Film Reviews

Mad Hot Ballroom

• Rating:
• Director: Marilyn Agrelo.
• Starring: Allison Sheniak, Alex Tchassov, Yomaira Reynoso.
• Details: US / 105mins / (U).

Marilyn Argelo's documentary follows three New York public schools as they take their eleven-year-old children to the city's ballroom dancing finals. The street-wise kids from disadvantaged backgrounds are initially sceptical since they are not used to being in such close contact with the opposite sex (although the girls find this easier to get used to than the boys) and this is where most of the humour lies. Learning the rumba, tango, swing, meringue and the foxtrot, the kids also learn sophistication and transform into little ladies and gentlemen before our eyes. As they become increasingly comfortable with the camera and their partners, the kids start to loosen up and blurt out secrets; who they fancy, what they want in a future partner, etc. "I want a guy who wants to make something of himself," one girl says. As this starts out shifting from one school to another, it is sometimes hard to make out which school is which, but as the faces become familiar, you find yourself rooting for the Cuban boy who doesn't speak a word of English but lets his feet do the talking as he twirls around the dance floor, and hating the know-it-all overly ambitious girl. It's a little long in places but Mad Hot Ballroom could be the most engaging documentary this year.

Review by Gavin Burke