Wes Anderson has named Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's 1948 classic The Red Shoes as one of his all-time favourite films, praising it during a visit to the Criterion Closet. The pick fits Anderson's well-documented obsession with meticulous visual composition and rich colour, qualities that also run through his own films such as The Royal Tenenbaums and Fantastic Mr Fox, and reflects his broader admiration for European auteurs beyond his oft-cited French New Wave influences.

The Red Shoes, inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, follows ballerina Vicky as she is torn between her lover, who wants her to abandon dance, and her domineering impresario, who insists she cannot marry and succeed. Anderson called it "one of my favourite movies ever made," adding that his daughter also loves it, while noting Powell and Pressburger rank among his favourite filmmakers. He is not alone: Martin Scorsese has long championed the film as one of cinema's greatest, revisits it roughly once a year, made a documentary about the duo, and even owns the original red shoes worn by star Moira Shearer.