When I realized what plot device they were using, I almost gave up on this film. Poor Christine is about to lose her dance studio, that's been in her family, to the big corporation that is tearing everything down, and the guy she meets, Jack, is head of the project, but she doesn't know it. Add to that Jack's existing girlfriend is the powerful boss' daughter. And in the beginning, Jack is a real money-grubbing, dishonest jerk.
The other well-used plot device is that of showing Jack doesn't belong in this world of snobs. But before he can learn that, he needs will learn how to dance so he can show his society-bred girlfriend that he can. So he randomly goes to Christine's studio.
You can probably figure out how most of this is going to work out, but there is one fun thing thrown in - his mother shows up. She is funny. At first you think she is the stereotype meddler, but she turns out to be much better than that.
While most of the dance instruction takes place without music, there are a couple of nice displays of the waltz. Not overly glitzy, but romantic. The only downside is that the same waltz music runs on the soundtrack constantly, even sometimes when no one is dancing.
The acting is good enough. I thought that Jack's change from jerk to nice-guy was too quick and unbelievable. Christine trusts this guy who literally walked in off the street and pours out her troubles to him almost immediately.
***SPOILERS*** Kudos to this movie for an ending that doesn't solve every problem. There's a little twist to save the studio, but many will see it coming.
Addendum after watching again 3 years after first viewing. I remembered one key plot development, but didn't remember the entire movie that well. Between the first time and this time, I watched 4 seasons of Saving Hope in about 2 months. Michelle Norton is quite memorable as something of a hard a** in that series and Christine has many subtle similarities as you might expect being the same actor. In my second viewing, I never saw Christine as quite as soft as I'm sure I did the first time. Even with that, and Jack starting out as such a money grubbing jerk, Norton and McCarthy do develop chemistry.
The other well-used plot device is that of showing Jack doesn't belong in this world of snobs. But before he can learn that, he needs will learn how to dance so he can show his society-bred girlfriend that he can. So he randomly goes to Christine's studio.
You can probably figure out how most of this is going to work out, but there is one fun thing thrown in - his mother shows up. She is funny. At first you think she is the stereotype meddler, but she turns out to be much better than that.
While most of the dance instruction takes place without music, there are a couple of nice displays of the waltz. Not overly glitzy, but romantic. The only downside is that the same waltz music runs on the soundtrack constantly, even sometimes when no one is dancing.
The acting is good enough. I thought that Jack's change from jerk to nice-guy was too quick and unbelievable. Christine trusts this guy who literally walked in off the street and pours out her troubles to him almost immediately.
***SPOILERS*** Kudos to this movie for an ending that doesn't solve every problem. There's a little twist to save the studio, but many will see it coming.
Addendum after watching again 3 years after first viewing. I remembered one key plot development, but didn't remember the entire movie that well. Between the first time and this time, I watched 4 seasons of Saving Hope in about 2 months. Michelle Norton is quite memorable as something of a hard a** in that series and Christine has many subtle similarities as you might expect being the same actor. In my second viewing, I never saw Christine as quite as soft as I'm sure I did the first time. Even with that, and Jack starting out as such a money grubbing jerk, Norton and McCarthy do develop chemistry.