Shall We Dance? (PG) 7.0

Shall We Dance? (1996) Shall we ダンス?: A successful but unhappy Japanese accountant finds the missing passion in his life when he begins to secretly take ballroom dance lessons. (7.6)

Director: Masayuki Suo
Writer: Masayuki Suo
Stars: Kôji Yakusho, Tamiyo Kusakari, Naoto Takenaka

On the surface, the initial story is quite simple. A guy who sees a pretty dance instructor goes into the studio in the hope of meeting her, but as the story unfolds, we see layer after layer of emotional drama. The drama concern not just the two main characters but most of the supporting characters as well. I think, those who like ballroom dancing will find this quite thrilling, I just found the dance sequences entertaining. We also see the juxtaposition of the traditional Japanese culture and the necessarily Western aspects of ballroom dancing. It is quite intriguing. My Rating: 7.0