Cuban Fury, 2014.
Directed by James Griffiths.
Starring Nick Frost, Chris O’Dowd, Rashida Jones, Ian McShane, Olivia Colman, Kayvan Novak and Rory Kinnear.
SYNOPSIS:
Beneath Bruce Garrett’s under-confident, overweight exterior, the passionate heart of a salsa king lies dormant. Now, one woman is about to reignite his Latin fire.
Adequacy. Cuban Fury is not a bad film. Nick Frost is a charismatic lead, Rashida Jones is an entertaining presence and Chris O’Dowd adds “something.” Exactly what that something is is debatable. Maybe it lies in his newfound ability to play uptight arsehole with a concerning sense of glee and accuracy. Ian McShane appears, as if patiently awaiting a cheque and Kayvan Novak doesn’t play a terrorist. All this culminates in what can only be described as truly adequate.
Nick Frost stars as Bruce, a one time Salsa champion whom upon meeting his new boss Julia (Rashida Jones) aims to reignite his flame for dancing. There is nothing else. No real sub-plots, no moments of peril, it simply exists. The film alludes to a possible “relationship” between the straight Bruce and the extraordinarily camp Bejan but bottles it in fear of offending the audience. Even the ever reliable Olivia Coleman struggles with what little she has to do, used simply as a tool for exposition.
Not that it lacks something. Nick Frost’s charisma so evident in Edgar Wright’s “Cornetto Trilogy” adds a third dimension to a series of 2 dimensional characters and in truth can dance pretty well. One of few interesting set pieces – a dance fight between O’Dowd and Frost-is somewhat entertaining, less because of the gratuitous cameo from Frost’s best friend. O’Dowd is a truly dislikable and his comeuppance during the closing act feels rushed and strangely out of place in a plot very difficult to over complicate.
The problem with Cuban Fury isn’t that it’s terrible. There are some decent moments. The first five minutes has a couple of laugh out loud moment and there is something funny about watching a grown, slightly overweight man dance of an impressive quality. It’s a shame that it never truly attempts to move away from derivative and cliched humour. Nick Frost shouldn’t be concerned, his charisma will take him to far more impressive projects. Cuban Fury should probably be slid under to couch for the moment.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Thomas Harris
Originally published June 9, 2014. Updated April 12, 2018.
