If Tango Shalom feels somewhat familiar, it’s probably because of its close kinship with My Big Fat Greek Wedding. The film was produced by Joel Zwick, who directed My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and among other familiar faces is Golden Globe-nominated Lainie Kazan. Tango Shalom is a similarly hilarious and family friendly romp that plays on cultural stereotypes and cross-cultural misunderstandings. Tango Shalom, though, places religion in the spotlight.
We follow the exploits of Moshe Yehuda, played by Jos Laniado. Moshe, a Hasidic rabbi in Brooklyn, has run into financial trouble. If he can’t raise enough funds, his school will close. His brother can’t help, since he’s also in serious financial, and possibly legal, trouble. So the only reasonable thing for Moshe to do is to enter a tango dancing competition. This situation is not quite as outlandish in the film as it sounds, but it’s close. Moshe is clearly a good dancer. And when he spots Viviana (played by Karina Smirnoff of Dancing with the Stars fame), a tango instructor he’s captivated – but only by her dancing. She invites him in to her studio and she’s impressed with his moves. Sadly, she’s been jilted by her dancing partner and cannot find anyone to join her in the competition. We’ll ignore the likelihood that a professional tango instructor wouldn’t know a soul who could serve as partner. This isn’t the kind of movie that will survive a lot of poking and prodding as far as realism is concerned, but if you can suspend your disbelief, this is a tremendously fun ride.
In any case, Moshe sees the prize money from the tango competition as the answer to all of his problems. The only problem is that, as a devout Jewish man, he is not allowed to touch a woman. He speaks to a more senior rabbi, who offers little help. the obvious solution for Moshe is to conduct a survey of various religious leaders in search of an answer to his dilemma. The priest and imam aren’t very helpful, but the slightly manic Sikh Moshe questions manages to find a quirky solution that seems to get around the religious prohibition against him touching a woman other than his wife. His wife, meanwhile, is not terribly impressed with this situation, but eventually accepts that her husband is probably only dancing with this beautiful and much younger tango dancing woman for the money.
Sprinkled throughout the film are Moshe’s dreams of being in the desert with, presumably, Moses, who points out the promised land. The promised land, though, turns out to be Crown Heights in Brooklyn. The implication here seems to be that there was really no promised land for just one people. Just as Israel, from the time of Moses down to modern days has never been a homogenous paradise for one group, so the modern promised land, the United States, or, apparently, Brooklyn, is a place where a multitude of diverse groups must learn to get along as best they can.
Overall, this is a feel good film about showing the possibility of bringing members of different faiths and dancing techniques together. At times it feels like the film is on thin ice as far as its reliance on caricatures of various groups. The Muslims are standoffish, and perhaps even a bit threatening when Moshe approaches them. The wise old priest is a bit of a stock character. And the Sikh is a borderline madman. But we always stay on the side of good fun and it would take a lot of effort to find something genuinely offensive here. In a time of extreme polarization, the message of peace and tolerance is just what we need these days. Indeed, this film is the first joint collaboration with The Vatican, a Hasidic Synagogue, a Sikh Temple, and a Mosque.
As one might expect, the dancing is a big draw here. The competition at the end does not disappoint. Moreover, the film has a fantastic soundtrack, including tracks from Grammy-nominated Daniel Binelli, The Vatican Choir, Touch-and-Go, and modern Klezmer bands, Golem, The Burning Bush and others.
Tango Shalom has been doing very well on the festival circuit, including accolades for Laniado for best actor from the Montreal Independent Film Festival, as well as best film. It also won “Best Jaipur Critics Film” at the Jaipur International Film Festival in India.
By: Darida Rose
© 2021. UniversalCinema Mag.