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Un tango más (2015)
A Passion for Tango Above All Else
"One Last Tango" recounts the (true) story of Maria Nieves Rega and Juan Carlos Copes, two professional Tango dancers who helped popularize it by taking it to the big stages in the world and thus make it known to audiences outside of the circles of Milongas (public Tango dance gatherings). They both met as teenagers and went on to dance professionally for 50 years, often and ultimately breaking up as a couple, but reconciling enough to keep on dancing professionally. Nieves speaks of this backdrop often as being instrumental in allowing her to carve out her own profile as the world's leading female Tango dancer as well as a woman of her own standing.
It is a remarkable feat of this production to add an artistic element to an otherwise largely documentary piece of film by enacting some of the interplay between the original artists with younger dancers and expressing some of the narrated parts by way of supreme choreography in spectacular, but not out-of-genre venues/theaters/dance halls. The dynamic of the "limelight" colliding with the often difficult, if not somewhat tragic personal relationship among the protagonists provides a deeply emotional layer which becomes all the more apparent through Nieves' replies to the interviewers. (the young dancers take on a double function as artists and interviewers as well). It almost appears as if the difficult personal life fuelled the passion between the dancers and their performances, where the latter are thrilling to watch - to this day. The movie's references to Gene Kelly and according film snippets don't feel inappropriate at all in their grace, athleticism and artistry.
One of the very poignant, moving bits is seeing both dancers still staying true to their life's passion by having continued to dance professionally into their older ages (she is 81, he is 84, both still appear on stages and with much younger dancing partners).
Cinematography, pace of the movie, the interviews, light and ambience, the architecture of the dancing venues and overall settings, the contrast between public and personal life and the younger dance ensemble paying tribute to their icons make this movie an all time favorite for me (and I'm not even a dancer, but feel compelled to give it a go after seeing this). I have a feeling that anyone with a general appreciation for music, the arts, dance is likely to spend quality time watching this one.