Amazon.com video review:
It's not exactly Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, but this 1998
entry, starring Vanessa Williams and newcomer Chayanne offers its own
terpsichorean pleasures. The story centers on Rafael Infante (Chayanne),
a Cuban émigré to Texas, where he takes a menial job at a local dance
studio run by John Burnett (Kris Kristofferson). There, he falls for
Ruby Sinclair (Vanessa Williams), a one-time ballroom championship
contender looking for the opportunity to compete for the title once
more. The romance seems a foregone conclusion but has some snap thanks
to a crisp performance by Williams and a sunny (if limited) one by
Chayanne, a singing star in Puerto Rico. Best of all is the dancing
itself. In terms of both energy, exuberance, and style, this film's dance
sequences rank with the best of the decade's limited celebration of the
kinetic art, such as Strictly Ballroom and Shall We Dance.
Though
the movie's central plot secret seems obvious from the first downbeat,
the film takes off every time the dance music kicks in. --Marshall
Fine
