Mad About Mambo

Mad About Mambo is a 2000 romantic comedy film written and directed by John Forte. It stars William Ash, Keri Russell and Brian Cox.

Plot
A boy obsessed with football finds his life changing dramatically once he adds a little Samba. Danny (Ash) plays on the football team at the all-boys Catholic school he attends in Belfast. Danny's three best friends, who also play on the team, all have different ambitions for their lives. Mickey (Maclean Stewart) wants to be a fashion designer so he can get rich and date supermodels. Gary (Russell Smith) wants to become a magician so he can get rich and meet beautiful women (and presumably saw them in half). And Spike (Joe Rea) likes to beat people up, so he wants to become a mercenary and do it for a living. But Danny dreams of making football his life.

The players Danny most admires are South Americans, such as Pele and Carlos Riga, who he feels have a special rhythm and flexibility. Wanting to add some of these qualities to his own game, Danny has an idea: he'll take Samba lessons, in the hope that dancing like a South American will help him play like a South American. To the surprise of himself and his friends, Danny turns out to be a pretty good Latin dancer and finds himself smitten with a student in his dance class, Lucy (Russell). However, Lucy happens to have a boyfriend, who is a fierce competitor on one of Danny's rival teams. The film also stars Brian Flanagan who plays an inspiring cameo role along with members of Celbridge Town Football Club.

Cast

 * William Ash as Danny Mitchell
 * Keri Russell as Lucy McLoughlin
 * Brian Cox as Sidney McLoughlin
 * Maclean Stewart as Mickey
 * Joe Rea as Spike
 * Russell Smith as Gary
 * Theo Fraser Steele as Oliver Parr
 * Tim Loane as Brother McBride
 * Jim Norton as Brother Xavier
 * Rosaleen Linehan as Mrs Burns
 * Aingeal Grehan as Mrs Mitchell
 * Gavin O'Connor as Seamus Mitchell
 * Alan McKee as Frank Mallon
 * Julian Littman as Rudi Morelli
 * Daniel Caltagirone as Carlos Rega

Jackie Fullerton also makes a cameo as himself.

Production
Despite being set in Belfast, the majority of filming took place in Dublin. Filming began in May 1998.

Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 57% based on reviews from 14 critics. John Walker, in Halliwell's Film, Video & DVD Guide, wrote: 'Oddly titled corny romance - it has nothing to do with the mambo - that is frequently implausible but gets by on the charm of its two stars.'