You expect a ‘comedy’ to tickle your funny bone so you can walk out chuckling. Yes, Shall We Dance does raise laughs. But - it also raises some interesting questions. The DVD says it’s ‘A New Comedy About Following Your Own Lead’ and a pun like that is bound to appeal to the individualistic age we are supposed to be living in. It does indeed – and yet, what is happiness and contentment? Is it a lovely, loving and loved spouse and all the trappings of a comfortable settled life? Can there be a sense of incompleteness in spite of having ‘everything’? Is that then ingratitude? Should one be allowed to pursue individual goals? At what cost?
John (Richard Gere) and Beverly (Susan Sarandon) Clark are comfortably married. They have two children, and he a good job as a lawyer. Yet, he is not ‘happy’. He fills the void in his life by impulsively shooting out of his commuter train seat up the stairs of Miss Mitzi’s Dance School after being captivated by Paulina (Jennifer Lopez) gazing out of the school window. A clumsy, shy, reluctant dancer at first, he taps a hidden side to his personality and blossoms into an accomplished ballroom dancer. All very well, except none of his family is aware of this chrysalis bursting open in this way.
In roughly one hour and forty-five minutes, the film turns all expectations and predictability on their respective heads. With all the action building up towards the climactic Chicago Tattinger Trophy who could blame you for expecting a neatly wrapped package at that point: Clark rewarded for his accomplishment, all revealed and settled? But - it is its aftermath that has much to say. Yes, there is dance as the mating ritual. Bobbie (Lisa Ann Walter), earthy, vivacious, loud, generous-hearted, is disappointed at Clark’s treatment of Rumba, “the dance of love”. Paulina with her smouldering, controlled, Latino (stereotypical?) passion sets him straight. Yes, there is the hinted sexual attraction, even tension. But - there are also the bonds forged of friendship, camaraderie and candour. Life and people are given a direction by and through dance. John Clark is able to put his life in perspective, while Paulina unearths a lost spirit to chase her dreams. Beverly, a “romantic” with her sense of romance probably buried under the laundry, jackets at the apparel division where she works and the whims of two teenage children, is very understandably miffed but finds her feet again – and how!
“The Dancer’s gift” is a love story between a young man and woman, Marcel and Samantha. But this novel was written not only to call feelings about love and passion; the main goal was to introduce students to sociological concepts. Overall, the book includes more than 180 sociological terms that flow with the story and closely connected to happening events. Marcel, a black man, arrives from Martinique (an island in the Caribbean Sea), and Samantha, a rich American girl, meet each other in college and fall in love. Both of them face obstacles in their lives: Marcel was grown up in a poor extended but a friendly family, while Samantha was a daughter of rich but divorced parents. Marcel comes to the U.S. to become a professional dancer, while Sam decided to become an attorney at law just like her father. Being lovers they decide to spend their Christmas holidays together and go to New York. Next holidays they go to Marcel’s homeland, Martinique, where they realize that there lives a woman who is pregnant by him. At that time all dreams of Sam just collapse due to this bitter disappointment, which becomes one of the reasons why they break up. Throughout the story, they both meet with numerous social issues such as education, marriage, gender issue, racism, deviance, divorce, religion, race and ethnicity. In this essay, the three main reasons why this novel is an effective tool for learning sociological concepts will be discussed.
Summary The film "Dances With Wolves" is about the relationship between a Civil War fighter and a band of Souix Indians. The film opens on an especially dull note, as despairing Union lieutenant John W. Dunbar endeavors to slaughter himself on a suicide mission, however rather turns into an unintentional saint. His activities lead to his reassignment to a remote post in remote South Dakota, where he experiences the Sioux. Pulled in by the common straightforwardness of their lifestyle, he decides to abandon his previous life to go along with them, tackling the name Dances with Wolves. Before long, "Dances with Wolves" has turned into a welcome part of the tribe and experienced passionate feelings for a white lady who has been raised around the tribe. His tranquil presence is debilitated, nonetheless, when Union fighters land with outlines on the Sioux land.
In their actions, the idea behind the movie is brought to light. An adult dancing in the rain is a sign of joy and contention. Throughout the dance, they are able to catch the attention of the audience and make them feel that love is in the
Tiffany and Pat have been working on their routine for months and both see their practice as a form of therapy. Pat believes that the dance competition and structured practices are giving him a sense of purpose, discipline and focus. Pat’s father has turned their dance into part of a bet where they must score at least a five in the competition but when they arrive at the dance competition they see that the other dancers they are competing against are professional dancers who are scoring points of seven. Pat and Tiffany perform their eccentric, off beat dance which seems to be meant to prompt laughter and awkwardness. The choreographer for this dance, Mandy Moore, said, "The dance wasn't supposed to be a polished piece. It's supposed to look a little funky and crazy the way that they are” (People, 2012). Pat and Tiffany are painfully serious about their performance even when they don’t completely get their final lift right and we have an awkward moment where we are supposed to be laughing at the characters and their mental health concerns. Pat and Tiffany continue to get laughs from the crowd as their scores are announced, but they manage to get an average score of five and Pat’s father has won the bet. Their awkward dance and low score seems to supports the idea that those with mental health concerns will not be successful. I feel this scene further enforces that it is acceptable to find hilarity in those with mental health concerns and their lack of developed social
The dancing community I’ve been apart of since the age of three is one that has consisted of blood, sweat and tears... literally. My discourse community, meaning a group of members who use communication to achieve goals and purposes, is one I have worked hard to be apart of. My Dance studio is its own discourse community. With the movement of a person’s body on and off stage, they are able to express emotions as well as tell a story at the same time. John Swales believes their are six characteristics which makes for a discourse community. These include having the members of a community sharing their own goals, intercommunication, feedback, genre, lexis, and a level of members with a suitable degree (Swales 220-222). When one thinks of dancers,
This movie was off the hook! First of all, these are the type of movies that should be known to mankind. Save the Last Dance, is a blend of love and romance with a little piece of hate crimes, racism, and of course most definitely violence. Well to tell you the truth, most of the people don’t like love and romance. Save the Last Dance is a nice blending of a little piece of everything so it can entertain the people with different likes and dislikes. Even the people who don’t like these types of movies would be interested in the movie Save the Last Dance. The name of the movie can leave the viewer in suspense. Just think of it as a phrase, Save the Last Dance.
Allison Bonetti, a dancer in the performance, is quoted, remarking, “I feel dizzy every time we complete the Waltz section, but I don’t feel dirty or scandalous, as I would after, say I maybe danced in a club. I think I speak for many of us when I say that the Waltz feels like a dance my grandmother would do.” In fact, the performance is misleading seeing as it is paired with very formal and controlled dances such as the Pavane and the minuet. In fact, modern historians such as Mark Knowles have compared the Waltz to social hip hop dances of today such as “krumping and grinding” since through the ages social dances have been “manifestations of society’s beliefs, values, attitudes, confusions, and concerns.” If the performance was to correctly convey this notion, it would have beneficial to place the nineteenth century Waltz in the second half of the performance, along with dances like the Quan and the Whip. However, in order to maintain chronological accuracy, the Waltz was placed in the beginning of the performance, overall failing to reveal the true nature of the nineteenth century
" We are almost a nation of dancers, musicians, and poets. Every great event, such as a triumphant return from battle, or other cause of public rejoicing, is celebrated in public dances, which are accompanied with songs and music suited to the occasion. The assembly is separated into four divisions, which dance either apart or in succession, and each with a character peculiar to itself. The first division contains the married men who in their dances frequently exhibit feats of arms, and the representation of a battle. To these succeed the married women who dance in the second division. The young men occupy the third; and the maidens the fourth. Each represents some interesting scene of real life, such as a great achievement, domestic employment, a pathetic story, or some rural sport. This gives our dances a spirit and variety which I have scarcely seen elsewhere."
The story is of a stunt actor, turned silent movie star, to an upcoming talkie star who is an amazing tap dancer, Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly). Don’s charming ways didn’t get to far at first with Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds) that’s how first meets her, and it won’t be the last time, she’s also an aspiring actress and singer, but till her career takes
As if for the first time, Pat and Tiffany truly connect on their own level. Pat realizes throughout the dance that he has been putting all of his attention towards the wrong woman. The dance exemplifies Pat and Tiffany's relationship well, with the classic, simple romantic music as their normal lives, but when a catchy, rhythmic pop song comes on, their dance turns completely different and has new energy. It is if their dance is just like their relationships along with their mental illnesses. Most of the time we see tranquil, calm, romantic moments with them, and yet in the blink of an eye, chaos and spontaneity take hold, creating something in real life may be panic and aggravating, but here represents the life and creativity each of them hold. The dance then returns back to the romantic side, but instead of trying to impress Nikki, Pat in this last part tries more to please Tiffany, realizing that he's in love with her more than his is in love with Nikki. Also, as the dance goes on, Pat realizes that his self-absorption towards Nikki has
According to Martha Graham, “Dance is the hidden language of the soul.” To me, dancing is more than just a hobby, it is my life. My dance team is also more than just a team, it is my second family. Each girl on my team has her own unique personality, but somehow, we all get along well. We are all such good friends and have had to make it through many difficult situations already, but all it has done was bring us closer together. The girls on my team are all caring, talented, and funny.
When Charlotte’s husband leaves her for the weekend to go on a photo shoot in southern Japan, their relationship takes off. Together they venture out into Tokyo, all the while drawing closer to each other. The pivotal scene comes when Charlotte seeks advice about her relationship from Bob, showing the intimacy that has developed between them. While always on the brink of turning romantic, Coppola does a good job keeping the relationship Platonic (although the audience secretly wishes for more).... ...
The film used and presented the box social dance sequence in the same way as the stage performance. The aesthetic quality of the hoedown adds an authenticity to the Wild West. It is the kind of dance one would expect when thinking of stereotypical Wild West folk.
“Sex and the Social Dance” was a streaming video which examined the sexuality of social dances around the world. Regardless of geographical location or decade of popularity, dance conveyed social values. In particular, the sexuality was expressed through physical contact or lack thereof, in the gender roles of the dance, and in the purpose of the dance.
“Dance, the art of precise, expressive, and graceful human movement, traditionally, but not necessarily, performed in accord with musical accompaniment. Dancing developed as a natural expression of united feeling and action.”