A doubly tired remake: first of the infinitely better 1997 film from Japan, and second of virtually any cliche you can imagine from situation comedies.
Comment
10/14/04
Shall We Dance? (2004)
48
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:145
Fresh:69
Rotten:76
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: The cast is warmly appealing, but with the loss of cultural context and addition of big-name celebrities, this American version loses the nuances of the original.
Theatrical Release:18-02-2005
Synopsis: A workaholic lawyer’s life and marriage take an unexpected twirl when he follows a beautiful woman to a Chicago dance studio and becomes a clandestine ballroom dance competitor in SHALL WE DANCE.... [More]
Starring: Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez, Susan Sarandon, Stanley Tucci
Director: Peter Chelsom
Reviews for Shall We Dance?
So supple is this story about the man with two lead feet who walks into a dance class and then waltzes out of his midlife funk, that it pretty much survives the transplant from its Tokyo Zen garden to a Windy City rose arbor.
10/14/04
This version of Shall We Dance? tosses circumspection out of the window, milking every ounce of sentimentality, pathos and thrift-shop idiosyncrasy from the story line.
10/14/04
The filmmakers aren't afraid to lay on the schmaltz, especially at the end, but it never gets so heavy that Shall We Dance? doesn't step lively.
10/14/04
An unwieldy mess that gives every impression of having been made under a mandate to fill the Miramax crowd-pleaser slot.
10/14/04
Good-natured fluff.
10/14/04
The movie tries hard to duplicate the original's mood and story, but, like Gere or Lopez, is too much of a visual knockout to rope us in.
10/14/04
The original is about the restorative power of dance. The remake is about working a rap number into the movie so kids will buy the soundtrack.
10/14/04
Shall We Dance isn't half the movie its predecessor is, but it succeeds on its own terms.
10/14/04
You're better off being a wallflower.
10/14/04
Stanley Tucci is the reason to see Shall We Dance?
10/14/04
'The Rumba is a vertical expression of a horizontal wish,' says J. Lo. Then again, so is sleepwalking.
10/14/04
The new Dance is a lukewarm Hollywood T-ball game, where the only goal is to please every potential audience member out there in the great unknown.
10/14/04
this is a thoroughly likable flick, one that will have even the most rhythmically challenged schlub leaving the theater with a bounce in his step and twinkle in his eye.
10/14/04
Too bad the title Lost in Translation, which aptly describes much of the story of the Shall We Dance? remake, was already taken.
10/14/04
A movie that can't decide whether to frown or twirl.
10/13/04
a melodramatic nightmare marred by poorly contrived situations and emotionally weak characters
10/13/04
Peter Chelsom's one of the rare few these days who can truly create a world on film.
10/13/04
Shall We Dance opens so promisingly that it's a big disappointment when the picture suffers crucial missteps that throw off its entire rhythm.
10/13/04
Instead of class, we get crass. Instead of living characters, we get lazy stereotypes. Instead of light effervescence, we get a lead balloon.
10/13/04
Latest News for Shall We Dance?
March 11, 2005:
Audrey Wells to do Some Rearranging Over at Touchstone
More...
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Fresh Links
Featured
RT on YouTube 
Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.
RT on Twitter
Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.
IGN RSS Feeds