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"You'd be the last one to notice"
The first thing you have to come to grips with when watching "Shall We Dance?" is how ballroom dancing was perceived in Japan in 1996. Too intimate, too suspicious, possibly shameful. The men involved could be misconstrued as perverts just looking to hook up with younger women. Not exactly a hobby that one would want to start or discuss. So, when a depressed middle-aged Japanese accountant begins taking classes, something is definitely up.
Sugiyama Shohei works long hours as an accountant, taking the train every night, eschewing drinking with colleagues. He comes home and goes straight to bed only to start the whole process over again the next day. His wife worries for him. One evening on the train he notices a beautiful woman staring out a dance class window. He begins to watch for her every night. Finally, one night he gets off at the stop and enters the building. The next thing he knows he’s signing up for ballroom dance classes taught by an older woman named Tamura Tamako. While he attempts to learn the steps, he can’t keep his eyes off the aloof Mai. When Mai firmly rebuffs his advances, Sugiyama has to make a choice of whether to stay in the class or not.
There was much to like about this film. First up-the excellent Yakusho Koji. It’s one of the few films I’ve seen him in where he was clean shaven and had short hair. Takenaka Naoto always provides a ball of energy in his roles and he did so here as well as the Latin dancer with a horrendous wig. Watching the two office workers lead secret lives that energized them and gave them joy was entertaining to watch. Watanabe Eri and Kusamura Reiko as the older women dancers often stole the show. I didn’t find Kusakari Tamiyo as Mai nearly as alluring as Sugiyama did, but she offered dancing cred to the film.
The film was a love letter to ballroom dancing showing the difficulty and art form that it is. It requires grace, skill, physical fitness, and a devotion to practice that few are willing to invest in. That the men felt they had to hide their love for it was sad. For the dance students and instructors, it gave them a lift in their spirits and an emotionally creative outlet. Sugiyama was brought back to life as he immersed himself in dance.
What didn’t work as well for me was Sugiyama’s motivation for beginning the class. His obsession with Mai did not sit well with me. He didn’t tell his wife about the classes initially because of why he was going to them. Later, he’d gotten too deeply into “something strange.” My first thought after he took a class was that his wife would smell another woman’s perfume on him and sure enough, she did. Despite her love and loyalty to him, she was too afraid to ask him if he was having an affair. He was spending an inordinate amount of time in the evenings and on the weekends taking classes and going to dance halls. Sugiyama was so wrapped up in himself that he never thought what his wife might be thinking or how lonely and sad he was making her. While he was finding new life, he was sending his wife down a dark path.
On the surface, Shall We Dance was a warmhearted film showing a variety of people finding meaning and purpose in their lives through the art of dance. Friendships were forged during the sweaty rehearsals and in the men’s bathroom at work. Old wounds were healed and new horizons shone. Although, I think an actual marriage counselor and not a private investigator was needed and a better ending. Most people will find it satisfying, I found it to be a letdown.
9 November 2026
Sugiyama Shohei works long hours as an accountant, taking the train every night, eschewing drinking with colleagues. He comes home and goes straight to bed only to start the whole process over again the next day. His wife worries for him. One evening on the train he notices a beautiful woman staring out a dance class window. He begins to watch for her every night. Finally, one night he gets off at the stop and enters the building. The next thing he knows he’s signing up for ballroom dance classes taught by an older woman named Tamura Tamako. While he attempts to learn the steps, he can’t keep his eyes off the aloof Mai. When Mai firmly rebuffs his advances, Sugiyama has to make a choice of whether to stay in the class or not.
There was much to like about this film. First up-the excellent Yakusho Koji. It’s one of the few films I’ve seen him in where he was clean shaven and had short hair. Takenaka Naoto always provides a ball of energy in his roles and he did so here as well as the Latin dancer with a horrendous wig. Watching the two office workers lead secret lives that energized them and gave them joy was entertaining to watch. Watanabe Eri and Kusamura Reiko as the older women dancers often stole the show. I didn’t find Kusakari Tamiyo as Mai nearly as alluring as Sugiyama did, but she offered dancing cred to the film.
The film was a love letter to ballroom dancing showing the difficulty and art form that it is. It requires grace, skill, physical fitness, and a devotion to practice that few are willing to invest in. That the men felt they had to hide their love for it was sad. For the dance students and instructors, it gave them a lift in their spirits and an emotionally creative outlet. Sugiyama was brought back to life as he immersed himself in dance.
What didn’t work as well for me was Sugiyama’s motivation for beginning the class. His obsession with Mai did not sit well with me. He didn’t tell his wife about the classes initially because of why he was going to them. Later, he’d gotten too deeply into “something strange.” My first thought after he took a class was that his wife would smell another woman’s perfume on him and sure enough, she did. Despite her love and loyalty to him, she was too afraid to ask him if he was having an affair. He was spending an inordinate amount of time in the evenings and on the weekends taking classes and going to dance halls. Sugiyama was so wrapped up in himself that he never thought what his wife might be thinking or how lonely and sad he was making her. While he was finding new life, he was sending his wife down a dark path.
On the surface, Shall We Dance was a warmhearted film showing a variety of people finding meaning and purpose in their lives through the art of dance. Friendships were forged during the sweaty rehearsals and in the men’s bathroom at work. Old wounds were healed and new horizons shone. Although, I think an actual marriage counselor and not a private investigator was needed and a better ending. Most people will find it satisfying, I found it to be a letdown.
9 November 2026
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