Nerdlocker Movie Review: Cuban Fury

The ever-loveable Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) steps out of Simon Pegg’s shadow and into dance shoes and a sequined shirt for the leading role in the new romantic comedy, Cuban Fury. Photo by Matt Nettheim He plays Bruce Garrett, the overweight, under-confident former salsa prodigy who lost his mojo as a teenager and must get it back to impress his sexy new boss, Julia (Rashida Jones). She happens to be deeply interested in the one thing that Bruce is good at, problem is, he hasn’t danced in 25 years and she’s way out of his league.

Cuban Fury is predictable and formulaic, but it has a lot of heart and I had fun watching it. It gets by on Nick Frost’s endearing performance and a fantastic turn from Kayvan Novak, who steals several scenes as Bruce’s flamboyant friend, Bejan.

Other positives are the fiery salsa music and the vibrant color palette of some of the dance scenes.

The supporting characters are underdeveloped. We don’t know much about Julia except that she’s American and she likes salsa dancing. Rashida Jones is bland, but to be fair, the script doesn’t give her much to work with. Chris O’Dowd has some funny, vulgar lines as Bruce’s douchebag co-worker, but he comes off as a caricature and has little depth. The same can be said for Ian McShane as the eccentric dance instructor. breathe-in-415501

Cuban Fury is an easy movie to pick apart, but none of the errors were egregious enough to cause major annoyance. It doesn’t rival the best dance movies or romantic comedies, but as a bit of mindless fun, it’s not bad. The movie owes a lot to the music and the performances of Nick Frost and Kayvan Novak, who leave it all on the dance floor.

I rate this film 3 out of 5 Nerdskulls