Weston Film Club at the WPL -- SHALL WE DANCE

Library : Weston Public Library

Location : Community Room Weston Public Library, 87 School Street, Weston, MA, 02493

Start : Thursday 2nd of January 2025 1:30 PM

End : Thursday 2nd of January 2025 4:15 PM

Description :

TRAVELS & TRAVAILS Shall We Dance 1996, 136 minutes Inscribed in the ballroom of Blackpool Tower is Shakespeare’s line, “Bid me discourse, I will enchant thine ear.” So begins this film, reminding the viewer that, unlike in England, ballroom dancing is considered a suspect pastime in Japan. Perhaps it is the ostentation that chafes in a culture that values modesty so greatly, as public expressions of personal joy can often be read as unseemly. In the film, Koji Yakusho plays Mr. Sujiyama, a white-collar office worker who is the model of respectability. He is ever-loyal to his company and his family, and his life is a comfortable, if predictable routine. But one night on his way back from work to his home in the suburbs, he glimpses from his train a woman lingering wistfully in the window of a dance studio. Curious, but also very hesitant, Mr. Sujiyama visits and then enrolls in a dance course, all the while not sure why he is doing so. But soon the urge to dance finds its way deep under his skin, forcing Mr. Sujiyama to reconcile his newfound secret with his office and family. What follows is a gentle comedy of manners about constrained passions and stifling expectations. Please Note--This film is RATED PG, with waltzes, fox-trots, and a very sweet mid-life crisis. westonlibrary.assabetinteractive.com/calendar/weston-film-club-at-the-wpl-11/