''Born Romantic'' is a 2000 British film directed by David Kane. The film is centered on a salsa club and depicts four love stories. Fergus is trying to find the one he left behind on the eve of their wedding, charmer and Rat Pack fanatic Frankie woos the beautiful Eleanor and the robber Eddie falls hopelessly in love with dowdy cemetery worker Jocelyn. Meanwhile, taxi driver Jimmy is transporting all of them and dealing with a love story of his own.

Plot

Salsa dancing and 'El Corazon', a London Salsa Club provide the backdrop for the love-inspired efforts of three unlikely romantics: Fergus (

David Morrissey David Mark Joseph Morrissey (born 21 June 1964) is an English actor and filmmaker. Described by the British Film Institute as "one of the most versatile English actors of his generation", he is noted for the meticulous preparation and research h ...

), who arrives in London from his native Liverpool, on a search for Maureen ('Mo') Docherty (

Jane Horrocks Barbara Jane Horrocks (born 18 January 1964) is a British actress. She portrayed the roles of Bubble and Katy Grin in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulous''. She was nominated for the 1993 Olivier Award for Best Actress for the title role in th ...

), the high-school sweetheart he jilted years ago. Eddie (

Jimi Mistry Jimi Mistry (born 1 January 1973) is a retired British actor. He is known for appearing in numerous films such as '' East Is East'' (1999), '' The Guru'' (2002), ''Ella Enchanted'' (2004), '' The Truth About Love'' (2005), ''Blood Diamond'' (20 ...

), the incompetent mugger who falls for Jocelyn (

Catherine McCormack Catherine Jane McCormack (born 3 April 1972) is an English actress of stage and screen. Her film appearances include ''Braveheart'' (1995), ''The Land Girls'' (1998), ''Dangerous Beauty'' (1998), ''Dancing at Lughnasa'' (1998), ''Spy Game'' (20 ...

), the neurotic "absentee grave tender" (she tends the graves of loved ones for people who cannot). Frankie ( Craig Ferguson), a hopeless romantic trapped in the fifties and still sharing a house with his ex. He pursues the elegant and snobbish Eleanor (

Olivia Williams Olivia Haigh Williams (born 26 July 1968) is a British actress who has appeared in British and American films and television. After studying drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years followed by three years at the Royal Shakesp ...

), art restorer by day and Salsa dancer by night. All are connected by Jimmy (

Adrian Lester Adrian Anthony Lester (born Anthony Harvey; 14 August 1968) is a British actor, director and writer. He is the recipient of a Laurence Olivier Award, an Evening Standard Theatre Award and a Critics' Circle Theatre Award for his work on the ...

), a cab driver, and a place, 'El Corazon'.

Cast

* Craig Ferguson as Frankie *

as Mo *

as Jimmy *

as Jocelyn *

as Eddie *

as Fergus *

as Eleanor *

Kenneth Cranham Kenneth Cranham (born 12 December 1944) is a Scottish film, television, radio and stage actor. Early life Cranham was born in Dunfermline, Fife, the son of Lochgelly-born Margaret McKay Cranham (née Ferguson) and Ronald Cranham, a London-bor ...

as Barney * John Thomson as First Cab Driver *

Ian Hart Ian Davies (born 8 October 1964), better known by his stage name Ian Hart, is an English actor. His most notable roles are Rabbit in the Channel Four drama miniseries '' One Summer'' (1983), Joe O'Reilly in the biopic ''Michael Collins'' (1996 ...

as Second Cab Driver *

Paddy Considine Patrick George Considine (born 5 September 1973) is an English actor, director, and screenwriter. He frequently collaborates with filmmaker/director Shane Meadows. He has received two British Academy Film Awards, three Evening Standard Brit ...

as Ray *

Hermione Norris Hermione Jane Norris (born 5 December 1966) is an English actress. She attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in the 1980s, before taking small roles in theatre and on television. In 1996, she was cast in her breakout role of Ka ...

as Carolanne *

Sally Phillips Sally Elizabeth Phillips (born 10 May 1970) is an English actress, television presenter, and comedian. She co-created and was one of the writers of the sketch comedy show '' Smack the Pony''. She is also known for her roles in '' Miranda'' as T ...

as Suzy *

Jessica Hynes Tallulah Jessica Elina Hynes (''née'' Stevenson; born 30 October 1972) is an English actress, director and writer. Known professionally as Jessica Stevenson until 2007, she was one of the creators, writers and stars of the British sitcom ''Spac ...

as Libby * Ashley Walters as Lee

Production notes

The film features various

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

locations, including the interior of the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

. The interior scenes of the Salsa club 'El Corazon' were filmed in a real Salsa club called the Loughborough Hotel in Loughborough Road, Brixton, South London, now a converted block of flats. Also all the Salsa dancers were club members who participated in the film as extras. The

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack ...

includes a number of Latin dance hits: * "Píntame", performed by

Elvis Crespo Elvis Crespo Díaz (born July 30, 1971) is an Puerto Rican singer and songwriter of the Merengue genre. He has won multiple awards, including a Grammy and a Latin Grammy Award in merengue. Early years Crespo was born in New York City and was na ...

* "Acuyuye", performed by DLG * "Ella Fue" performed by

Fania All-Stars The Fania All-Stars is a musical group formed in 1968 as a showcase for the musicians on Fania Records, the leading salsa music record label of the time. History Beginnings In 1964, Fania Records was founded in New York City by Jerry Masucci, a ...

* "Yo No Como Camaron" performed by Saoco * "Oye Como Va" performed by

Cheo Feliciano Cheo Feliciano (3 July 1935 – 17 April 2014) was a Puerto Rican singer and composer of salsa and bolero music. Feliciano was the owner of a recording company called "Coche Records". He was the first tropical singer to perform at the "Amira de ...

* "Bururu Barara" performed by

Fruko y sus Tesos Fruko y sus Tesos is a salsa group from Colombia that is popular in both Latin America and the United States. It was formed in 1969 by multi-instrumentalist Julio Ernesto Estrada (aka Fruko). Beginning with ''Tesura'' in 1969, the band has recorded ...

* "Ran Kan Kan" performed by

Tito Puente Ernest Anthony Puente Jr. (April 20, 1923 – June 1, 2000), commonly known as Tito Puente, was an American musician, songwriter, bandleader, and record producer of Puerto Rican descent. He is best known for dance-oriented mambo and Latin jazz ...

* "Ojalá" performed by

Kassav Kassav' is a French Caribbean band formed in Guadeloupe in 1979. The core members of the band are Jacob Desvarieux, Jocelyne Béroard, Jean-Philippe Marthély, Patrick St. Eloi, Jean-Claude Naimro, Claude Vamur, and Georges Décimus (who left t ...

* "La Engandora" performed by Ruben Gonzalez * "Yamulemau" performed by

Joe Arroyo Álvaro José Arroyo González (also known as Joe Arroyo or El Joe; 1 November 1955 – 26 July 2011) was a Colombian salsa and tropical music singer, composer and songwriter. He was considered one of the greatest performers of Caribbean music i ...

* "Como Ves" performed by

Ozomatli Ozomatli is an American rock band, formed in 1995 in Los Angeles. They are known both for their vocal activist viewpoints and incorporating a wide array of musical styles – including salsa, jazz, funk, reggae, hip hop, and others. The group ...

* " La Bomba" performed by

Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography spanning ...

* "Indestructible" performed by Robby Salinas * "L.O.V.E." performed by Craig Ferguson * "Sway" performed by Dean Martin * "Baby Won't You Please Come Home" performed by

and Dean Martin * "Fear & Love" performed by

Morcheeba Morcheeba is an English electronic band formed in the mid-1990s with founding members vocalist Skye Edwards and the brothers Paul and Ross Godfrey. They mix influences from trip hop, rock, folk rock and downtempo, and have produced ten regula ...

* "Doin Jobz 4 Tha Mob" performed by Pigforce * "Yes Sir I Can Boogie" performed by

Nina Miranda Nina Miranda is a Brazilian-born English singer and songwriter who was a member of English bands Smoke City, Shrift and Zeep. Life and career Miranda was born in Brasília, Distrito Federal. Her mother is the English Liz Thompson-Miranda; ...

* "My Own High" performed by Shiver

References

External links

* * * * * {{Metacritic film 2000 films United Artists films Films set in London Films shot in London British romantic comedy films 2000 romantic comedy films Salsa 2000s English-language films 2000s British films