Dance Subaru 芭蕾少女

For main character Subaru (Kuroki Meisa), life is difficult after her mother dies from a rare hereditary illness; her father's work keeps him away from home. Fortunately, Subaru has a twin brother Kazuma, who shares the same dream of being a ballet dancer in the future. But before they can begin classes and set off for their dream, Kazuma is struck down by the hereditary disease.

The death of her brother inspires Subaru onwards and despite all manner of obstacles, from the discouragement of her father, to her jealous friends/fiends, she is determined to succeed. When she meets Isuzu (Momoi Kaori), an embittered retired ballerina and also an old owner of a cabaret that performs ballet and strip tease (separately), Isuzu recognizes the talent in Subaru and trains her in her nightspot. Subaru then finds the right guide to enhance her ballet skill and heading to the top.

For the most part "Dance Subaru!" is entertaining and eye-catching, and the actors dispatch themselves as more than competent dancers: They perform street dances and contemporary styles as well as ballet. The variety of dances abundantly enrich the depth of the film, and help prevent it from being a monothematic movie.

Characters switch allegiances, subplots and motives appear out of nowhere and the film hurriedly whisks Subaru off to Shanghai for a make or break competition. But in the end the film succeeds, largely thanks to an engaging central performance by Kuroki Meisa—the outstanding and appealing dancing covers up her inexperienced acting.

Momoi Kaori is terrific as Isuzu, as is the actress who plays the teen version of Subaru, carrying the opening act of the film admirably for one so young. There are some comedy drag queen ballerinas working at Isuzu's strip club, and several dance numbers, including Bolero, Swan Lake, some hip hop street moves and contemporary dances.

The young and talented Hong Kong director Chi-Ngai Lee ("Sleepless Town", "Magic Kitchen") does a fabulous job in selecting roles, scene settings and screenplay, but the pace of the film seems shattered by splitting it into three acts.

There are some pop stars supporting this medium budget film, such as Korean boy band Tohoshinki, diva BoA and Japanese "Queen of Pop" Kumi Koda. Their songs occasionally pop up in the film, and Tohoshinki even appears in the film for few seconds as a group of night club singers. However, the promotion by the Taiwanese movie agency seems to have over-emphasized it. For those who are expecting to see their idols will be disappointed by the glimpse of their appearance.

"Dance Subaru!" is, despite young and inexperienced idol stars, an encouraging and inspiring underdog-film that is recommended for anyone who loves dancing (not just ballet).

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