 Ballroom dancing is sexy. Millions of us enjoyed our weekly dose of Strictly Come Dancing last year, marvelling at the smouldering glances, fancy footwork and high-sequinned drama of the tango and cha cha. Australian director Baz Luhrmann kick-started the trend in 1992 with his fabulously camp fairy-tale Strictly Ballroom. Four years later, Japanese writer-director Masayuki Suo choreographed the box office sensation Shall We Dance? The heart-warming story of a businessman who learns to ballroom dance in secret became a cultural phenomenon in its home country, but struggled to be seen outside of the arthouse circuit in the West. Peter Chelsom's American remake, adapted in broad strokes by Audrey Wells (Under The Tuscan Sun) and set in Chicago, remains largely faithful to Suo's box office sensation but something appears to have been lost in translation. Or rather added. The choreography now is a little too slick and the emotional subtlety of the original, a meditation on Japan's social codes, has been supplanted by brash humour and caricatures. Renowned lawyer John Clark (Richard Gere) seems to have it all: a great job, a beautiful wife (Susan Sarandon), two adorable kids, and impeccably tailored suits. Yet, he feels like there's something amiss. One night, on the train commute home, John nervously signs up for dance classes with teacher Paulina (Jennifer Lopez) at a run-down studio. He gets far more than he bargained for; so too do John's fellow classmates as the amateurs work tirelessly towards a performance at Chicago's biggest dance competition. John is transformed, thrust into a world of passion, camaraderie and music that makes him question his priorities. Wells's screenplay is slow, slow on genuine emotion and quick, quick, slow on sentimentality. Gere and co look like they're having a whale of a time, which ensures the 106 minutes pass quickly. | 
