“‘Dancing’ Isn’t Dirty Enough"
by Scott Mantz

“Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights”
Romola Garai, Diego Luna
Directed by Guy Ferland

Nobody puts Baby in a lame remake! Romola Garai and Diego Luna heat up the dance floor in "Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights"

It’s one thing for a movie to become successful, but it’s another thing for it to turn into a bona-fide phenomenon. That’s what happened back in 1987, when “Dirty Dancing” overcame mixed reviews to take in more than $170 million worldwide. The film turned Patrick Swayze into a star (albeit one that faded after peaking with “Ghost” in the early 90’s), and everyone wondered what “baby’s” Jennifer Grey would do next (which, sadly, turned out to be nothing, except for an ill-advised nose job). Still, it spawned one of the best-selling motion picture soundtracks of all time, and it has since become one of pop culture’s most beloved guilty pleasures.

It’s now 17 years later, and with the release of the remake – or as the press notes bill it, the “re-imagining” – of the story in “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights,” the big question is, can lightning strike twice? Unfortunately, the answer is no, for while “Havana Nights” does take a bolder step by setting the story in pre-Castro Cuba, circa 1958, the end result is an underdeveloped, contrived and melodramatic potboiler that’s even cornier than the original film. Sure, up-and-comers Romola Garai and Diego Luna are charming enough as the star-crossed lovers, and the movie’s Latin-inspired soundtrack does have a few catchy tunes, but it’s safe to say that moviegoers won’t be having the time of their lives this time around.

Havana is the last place that bookish Katey Miller (Romola Garai) wants to be, but that’s where she finds herself when her father takes a high-profile job there. Even though she is given all the best that the lush capital has to offer, she still doesn’t fit in with the rest of the snobby, elite crowd. That changes when she locks hungry eyes with Javier Suarez (Diego Luna), a Latin waiter who knows a thing or two about heating up the Cuban dance floor. When Katie enters the capital’s dance competition, Javier offers to show her the ropes, but can their mutual attraction to each other overcome their divergent backgrounds and the volatile political climate?

“Havana Nights” may be billed as a re-imagining of the original “Dirty Dancing,” but there is surprisingly little that’s imaginative about it. The outline is virtually the same as the first film (opening narration, culture clash, seductive dance lessons, etc.), and the effort to set the story against the backdrop of the Cuban revolution is notably ineffective. The story doesn’t gel and feels rushed (it’s only 86 minutes long), and what could have been an embracing political statement feels incredibly trivial in order to give the film a happy ending.

Having said that, the chemistry between Romola Garai and Diego Luna is effective enough to keep the film mildly entertaining on a very basic level. Garai, who looks like she just stepped off the set of TV’s “American Dreams,” is initially stiff, but she gets into the groove when she’s paired off with the charming Luna, who’s finally poised to take advantage of his critical turn in “Y Tu Mama Tambien.” The real treat here comes from Patrick Swayze, who briefly reprises his role from the original film. Though the story takes place 5 years before the first movie (and was shot 17 years after the fact), Swayze still looks amazing and hasn’t aged a day.

There’s something pivotal about the way Swayze tells Garai “the floor is yours” after showing her the same dance moves he showed to Jennifer Grey in the first film. He’s clearly passing the “Dirty Dancing” torch onto a whole new generation of moviegoers, but whether or not those moviegoers will embrace “Havana Nights” is a tough call. Personally, I don’t think the same level of magic is there, but you never know. Maybe enough people will like the film enough to feel like they just had the time of their lives…again.

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