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The Four Horsemen  (1921)

Starring: Pomeroy Cannon, Josef Swickard, Bridgetta Clark, Rudolph ValentinoPoints of interest: silent movie; sixth best grossing silent film of all time; turned Rudolph Valentino into a super star and gave him the image of the ‘Latin Lover’

Tango connection: a harsh Argentine landowner has a grandson Julio whom he often takes to seedy dives in Buenos Aires. It is in one of these bars that we see the movie’s famous tango scene: a couple are dancing the tango, Julio strides up and asks to cut in. After being brushed off, Julio challenges the man and strikes him. Jiulio and the woman then dance dramatic tango, and the crowd cheers. After the dance, the woman sits on Julio’s lap.

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Tango Bar (1935)

Starring: Carlos Gardel, Rosita Moreno, Colette D’Arville
Points of interest: musical; Carlos Gardel’s final feature (he was killed in a plane crash after this film)
Tango connection: A young cabaret vocalist (Carlos Gardel) falls in love with a beautiful dancer (Rosita Moreno) and saves her from a gang of crooks.

 

Naked Tango (1990)

Director: Leonard Schrader
Starring: Vincent D’Onofrio, Mathilda May, Esai Morales, Fernando Rey, Cipe Lincovski, Josh Mostel, Constance McCashin
Points of interest: this film is considered by many as ‘classic pure trash’ in the great tradition of trashy cult movies.
Tango connection: Returning by ship to South America, a young girl escapes her elderly husband by swapping places with a girl committing suicide. She believes her new life will be that of an arranged marriage but finds it is in fact a trick to get her working in a brothel. For anyone who knows the tango, this film’s expressionist atmosphere, fantastic sets, the wonderful locations in Buenos Aires, over-the-top tango dancers and great tango music come together to make this interesting viewing. Naked Tango has achieved cult status for tango dancers.

 

Scent of a Woman (1992)

Starring: Al Pacino, Chris O’Donnell, James Rebhorn, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Gabrielle Anwar
Points of interest: won an Academy Award for Best Actor, and nominated for Best Director, Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.It won the following Golden Globe Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Motion Picture – Drama.
Tango connection: the story of the film is of a preparatory school student who takes a job as an assistant to an irascible, blind, medically retired Army officer (Al Pacino). He tangos with a beautiful woman who captivates him with her perfume. It’s not a perfect dance but it illustrates an important fact expressed by a writer: the tango is the dance of uneducated, unseeing instinct: its nexus is lust: its animation is sexual.

 

Evita (1996) 

Starring: Madonna, Antonio Banderas, Jonathan Pryce
Points of interest: It is adaptation of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical based on the life of Eva Perón. Several people objected to Madonna playing the part (Cher, Barbra Streisand, Glenn Close, Olivia Newton-John and Michelle Pfeiffer were rumored to be involved). Midway through production, Madonna discovered she was pregnant. This film won multiple awards (including Academy Award for Best Original Song ‘You Must Love Me’, Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy) as well as multiple nominations. Following the success of the film, the government of Argentina released its own film biography of Peron, entitled Eva Perón, to correct alleged distortions in the Lloyd Webber version. The movie earned Madonna the Guinness World Record title of ‘Most costume changes in a film’ – 85 times (which included 39 hats, 45 pairs of shoes and 56 pairs of earrings).The Tango Lesson (1996)

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The Tango Lesson

Director: Sally Potter
Starring: Potter and Pablo Verón
Points of interest: this was shot mostly in black and white in Paris and Buenos Aires.
Tango connection: the story is of a film-maker and screenwriter who suffering from writer’s block, takes a break and travels to Paris, where she sees the dancer Pablo (Pablo Verón) performing tango. She becomes obsessed with the dance and offers Pablo a part in her film in exchange for dance lessons. The two become involved as dancers and lovers. The entire film is a semi-autobiographical story about Argentinean tango.

 

Tango (1998)

Starring: Cecilia Narova, Mía Maestro
Points of interest: the film is an Argentine and Spanish production (with English subtitles) and promoted as the most expensive Argentine film ever made. Tango was shown out of competition at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. The film caused some controversy due to a lesbian kissing scene. This was criticized by some tango fans who claimed that same sex tango, even being common, doesn’t have usually a sexual connotation. It was nominated for the 1998 Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Tango connection: the story is that of a Buenos Aires director’s quest to make the ultimate tango film – which is complicated when he falls in love with a beautiful and talented young dancer, who is the girlfriend of the dangerous investor in the picture. There are political undertones in a scene that recreates Argentina’s dark years of suppression and disappearances. The entire film is placed around tango, and the setting is the production of a stage show – very theatrical setting. It is very real Argentinean tango, including men dancing with women, women dancing with women and men dancing with men.

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Moulin Rouge (2001)

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John Leguizamo, Jim Broadbent, Richard Roxburgh, Garry McDonald, Matthew Whittet, Kylie Minogue, Plácido Domingo
Points of interest: the film is part of the Red Curtain Trilogy (Strictly Ballroom, Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge) which are not related in plot, but are marked by: a theatre motif; intricate costumes, music, sets and script; each film’s plot is based on a myth; a thematic device is aggressively utilized (in Moulin Rouge it is music); and each film represents the end of older methods of entertainment blended with contemporary styles. Kidman injured her ribs while filming one of the more complicated dance sequences. Moulin Rouge was nominated for six Academy Awards and three Golden Globes. It also won two Academy Awards and three Gold Globes (Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, Best Original Score – Motion Picture).

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Chicago (2002)

Starring: Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere
Points of interest: the film adapted from adapted from the stage musical of the same name – originally this musical was actually not well received by audiences. The film won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and three Golden Globes including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. It was given the label ‘the best screen musical for 30 years’.
Tango connection: the story centers on two criminals-of-passion who find themselves awaiting their trials for murder in 1920s Chicago. They fight for the fame that will keep them from the gallows. There is a prison in the film, in which there is a ‘Cell Block Tango’ – in it there is a dance number which combines suggestions of both violence and sensuality.
Lyrics: see Cell Block Tango Lyrics.

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Assassination Tango (2002)

Starring: Robert Duvall, Rubén Blades, Kathy Baker, Luciana Pedraza
Points of interest: this film is Robert Duvall’s tribute to tango, which is why it is filmed entirely in Buenos Aires, using real tango dancers including Geraldine Rojas, Javiar Rodriguez, Pablo Veron, Jorge Dispari, La Turca, Orlanda Paiva, Maria Nieves, Armando Orzuza, Carlos Copello, Alicia Monti and Los Hermanos Macana. The club in the film (with the checkerboard floor) is Sin Rumbo.


Tango connection: this entire film is a steamy thriller set within Argentine tango. It is the story of a successful American hitman sent to Argentina to kill a former General, but when the General delays his return to the country, the hitman finds a beautiful dancer who becomes his teacher and guide into Argentina’s sensual world of the tango.

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Shall We Dance (2004)

Starring: Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez, Susan Sarandon, Stanley Tucci
Points of interest: this film is a remake of the award-winning 1996 Japanese film Shall We Dansu?. About $4000 worth of jewelry worn by Susan Sarandon during the filming of the movie was stolen – but recovered at a murder scene. The filming location was moved to Winnipeg from Toronto because of the SARS scare in early 2003.
Tango connection: the story is of a meek workaholic who feels trapped in a dull, mind-numbing existence. But one night, his whole life changes when the sight of a beautiful dance instructor inspires him to break out of his mold and sign up for dancing lessons; but he keeps his exciting new passion a secret from his family and friends. This movie is mostly about ballroom dancing, but at one point Richard Gere dances passable tango with Jennifer Lopez. The scene itself is beautifully filmed

 

Take the Lead (2006)

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Rob Brown, Alfre Woodard, Dante Basco, Marcus T. Paulk, Jenna Dewan, Lauren Collins
Points of interest: Originally, Antonio Banderas turned down the part when he realized the whole film was about ballroom dancing. However after the producers begged him for some time to understand the script, he signed on.
Tango connection: based on a true story, the movie tells of the struggle of a dance teacher to give to a group of problem kids a second chance by exploring their dance skills. He catches the students’ attention with a tango session, and after their initial indifference, they eventually compete in a dance contest; the important thing isn’t winning, but making a difference.

 

Easy Virtue (2008) – Easy Virtue Movie

Director: Stephan Elliott
Starring: Jessica Biel, Ben Barnes, Kristin Scott Thomas, Colin Firth, Kimberley Nixon
Points of interest: based on the 1928 silent movie of the same name by Alfred Hitchcock. During the end credits all of the musicians who played in the orchestra featured on the soundtrack are introduced in voice-over simulating the introductions from the bandstand of a live performance, with each musician playing a brief sample.
Tango connection: the story is a comedy in which a glamorous American widow marries a young Englishman in the South of France. When they return to England to meet his parents, his mother takes a strong dislike to their new daughter-in-law, while his father, Jim, finds a kindred spirit. The climax of the film centers on a tango between the characters.

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