00:00You'll keep dancing wherever we go next
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the best
00:09movie scenes featuring ballroom and Latin dancing. Some spoilers are included.
00:14The best things happen while you dance
00:20Number 10. The Waltz
00:22Shall we dance? Richard Gere stars in this unassuming dance movie about a middle-aged
00:27man who falls in love with ballroom dancing.
00:37Well done!
00:42Happily married but feeling restless, John Clark joins a dance class on a whim. He keeps
00:47his new hobby to himself while training enthusiastically for a big city dance competition.
00:52However, his wife and daughter find out and attend a performance in secret.
01:06Awesome! That is awesome!
01:10Shall we dance? has some really moving moments. The scene where John dances with his wife is
01:16especially lovely. But the waltz scene is wonderful, too. Like his family and his teacher,
01:21the audience can watch with pride as John shows off all he's learned,
01:25demonstrating that it's never too late to discover a new passion.
01:41Number 9. Waltzing with Vronsky
01:44Anna Karenina is a famous Russian novel which follows a married aristocrat's affair
01:50with a young cavalry officer.
01:53Dance with me.
01:56I'm not used to being spoken to like that by a man I met once at a railway station.
02:00I dare say, but if I'm not to dance with you, then I'm getting out of this operetta and going home.
02:07Then forget your cig.
02:08In the 2012 adaptation starring Keira Knightley, director Joe Wright uses an old abandoned theater
02:15as a framing device to tell the story. The bold setting gives the movie a stylized,
02:20theatrical feel, and this extends to the dance sequences.
02:23The waltz scene is a visual and emotional roller coaster.
02:36Alicia Vikander's Kitty has her heartbroken, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson's Vronsky allows his
02:42feelings to give him away. Meanwhile, Anna is torn between her loyalty to Kitty,
02:47her sense of propriety, and her growing desire for Vronsky.
02:50The drama plays out on the dance floor, and we are living for it.
03:03Number 8. Shall We Dance?
03:06The King and I
03:06The best dance moments are all about chemistry,
03:09and Anna Leon Owens and the King of Siam have it in spades.
03:17The Shall We Dance scene takes place just after an important banquet with European visitors.
03:32With Anna's help, the King has successfully impressed her friends and countrymen,
03:49and averted an international incident. If anything was ever going to happen between them,
03:54this would be the moment. And there's definitely something in the air.
03:58He asks her to teach him to polka. She obliges, but she's not quite ready to find herself in his
04:03arms. It's a great scene, a great dress, and a masterclass in sexual tension.
04:18Number 7. El Tango de Roxanne
04:21Moulin Rouge! Jukebox musicals get a lot of criticism, but it's always fun to see how
04:26they play around with popular songs to fit the mood and context of their story.
04:41Moulin Rouge! takes the British rock song Roxanne and transforms it into an atmospheric
04:46Argentine tango. This sensual style originated on the streets of Buenos Aires in the 19th century.
04:56It's often said to tell the story of a courtesan and a prospective client,
05:05making it a perfect fit for the doomed romance between Christian and Satine.
05:10With low-lighting Latin violins, a growly-voiced Argentinian,
05:14and Ewan McGregor singing his feelings, the mood is well and truly set.
05:27Number 6. Tale as Old as Time. Beauty and the Beast
05:32Beauty and the Beast may be an animated kids' movie, but that ballroom scene is really special.
05:47The friendship between Belle and the Beast has been steadily growing throughout the film,
05:51and it soon becomes clear that there's something there that wasn't there before.
05:55As the two friends dance along together in the empty ballroom,
05:58Angela Lansbury's Mrs. Potts provides the musical commentary.
06:11Despite the grand setting and Belle's gorgeous dress, it's a quiet,
06:14intimate moment between two people who are just beginning to fall in love.
06:18The scene has been replicated in the remake and referenced in Enchanted,
06:23and both are beautiful moments, but nothing beats the original.
06:41Number 5. The Wedding Dress Dance. Funny Face
06:44When Audrey Hepburn put on a ballet-length wedding dress to dance with Fred Astaire in Funny Face,
06:50she delighted audiences and set a new trend.
07:04In this scene, Hepburn's character, Joe, is dressed up for a photo shoot with Astaire's Dick
07:09Avery. In such a setting, the mood soon turns romantic, and they dance to a song called
07:14He Loves and She Loves by George and Ira Gershwin.
07:23Astaire was nearing the end of his film career when he shot Funny Face,
07:27and was three decades older than Hepburn. However, she wasn't about to pass up on the
07:32chance to dance with one of the greats and reportedly insisted on Astaire for her leading man.
07:44Number 4. Argentine Tango Lesson. Take the Lead
07:57The documentary movie Mad Hot Ballroom told the story of Pierre Doulain's dancing classrooms,
08:03a project that brought ballroom dancing to inner-city kids.
08:06Take the lead fictionalized Doulain's life with Antonio Banderas in the starring role.
08:18The movie has plenty of great dancing scenes, from the three-way tango to the final waltz.
08:23But the most memorable moment is when Pierre gets his
08:26dancing shoes on to demonstrate the Argentine tango to the class.
08:37The troubled teens have been resistant so far, but when their teacher brings
08:41in a star student to show off her stuff, they finally allow themselves to be impressed.
08:55Number 3. The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing.
08:58White Christmas. Old Hollywood gave us some of the most technically skilled ballroom dancing on film
09:03and birthed a whole new form of dance. The American Smooth incorporates elements of the
09:20Viennese waltz and the foxtrot, but is much less regimented. This scene from
09:25White Christmas is one of the loveliest examples of the dancing style.
09:41Danny Kaye and Vera Ellen are the movie's second leads, but the best dancers of the
09:46foursome. This dance marks the beginning of their character's romance and is one of the
09:51film's standout scenes. It's a classy yet creative routine that never gets boring.
10:06Number 2. The Paso Doble. Strictly Ballroom. This Baz Lurnham movie was part of the
10:12inspiration behind Strictly Come Dancing, and later Dancing with the Stars.
10:16It follows a young ballroom dancer who joins forces with a total beginner to take part in a
10:21big competition. Scott teaches Fran how to dance, but he also learns from his unlikely partner.
10:26Fran's a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, but her family are of Spanish descent,
10:30and the Paso Doble is in her blood.
10:39Her father and grandmother teach Scott how to really feel the rhythm,
10:42which comes in handy during the finale, when their dance is sabotaged and the music cuts out.
10:48Instead of ruining their routine, their naysayers only add to the atmosphere.
11:04Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:09Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:12Don Alejandro. Dances with Elena. The Mask of Zorro.
11:16Zorro and the Governor's Daughter Put on a Show.
11:28Gomez Tangos with Morticia. Adam's Family Values.
11:32The couple take to the floor, dancing to their famous theme song.
11:38Jim Rescues Loretta. Easy Virtue.
11:48When her husband refuses to dance with her, she tangos with his dad instead.
12:00The Candle Waltz. Crimson Peak.
12:03Mia Wasikowska waltzes with Tom Hiddleston.
12:08Dancing at the Ball. Cinderella. This magical moment never gets old.
12:381. Dancing Cheek to Cheek. Top Hat.
12:45When it comes to ballroom dancing, Fred Astaire is the gold standard. And of course,
12:49Ginger Rogers did everything Fred did, except backwards and in high heels.
12:54Their partnership produced plenty of delicious movie moments,
13:09in films including Swing Time and The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle.
13:14However, this routine from Top Hat is probably their most famous scene together.
13:19Dancing to Irving Berlin's Cheek to Cheek,
13:21Fred and Ginger are the epitome of rhythm and grace.
13:33Rogers had to fight for her satin and ostrich feather gown, which,
13:36if you're wondering, was pale blue.
13:39The feathers may have shed everywhere, but the dress moved beautifully, just like the dancers.
13:56What's your favorite style of ballroom dance, and who dances it best? Let us know in the comments.
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