Director:
Peter Chelsom

Cast:
Richard Gere
Jennifer Lopez
Susan Sarandon
Stanley Tucci

Official URL:

http://www.miramax.com

Country: USA
Rating: PG
Studio Name: Miramax Pictures
Running Time: 0 hr 89 mins
Release Date: October 15, 2004

Critics's Rating:
(2 Reels) 

October 15, 2004

By Veronica Mixon

Frankly, I was disappointed with the American remake of a charming 1996 Japanese film called Shall We Dance. It was a beautiful little gem about Japanese cultural repression i.e., concerning male behavior in that conservative society that stresses conformity. Of course, American men have some peculiar issues of their own when it comes to correct male behavior but the filmmakers never address them in Shall We Dance and they throw away a big comic opportunity. Instead, they hide a bored, slightly depressed middle-age lawyer's curiosity with a beautiful young woman in a weak plot.

Richard Gere (Chicago and Mr. T and the Women) stars as the lawyer, John, who becomes enchanted by the sad beauty of Jennifer Lopez as she stands in the window of a dance studio. He watches her for several days from his train window on his way home from the office and one evening, he gets off the train and goes up to the studio. Embarrassed by his spontaneous action, he signs up for ballroom dance lessons and discovers that Paulina (Lopez) is neither available nor interested in him. Instead, he's drawn into friendships with an eclectic set of students at the small studio. John's always solving other people's problems and while he adores his wife, Beverly (Susan Sarandon The Banger Sisters), John doesn't have anything special for himself. The ballroom dancing allows him to express something personal and ultimately brings a certain satisfaction. Nevertheless, he hides the dancing from his wife, who becomes suspicious and hires a private detective to trail him.

Director Peter Chelsom, who directed the messy but mildly enjoyable Town and Country, loves producing romances with mature couples and there is definitely an audience for this genre despite Hollywood's overwhelming interest in youth. The problem with Chelsom's films is that they aren't very engaging. He uses tired romantic antics that don't often work with people who are well past their twenties. What's wrong with poking fun at a man who becomes interested in ballroom dancing? The other students are a riot. Vern (Omar Miller 8 Mile) is a sweet, clumsy big guy and Chic (Bobby Cannavale The Station Agent), a cute nervous guy, and both want to attract the opposite sex. Stanley Tucci (Maid in Manhattan) plays Link, a colleague from John's office, who has a secret life as a ballroom dancer who loves to perform in flashy costumes. The only dancer partner available for all of these men is the man-eater, Bobbie (Lisa Ann Walter "Bruce Almighty") who happens to be an exceptional tango dancer and everyone is encouraged by the wise owner of the studio, Miss Mitzi(Anita Gillette). These characters antics on the dance floor are funny and do provide some laughs.

However, there is no chemistry between Gere and Lopez even when they perform an elegant dance. In face, Lopez is waste as a heart-broken woman who yearns for her former partner. Usually, Jennifer Lopez, who has appeared in Maid in Manhattan and The Wedding Planner, presents herself beautifully but in this film, she's just dull. Shall We Dance should have been an enchanting love story but it falls flat.

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