TASK DEFINITION: In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
PROBLEM: being that it is a foreign language film with no known names with a select number theaters showing it , " shall we dance " wo n't be seen by that many people .
and that 's a shame
- this is a funny , enchanting , and goofy movie full of laughs , surprises , and wonderful dance sequences .
the surprising thing about " shall we dance " is the universal appeal of the story .
a us version is in the works , and it 's no wonder -
it 's not really all that culture specific .
although there is a narrated set - up that adds some extra resonance to the proceedings ( about the view the japanese culture has about ballroom dancing ) , the movie is so rich in character and appeal that this added layer is n't at all necessary to understand or enjoy the film .
the only important unexplained japanese - specific reference that may leave some a bit puzzled is that 1000 yen is roughly $ 10 ( when you see the film - and you should see this film - you 'll know why ) . a middle aged company man realizes that achieving all the goals he set for himself in life ( a house , a child , and good marriage ) still does n't translate into a fulfilled life .
after glimpsing a melancholy beauty looking out from a dance studio window while on the train home from work , sugiyana ( koji yakusho ) decides after some trepidation to take up ballroom dance lessons in order to meet the woman who has stirred something in himself .
after finding the weekly fees for private lessons from the elegant and beautiful mai ( tamiyo kusakari ) too rich for his blood , sugiyama opts for groups lessons simply to be near her .
we then meet the players in this gem of a movie , who all have their own reasons for joining the class .
later on , we meet aoki at the dance studio ( naoto takenaka ) , a co - worker and all out weirdo and one of the laugh riot highlights of the film .
the story , laughs , and touching scenes evolve as the movie goes along .
it 's a pleasure to watch such a wonderful film that is propelled almost solely by the characters and performances .
it 's difficult to explain the charms of the film without revealing too much - the movie abounds with little revelations that subtly shape the characters , and in the end , each one is that much fuller and more understood by the time you leave the theater .
it 's one of those movies that only the french seem to make anymore - no big plot , no special effects , no gunplay , no tragic consequences , no forced examinations of the nature of love , and no insights into the nature of evil .
just a warm , funny , endearing film that will charm the pants off of you .
when was the last time you left a theater feeling all warm and fuzzy inside ?
" shall we dance " will do that to you without any treacly aftertaste .

SOLUTION: P

PROBLEM: arriving in a barrage of hype , the blair witch project is one of the biggest box office success of the year .
however , like the golden child , although blair witch has made a lot of money , it 's not very good .
donahue , williams and leonard play themselves as three students who set out to make a documentary about the blair witch myth .
the film is made up of the camcorder footage they recorded , which means grainy footage and woozy camera angles .
although events start of normal , they get weird pretty quickly , while the threesome argue more and more as the journey goes on .
although an interesting premise , the blair witch project amounts to nothing more than a missed opportunity .
the biggest mistake the film makes is to let three mediocre actors the chance to improvise .
most of the dialogue is ad - libbed , and still manages to sound like a poor b - movie .
the ' script ' eventually degenerates into shouting matches , with the f - word included a lot to sound like students .
there are breaks in these arguments where some creepy events occur , but then it 's back to the shouting and swearing , which gets very tiresome very quickly .
if i wanted to see three people get lost in the woods , shout a lot and swear , i 'd go on scout camp .
but no , the audience is meant to get some entertainment factor out of this , but i 'm not quite sure how .
the supernatural parts of the film are actually interesting , especially if close attention is paid to the story developing first twenty minutes .
with no music and no budget to work with , the film has to depend on natural , psychological scares , which are sometimes well delivered , sometimes not .
i never really felt truly scared during any part of the film , although there is a small sense of fear underlying throughout the film .
however , because the actors are so irritating , the scares are lost when it eventually reverts back to heather saying ' what the f * ck is that ? '
a lot , and mike giggling like a loony .
there 's also the niggling fact that these student filmmakers do some really stupid things .
the main problem is the fact that even though these hapless bunch could be killed at any moment , and are hopelessly lost , heather still insists on filming it all .
the film gives a half hearted reason why she should want to do this , but it is n't very convincing .
also , the students have no idea how to survive in the woods , such as following a large river flowing through the woods to civilisation .
there are also some parts where the ' amateur ' camcorder footage is obviously staged , heather 's apology being a major one .
the blair witch project , in the end , just fails to deliver .
i suppose if you 've been lost camping before , the film may deliver some chills , but this is no use for the other 99 % of the paying audience who have n't been lost in the woods .
apart from the final minutes , the film is mind boggingly unscary , and the shouting matches get hideously dull .
the spook scenes are short and far between , and any other horror movie could probably achieve the same amount of fear that these scenes provide .
although a good idea ,
it 's not executed well enough to be a fun , scary cinema experience .
it 's a worrying fact when the website ( http : //www . blairwitch .
com ) is better than the film .

SOLUTION: N

PROBLEM: an unhappy italian housewife , a lonely waiter , a goofy masseuse , lots of love , and gorgeous scenery all come together in bread and tulips , which proves charming despite its covering of predictable , well - worn material .
the story concerns the aforementioned housewife , rosalba barletta ( licia maglietta ) who accidentally becomes separated from her immediate family while on vacation .
instead of waiting for a ride home , rosalba opts not to go home to her italian town , but to instead hitchhike to venice . upon arriving , she tells her self - centered husband , mimmo ( an excellent antonio catania ) that she 'll be home in a few days .
of course , that does n't happen , as rosalba quickly gains a level of independence that has been unattainable in her past life of scrubbing floors and buying groceries .
in what seems like days , she moves in with lonely , suicidal waiter fernando ( bruno ganz ) , gets a job as a florist , learns the accordion , and befriends her neighbor -- a wacky holistic masseuse named grazia ( marina massironi ) .
rosalba , who is first seen wearing a gaudy stretch pants outfit , starts wearing sexy dresses and getting closer to fernando .
i can think of at least five other ( american ) movies ( including fried green tomatoes and an unmarried woman ) that are more than similar to bread and tulips .
but maglietta and ganz , who act with restraint and care , help bread and tulips from becoming a tired retread .
ganz plays the suicidal waiter role with a solemn , sometimes playful dignity that is a joy to watch , while maglietta never overreacts to her growing comfort with the outside world .
throughout the movie , maglietta has an easygoing , confident demeanor , which makes it very easy to root for her and her growing attraction for ganz 's character .
the gorgeous scenery of moonlit town squares and sparkling rivers provides a perfect love story backdrop
-- you just might want to ask the attractive stranger in the seat behind you for coffee after the lights come up .
director and co - writer silvio soldini must get credit for sprinkling the movie with effective goofy humor .
the cheap mimmo , desperate to find his wife ( after all , he needs his shirts ironed and his mistress wo n't do it ) , hires a job applicant ( giuseppe battiston ) at his bathroom supply firm to do the job .
the reason ?
mimmo discovers that the prospective plumber loves detective stories .
the novice detective 's various misfortunes , including him saying goodbye to his weepy mother , are very funny .
unfortunately , there are flaws that somewhat spoil bread and tulips ' cheery tone .
rosalba is bothered by several surreal dreams during her time in venice , which bring the movie to a halt .
it 's like putting a gunfight in a nora ephron movie .
several details in fernando 's life also never get proper closure , including his suicidal tendencies .
early in the movie , he nearly hangs himself before rosalba knocks on his apartment door .
after that , fernando 's step towards death is never made reference to , probably because soldini wanted to include a lukewarm , underdeveloped subplot about fernando 's stormy past .
it seems more like a desperate attempt to pump up the drama in a plot that does n't need any .
but there are n't a lot of overwhelming negatives in bread and tulips .
the movie is fun and romantic , with beautiful scenery and characters whose lives we 'd like to live if we had the nerve . . .
or if our passports were n't missing .

SOLUTION:
P