Victoria Page is poised to become a prima ballerina, but earns ballet impressario Boris Lermontov’s scorn when she falls in love with Julian Craster, composer of “The Red Shoes,” the ballet Lermontov is staging to showcase her talents.

Dazzling, rapturous, unforgettable—now this is what such adjectives should be saved for. Powell and Pressburger’s ’40s ballet film is a ravishing Technicolor masterpiece, an essential cinematic landmark (its biggest fans: Martin Scorsese!), and a magical, timeless parable of the life of an artist.