Our Last Tango

Juan Carlos Copes and María Nieves Rego were the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers of tango. Instrumental in the creation of the modern tango in Buenos Aires, the pair took tango around the world, and even to Broadway with 1985's Tango Argentino. Filmmaker German Kral's documentary looks at their conjoined lives and careers—a complicated business, which found them still performing together years after they divorced and barely spoke to one another (and Copes married again). Our Last Tango gives both octogenarians the opportunity to tell their story from very different points of view (although Nieves is by far the more emotional and voluble of the two). To do this, Kral adopts an unconventional approach: Copes and Nieves frequently pour out their recollections to young dancers who also play them in glossy recreations of scenes from their past, including their dance routines (although archival footage of their signature “double gaucho” on a small table is also included). The mixture of reality and illusion makes for an engaging brew in this tale of two very different personalities—Copes is stern, unflappable, and still dancing, while Nieves is long-retired and seems high-strung, although she is lured back on stage for a final appearance with Copes. The heat between the pair is entirely appropriate for a film that celebrates two great practitioners of a dance that is so expressive of passion. Recommended. (F. Swietek)