Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Guy Ferland

Writers (WGA):

Kate Gunzinger (story) and
Peter Sagal (story) ...

Release Date:

27 February 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Romance | Drama

Tagline:

Turn Up The Heat And Follow The Rhythm

Plot:

In November 1958, the American teenager Katey Miller moves with her parents and her younger sister to Havana...

Plot Keywords:

Revolution | Love | Cuba | Nightclub | Dancing

Cast

Diego Luna	...	Javier Suarez
Romola Garai	...	Katey Miller
Sela Ward	...	Jeannie Miller
John Slattery	...	Bert Miller
Jonathan Jackson	...	James Phelps
January Jones	...	Eve
Mika Boorem	...	Susie Miller
René Lavan	...	Carlos Suarez
Mya	...	Lola Martinez (as Mya Harrison)
Polly Cole	...	Polly (as Polly Cusumano)
Chris Engen	...	Steph
Tommy Kavelin	...	Señor Alonso
Wilmer Cordero	...	Teacher
Charlie Rodriguez	...	Grandpa Suarez
Donato Poveda	...	Troubador (as Donato)

Also Known As:

Dirty Dancing 2 (Australia) (Singapore: English title)
Havana Nights: Dirty Dancing 2 (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sensuality.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #40488) | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | Finland:K-7 | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Brazil:10 | Czech Republic:12 | Germany:o.Al. | Netherlands:12 | Norway:A | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG | Spain:T

Filming Locations:

Puerto Rico

Company:

Lions Gate Films

Trivia:

The movie was filmed in Puerto Rico and made to look like Cuba. Most of it was done in the colonial part of San Juan, Old San Juan a very popular hangout for Puerto Ricans and a very touristy area. In order to maintain the look and esthetic of the pre-Cuban revolution era, producers secured underground parking places for people that would visit Old San Juan during the shoot so that there wouldn't be any modern cars parked in the streets.

Goofs:

Continuity: James locks the car door before he tries to take advantage of Katey. When she leaves the car she doesn't unlock it.

Quotes:

Dance Class Instructor: Listen to me. I know that it's scary as hell to let another person touch that part of you. But if you do...
[smiles and puts her hand on his shoulder]
Dance Class Instructor: It's worth it.

Movie Connections:

Follows Dirty Dancing (1987)

Soundtrack:

A Comer

I enjoyed it

When I went in to see Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights, I expected it to be really bad with all the bad reviews labelling it as corny and ridiculous etc. So I was surprised when it turned out to be a better film that I expected. The acting was good and the dancing was hot. And even though the plot may have been unoriginal and predictable, nothing these days is really that new.

I thought Romola Garai (as Katey Miller) did a good job of keeping up an American accent. And Diego Luna (as Javier Suarez) does a great job of dancing and being a charismatic character, not to mention that he's pretty hot!

I haven't seen the original Dirty Dancing, but I think you should let this film stand on its own. Just because it uses the name, it doesn't mean they're linked.

On the whole, if you want to see a nice movie with lots of hot dancing, Havana Nights is for you. But if you're looking for something equal to the original, you may not like this one as much.