Shall We Dance, Ms. Lopez?

We shall.
This evening, I had the priveledge of catching a sneak preview of the American re-make of the new Japanese classic, Shall We Dance?. The film stars Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, J. Lo and Stanley Tucci. Please, no moaning and groaning over J. Lo. She happens to be my tabloid weakness. Also, no matter what you may say about her acting, the woman can dance! Richard Gere can also dance - as we learned in Chicago. Maybe the Dalai Lama taught him those smooth moves. Or has Gere moved on to Kabala? Madonna dances well... Either way, Gere is definitely my favorite leading, older man. Plus, Gere and Lo are probably Mr. and Mrs. Best-Arses-In-Hollywood.
Shall We Dance? is the story of a bored accountant, John Clark. Everyday is the same monotony as the day before. He has a great wife, Beverly, (Susan Sarandon) and two normal kids. The man is BORED. Bored stiff. Out of his mind. Personally, if I were an accountant, I would have drilled a hole in my head after a week of work.
One night, he is riding home on the El train in Chicago and sees a lonely looking J. Lo staring out of the window of Miss Mitzi's Dance School. After a few days of watching her stare out the window, he decides to get off the train and waltz his way into the school (har har). He joins a dance class that meets every Wednesday. He is too ashamed to tell his wife. While he is cutting footloose with J. Lo, his wife is becoming suspicious. Understandable, since J. Lo has a way with men - like a Circe.... She lures them (poor Ben) to their destruction. Wait! It is a movie in which J. Lo is not J. Lo. She merely lures John Clark out of his average-man slump.
The rest of the movie unfolds in a fashion that is different than most romantic comedy. It is more of a film about a man coming out of his shell and finding and pursuing his passion than a film about the trials and tribulations of being married. The supporting cast proves to be effective in providing comic relief - especially the amazing Stanley Tucci. Why is he always left to leading roles? Give the buff, bald man a chance to lead, you Hollywood execs, you!
Shall We Dance? is not going to be nominated for any Oscars, unless there is some sort of choreography award they give in the lame non-televised award show. Of course Richard and Susan deliver, and J. Lo sort of delivers, but dances well enough to make-up for lack of acting ability. The film is funny and romantic without being too cheesy. It can run a bit slow at times, so a little patience is required.

FILM VIEWING PROTOCOL
Yes, the previews may scream "chick flick", but I swear the men in the audience were laughing harder than the women! It is definitely a date film, now whether you woul like to see it in the theatre or add it to the Netflix queue in a few months is up to you. Unlike Hero, it is not necessary to view Shall We Dance? in the theatre (but it would make a nice evening out with friends or SOs).
To honor the film's origin, sushi should be consumed as the dinner of choice. During the film, eat the most candy and popcorn possible in order to obtain the Gere and J. Lo booties (we aren't talking cute little socks here). Or as they say in Senegal "grow your jaye fonde". Of course, those buns of steel are maintained by exercise, so while you are inhaling large quantities of popcorn and M&Ms, you may want to do butt squeezing exercises in your seat.

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