Shall We Dance?

2004

Action / Comedy / Drama / Music / Romance

39
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 57% · 155 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Spilled 57% · 100K ratings
IMDb Rating 6.2/10 10 52109 52.1K

dance jealousy husband wife relationship dancer dancing master musical

Plot summary

A bored estate lawyer spots a beautiful woman in the window of a ballroom dance studio. He secretly starts taking dancing lessons to be near her, and then over time discovers how much he loves dancing. His wife, meanwhile, has hired a private detective to find out why he has started coming home late smelling of perfume.

Director

Peter Chelsom Photo
Peter Chelsom

Top cast

Ja Rule Photo
Ja Rule as Hip Hop Bar Performer
Lisa Durupt Photo
Lisa Durupt as Dancer
Richard Gere Photo
Richard Gere as John Clark
Tamara Hope Photo
Tamara Hope as Jenna Clark
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
701.22 MB
1280*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 46 min
Seeds 5
1.40 GB
1920*1080
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 46 min
Seeds 22

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by jotix100 7 / 10

Lost in translation

One of the worst things anyone can do is to try to tackle something that was made better. Hollywood doesn't seem to learn its lesson at all. In trying to "Americanize" the great Japanese film of the same name, the film makers had no idea what they were getting into. In fact, the original film, directed with great flair by Masoyuki Suo, loses all its charm with this reincarnation.That said, this edition of "Shall we Dance" directed by Peter Chelsom, is not a horrible movie, but the freshness and subtleness of its Japanese model was lost in the translation. While the Japanese version was light and captivating, this adaptation is a bit heavy handed. The editing of the film has a lot to do with out enjoyment, and when the dance sequences in the competition are clumsily handled as it's the case here, one wonders what could the creators have been looking at?The idea of seeing Richard Gere as the man who is intrigued by the dancing he sees as he passes the dance academy, is not as credible as one would have expected to be. Mr. Gere is versatile enough as he already showed with his role in "Chicago". The idea of his character pulling the wool over his wife Beverly's eyes doesn't come across as too credible. It seems to be a cultural difference that a Japanese wife might be less vocal and accepting a straying husband than in this country by an American wife. That's basically the fatal flaw with the movie, in our humble opinion.Jennifer Lopez comes across better. As Paulina she shows a professional attitude toward her students, but her chemistry with Richard Gere doesn't create any sparks. Susan Sarandon, as Beverly, the wife who suspects her husband's betrayal, underplays her role with better results than some of her late screen appearances. Stanley Tucci's character is irritating, at best and Lisa Ann Walters does what she can with Bobbie.Since you probably have seen this version, take a chance and rent the original Japanese film and compare.
Reviewed by tabuno 8 / 10

A Funny, Straight Romantic Comedy

18 October 2004. This much funnier version of Shall We Dance, is a delicious, romantic comedy that doesn't require magical, unbelievable script devices to make this movie work. This movie is compelling for those who believe in second chances and first chances for those who have never taken chances. This movie comes at a good time in American life when our lifestyles are such that we may be coming to that age that for everything we have, we still are empty. I don't imagine that this movie will dazzle any male ego and will probably be restricted to females who can only wish their partners might somehow be so interested. A good date movie for the emotionally sensitive and artistically inclined. This new version based on the Japanese original explores the comic motif well, doesn't take a lot of liberties on the sexual romance angle that so often befalls American movies, and ends up with a definitely American tie off but with a much more realistic and hopefully plausible note than most gushy romance movies. Eight out of Ten Stars.
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