Rotten Tomatoes

Movies / TV

    Celebrity

      No Results Found

       View All       Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes

      The Business of Fancydancing

      Released Jan 15, 2002 1 hr. 43 min. Drama List
      57% 30 Reviews Tomatometer 73% 500+ Ratings Audience Score A successful poet (Evan Adams) and an old buddy (Gene Tagaban), both American Indians, reunite for the funeral of their longtime friend. Read More Read Less

      Audience Reviews

      View All (23) audience reviews
      Audience Member There was a lot of bad acting that was exasperated by the extremely low budget and dialogue that at many times far too poetic for the types of characters and situations being presented to the viewer. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Audience Member I liked it. I've often pondered the whole,"Big fish in a little pond, or small fish in a big pond" question. And even the question about cross-cultural acceptance. Do I want to move to this place and be mostly the image of what they think I should be and play their song and dance for them, or I should I just say "fuck you and keep your damn culture. I don't want to be somewhere that I'm only seen for What I am and not who I am." I still haven't decided, but I have my suspicions that I'll end up just like Seymour. The martyr/outcast on one end and the selfish traitor on the other. As for the pond question- if it's toxic, leave. You gotta be a happy fish. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Audience Member I realy liked a few bits but on a whole i didnt love it. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Audience Member I've recently been devouring any/all Sherman Alexie books I can get my hands on and loving them as well as the film 'Smoke Signals' which he wrote but did not direct. I went into this film, with Alexie making his directorial debut, expecting to love it just the same but his lack of experience in this area definitely shows and drags the movie down. The pacing is poor, most of the inexperienced actors were bland (and so likely not directed well), and, worst of all, the story's non-linear structure was completely arbitrary. Don't get me wrong, I love the whole non-linear storytelling method more often than not, but when a story really isn't complex in any way it doesn't call for that. I think the movie on a whole would have been better if it had been done in a basic point a to point b progression. It does still have its strengths, however. Alexie's writing is still spot on even if the delivery of it by the actors is often lacking and Evan Adams (from Smoke Signals) gives another great performance. All in all, however, I'd recommend avoiding the film unless you're an aficionado of Alexie's work or are deeply interested in contemporary Native American culture. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Audience Member Touching and thought provoking. Evan Adam shines in this film. To me this film is about the saying You can't go home again well sometimes you can but it is never the way you left it in the first place. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member An adventerous experiment that works more often than not, this movie plays fast and loose with chronology, format and setting. It is difficult at times to determine if everything in it is actually happening, but that isn't because it is particualrly surreal - Just an experiment. And the story itself is told quite well in these snippets, these snapshots. I found the cast to be quite tight and the overall narative to be pretty dynamic, although there are some moments of self - indulgent or over rightiousness - I think he does a good job of making every character human and drawing them out pretty fully. This movie rewards multiple viewings, and in fact may require them to make sense of it all. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

      Cast & Crew

      Show Less Cast & Crew Show More Cast & Crew

      More Like This

      View All Best Movies to Stream at Home
      40% % Money Buys Happiness 93% 81% In the Bedroom 13% 80% The Rising Place 89% 90% Baran 25% 46% Between Strangers Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

      Photos

      View All The Business of Fancydancing photos

      The Business of Fancydancing

      The Business of Fancydancing (2002) The Business of Fancydancing (2002) The Business of Fancydancing (2002) The Business of Fancydancing (2002) Evan Adams and Gene Tagaban in THE BUSINESS OF FANCYDANCING, written and directed by Sherman Alexie. Writer/director Sherman Alexie on the set of THE BUSINESS OF FANCYDANCING. View more photos

      Critics Reviews

      View All (30) Critics Reviews
      Janice Page Boston Globe Feels a bit like a racy after-school special. Rated: 2.5/4 Nov 27, 2002 Full Review David Hunter Hollywood Reporter Where it goes wrong is in the combination of poetic sensibilities and run-of-the-mill narrative cinema. Oct 25, 2002 Full Review Kevin Thomas Los Angeles Times It bristles with a passion and intelligence too intense to allow the film's style to seem pretentious. Rated: 3.5/5 Oct 24, 2002 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 4.5/5 Dec 6, 2005 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Oct 1, 2005 Full Review Michael Szymanski Zap2it.com Rated: 0/5 Sep 21, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis A successful poet (Evan Adams) and an old buddy (Gene Tagaban), both American Indians, reunite for the funeral of their longtime friend.
      Director
      Sherman Alexie
      Executive Producer
      John Benear, Bradford Bond
      Screenwriter
      Sherman Alexie
      Genre
      Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Jan 15, 2002, Original
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $174.7K