Carlos Saura is a genius, and Tango is a paragon of his artistic vision and cleverness. The staging (all in a studio) is wildly imaginative, with dazzling and stirring number after number. I didn't really care whether there was a storyline given how powerful the dancing was, particularly any time the character, Laura, was on screen. However, there is a very clever set of story lines woven together in an almost mischievous way, or as the young folk today would say, 'very meta'. In case the stories of Mario, his show and Argentina since the turn of the 20th Century weren't enough, the mirrored sets add an extra level of irony. The lighting and music are almost characters in themselves in this film, which is not to diminish the strong, subtle acting. I absolutely love this film, which left my mind blown as the final credits rolled.

I writing this review as much for people who watched this movie already as for people interested in watching it: this is not a movie about tango.This is, first of all, a movie about the making of a show. Many people seem to let this information escape, but we're subtlety informed about this from the very beginning. We're presented with the long process that goes in the head and daily work of director Mario. It's somehow a lesson of direction.Second to this, the show being made is about Argentinian life. It's a story of birth, passion, illusion, violence, betrayal, forgiveness and rebirth. And it's a very dense and beautiful story.And how is this story shown to us? It's shown by the way of tango, which then takes the central part of the movie.Having told that, now I hope you may let yourself being involved by this movie and watch it differently. And that you really enjoy the masterful work Saura has done to give you this absolutely beautiful movie. His direction of camera, light, music and actors is simply stunning. I truly believe this movie puts him side-by-side with the great ones like Kurosawa or Kubrick.

This is a visually stunning film which is a reflection on Argentina and its history, film-making, the connections between the past and the future, and of course Argentina's great tradition of dance. To bring it all together and make it personal, the through-line concerns a film director's budding romance with a young dancer he has discovered following his traumatic split with a legendary dancer. But that's one element of the film only, and not necessarily its most important element. The film tells us of Argentine history, the prevalence, and even the reemergence of its archetypal themes through the generations, romance, passion, freedom, repression, violence, hope--all told in the language of the tango.The cinematography is first-rate, the overlapping narrative elements (the love story, the story of film-making and its struggles, the story of Argentina in the 20th century, and the story of dance itself) is engaging. But the real reason to see this film is the dancing, which is quite simply stunning. Among the cast are dancers legendary not only in Argentina, but across the world. Mia Maestro, who plays the young up-and-coming dancer, has the exhilarating but probably terrifying job of dancing among all these professionals. While her own dance training is not as extensive as the men and women she dances with, however, she does a really wonderful job in her own dancing scenes--and only someone with significant dance experience will be able to spot the differences between her and the professional dancers.In some ways, though, even these differences make sense in the context of the story. Elena is the young dancer, and part of the drama that Saura presents is her own evolution in the tango. As she learns more, she becomes more alive to her history and her identity. Her dancing deepens throughout the film.And if you don't want to learn to dance the Argentine tango after you have seen this film, then you have no soul. Many thumbs up!

This movie is one of the most beautiful pieces i ever saw. It's such a pleasure to watch it. A prefect camera, gorgeous colors and exciting dancing scenes make this film a piece of poetry. The evidence is a lack of a strong story. This is just lyric film. It will make you happy. Surely.