Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing and Charm School

Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing and Charm School is an enchanting tale of true love and dedication that goes beyond the frailty of our mortal lives.

Bakery owner Frank Keane witnesses a car wreck while making his daily deliveries, and discovers the driver Steve (John Goodman) barely alive. Frank listens to the dying man's life story as paramedics remove his severely injured body from the mangled vehicle and transport him to the hospital. Overcome with sympathy for the victim, Frank agrees to fulfill the victims dying wish, a 40-year old promise to meet his true love at the Marilyn Hotchkiss School on the "fifth day, of the fifth month, of the fifth year of the new millennium." Frank subsequently shows up at the appointment and finds new meaning in life through dancing, despite not meeting Steve's long lost love Linda.

Marilyn Hotchkiss is a well executed feature-length continuation of a 1990 short-film featured at Sundance. The screenplay is decent and interestingly structured to include the original short film. The characters are fairly believable and charismatic, yet lack motivation or can be over-the-top at times. The story is cross-cut between three locations and time periods, distinguished by different visual styles. The childhood past of Steve is characterized by old, grainy film footage with an orange tint. The accident scene, which is also the past, was shot with a distinguishing bluish tint. And the present looks like a normal film would. The combination of footage during the editing process adds an interesting, nostalgia to the overall film while establishing a consistent dynamic that drives the narrative and keeps the film interesting.

While Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing and Charm School isn't necessarily amazing, it is definitely entertaining, mostly attributed to the eclectic and talented cast. The story is heart-warming and charming, but it tends to get a little too bogged down with sentimentality, becoming almost cheesy at points.