fight scenes can’t carry a story on their own. A film needs heart. It needs characters we care about, motivations that feel real, and arcs that actually go somewhere. Ballerina had all the right tools—talent, choreography, visuals—but the story is MIA.

And that, in my opinion, is why it fell flat.

In movies, story isn’t just important—it’s everything.

Catch you later for more movie musings!