It felt as I were slogging through the first four-fifths of the movie because I couldn't dismiss a feeling of anxiousness caused by not being able to figure out what the conflict was that was being resolved. It wasn't until the very end, when Julia returned from Vera Cruz that I accepted that the slog (Julia's journey of discovery and my sitting through it) was worthwhile. Ostensibly looking for Carmelo, the dancing partner that abandoned her, Julia becomes despondent in Mexico City so she takes a leave of absence from her job as a telephone operator, finds someone to look after her teenage daughter, and goes to Vera Cruz to chase down a sketchy lead. In Vera Cruz she stays in a harbor-side flop house among prostitutes and a disinterested but doting innkeeper, is befriended by a helpful transvestite and finally succumbs to the beauty of a younger tug boat captain. She returns to Mexico City having found herself instead of Carmelo.
Review of Danzón
