Tangos Are for Two

Hmmm, be careful what you wish for.

A convoluted tale of misplaced affections and mistaken identities that left the viewer with very little connection to the characters. This is definitely a musical and one for specialized tastes as the music is in the style of either Flamenco or Tango. The story itself reminded this viewer of the American President, with two men who are identical in looks, and in this case, talent, who wind up trading places. One is a famous singer, the other a lounge act performing the other man's songs that attracts the attention of the famous man's producer. Throw in a woman who settles for the imitation, but craves the real thing, and the ingredients are in place for a fun romp. Unfortunately, this somehow never gets there. Maybe it was the Latin temperaments of the principles. Maybe it was the chaste presentation. Maybe it was simply the language barrier. But somehow this viewer never found himself connected to the characters enough to really care how this played out. Let's just call it a morality tale that wasn't sure what moral it was trying to teach.

Tango for Two aka Sus Ojos se Cerraron & El Mundo Sigue Andando. I had been on a Dario Grandinetti kick for a while & had been ordering & watching all his movies. He is a great actor from Spain & has had several killer roles. I originally became interested in him when I saw the Argentinean movie Dark Side of the Heart & then I saw him in Almovodar’s Talk to Me. (both very fine films) In this film he plays the great Argentinean Tango singer Carlos Gardel. I did not know much about Gardel till I saw this film & then read the Wikipedia entry about him. This film is a heart-rending tale of a woman who idolizes Carlos Gardel & it's easy to see how she gets lost in fantasy. A woman's voice says she was wife to Renzo Franchi & Carlos Gardel (1890-1935), Argentina's great tango singer. People say she's crazy. Her story unfolds. Buenos Aires, 1933: Juana Romero, a seamstress who lives for the music of Gardel, dumps her boyfriend Gustavo for Renzo, a singer who looks like Gardel. She insists that his trio performs Gardel's tangos, which leads to Renzo recording a Ford commercial when Gardel himself is overbooked. The trio, with Joanna in tow, goes on an ill-fated tour of points north. The couple breaks up: she goes home & he tries to get to New York. Fate steps in, & once again he's called upon to pose as Gardel. The Singing the Tangos performances & & music & blending between fantasy & reality (about Gardel) make this a very interesting film. The 1930s Argentina is recreated very faithfully with some great sets & cinematography. It is interesting to see Grandinetti before he lost all his hair & I never dream to see him in a musical singing role. He does quite well. The music & songs are fabulous if you are a fan of tango. Film ends with the question of whether Gardel was really killed in an accident. The film is romantic comedy musical Many (me included) have trouble getting the subtitles to work correctly. . 4 stars very interesting Argentinean film.

Esta es una de tantas historias de Gardel a la que en foldo todos quisieramos creerle.

This film made me love Carlos Gardel's music and interested in Astor Piazzolla's music as well. A film well worth watching.