Cuban Fury: Long Legs, Flat Fanta, Can’t Lose

The wheels started rolling for Cuban Fury one fateful night when Nick Frost drunkenly sent an email to a producer friend of his. She loved the idea and the film received the green light to start. What followed was seven months of dance training and the accruing of a wonderful supporting cast. The finished product is an earnest little film with a nice heart and a supporting cast who moonwalk away with all the best scenes.

The best parts of Cuban Fury involve the eclectic supporting cast. Chris O’Dowd (lovely long legs), Ian McShane and Kayvan Novak steal the show. Novak was hilarious in Four Lions and he imbues the film with cheeky randomness . Whether he is drinking flat Fanta or giving Nick Frost the Pretty Woman treatment everything he does is pure gold. I really hope the guy starts landing larger roles because he holds the screen like none other.

Nick Frost makes for a likable schlub whom happens to dance well. He was a child dancing prodigy who hung up his shoes after a massive beat down by bullies. Twenty years later he works as an engineer who has given up on women and simply goes about the daily grind. However, a conveniently single new American boss shows up and gives Nick a reason to dance again. His journey gets him in contact with his spurned old coach played by the always reliable Ian McShane. McShane is given little to do but you can’t help but love his long hair and constant vodka drinking. His character must be the cousin of his stepdad Frank from Hot Rod.

The biggest problem with Cuban Fury is that the main romance is about as intricate as a two-step. It is convenient (she dances salsa), contrived (two meet cutes) and comes across as flatter than Kayvan’s Fanta. Rashida Jones is stuck with the nice, gullible and conveniently single love interest role. Frost isn’t treated much better as he is saddled with playing a sad sack who has the most depressing yogurt eating on the planet. Together, they make each other mix tapes and endure Chris O’Dowd saying things like “I’m going to splash inside that like a milk truck hitting a wall.”

Despite its romance woes Cuban Fury is a likable film that wins you over. After the film was over my wife and I had big smiles on our faces and we wanted to watch Four Lions. It ain’t Shakespearean Salsa yet doesn’t need to be. The original idea survives the familiar tropes and manages to become feel good fluff. I can’t wait to see what Frost does next and hope Kayvan Novak can come up with more fun characters.

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