Lopez-Gere charm takes the lead in a delightful 'Shall We Dance?'

Experience has taught us that when Hollywood remakes a classic Japanese movie, it's never as good as the original. (There are exceptions to this rule, of course: the biggest being "The Magnificent Seven," which even Kurosawa found more enjoyable than his original.)

MOVIE REVIEW

SHALL WE DANCE?

DIRECTOR: Peter Chelsom

CAST: Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez, Susan Sarandon

RUNNING TIME: 105 minutes

RATING: PG-13 for some sexual references and brief language

WHERE: Alderwood 7, Cinema 17, Crossroads 8, Everett 9, Factoria, Galleria 11, Issaquah 9, Kirkland Parkplace 6, Longston Place 14, Marysville Cinema 14, Metro, Mountlake 9, Oak Tree, Pacific Place, Parkway Plaza 12, Redmond Town Center, Renton Village, Woodinville 12

GRADE: B

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And if I had seen the beloved 1996 Japanese comedy, "Shall We Dance?," I'm sure I would be able to find all sorts of ways that this infinitely more expensive American version co-starring Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez falls short of its model.

But since I somehow managed to miss that movie, I can only report that, while its situations are never hugely believable, this long-delayed remake is otherwise a consistently delightful comedy of character and a surprisingly strong showcase for its stars.

It's the story of a successful, middle-age, happily married Chicago accountant (Gere), whose tightly structured life comes undone one evening when, from his commuter train, he spots a dance instructor (Lopez) standing poetically in the window of her dance studio.

Impulsively and without telling his wife (Susan Sarandon), he signs up for ballroom dance lessons and, though his entry into this world is at first very shaky, he stays the course and the movie traces the impact this decision has on his life and family.

The big flaw in the movie is that its story really doesn't transplant convincingly to contemporary America. Its characters and situations would be much more believable in a period piece, or in an eccentric fringe culture such as the Australia of "Strictly Ballroom."

But if you can make that suspension of disbelief, "Shall We Dance?" is a warm-hearted and understated entertainment that's blissfully free of the heavy-handed crudity and other elements that have ravaged 21st-century Hollywood comedy.

Rebounding off the 2001 Warren Beatty flop, "Town and Country," British director Peter Chelsom ("Funny Bones") keeps his big stars under control, supports them with a winning ensemble of characters and subtly communicates the appeal of the lost art of ballroom dancing.

Lopez could hardly be better. Her antics as an off-screen diva have made her something of a joke in the industry, but there's an undeniable magic about her, and in this most constrained of her movie roles, it comes through with a special poignancy.

Gere is even more endearing. Happy to play his age and make fun of himself, and abandoning all the cockiness that made his early persona so unbearable, he's become an object lesson in how the waning years of a great movie star can definitely be his best.

P-I movie critic William Arnold can be reached at 206-448-8185 or williamarnold@seattlepi.com.