The Specter of the Rose on AllMovie

Ben Hecht wrote and directed this bizarre comedy/suspense/dance film, featuring a discordant musical score by George Antheil. The film concerns a love affair between young, innocent ballerina Haidi (Viola Essen) and her psychotic genius dance partner Andre Sanine (Ivan Kirov). The crux of the tale concerns whether the newly married dance team will last through a performance of the Spectre of the Rose ballet -- since the ballet sets Andre's brain into a murderous rage that compels Andre to plunge a knife into his new wife. Also on hand for the festivities is Judith Anderson as La Sylph (an aging ballerina who runs a ballet academy), Lionel Stander as Lionel Gans (a frustrated poet), and Michael Chekhov as Max Polikoff (a pre-politically correct gay ballet impresario).