‘Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!’ Offers a Bittersweet Dance Through Grief

In Josef Kubota Wladyka’s film Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!, grief is portrayed not as a linear path but as a complex force that can drive people to extremes. Rinko Kikuchi stars as Haru, a woman whose life in Tokyo is upended by the death of her husband, Luis, portrayed by Alejandro Edda. The couple shared a deep romantic connection reflected in their competitive ballroom dancing, but following his passing, Haru withdraws from friends and family and abandons the dance floor entirely.

Nine months later, Haru is convinced to return to the studio, where she encounters Fedir, played by Alberto Guerra. A strikingly talented instructor, Fedir reawakens Haru’s sense of possibility. The narrative weaves together unbridled desire, fantasy sequences on ordinary Tokyo streets, and raw emotion, offering a warm and humorous exploration of how different individuals cope with loss.

Kikuchi’s performance provides the film’s emotional anchor. Her portrayal captures Haru’s journey from near-emotional paralysis to exhilaration, and finally to a painful but necessary transformation. The film notes that Haru must become a new person, integrating her past memories rather than attempting to return to her former self.

Visually, the movie contrasts the warmth of Haru and Luis’s home—centered around a wall of vinyl records—with the limbo-like atmosphere Haru experiences after his death. She perceives Luis’s presence whimsically, often visualized as a large black Tweety Bird with dark eyes, symbolizing both comfort and danger.

A pivotal dream ballet sequence features the bachata genre, where Fedir defends Haru from drunken businessmen. This choreographed moment serves as a metaphor for reengaging with life, leading to an intimate encounter between the two. However, complications arise when Fedir’s wife, a dance champion based in Paris, appears, prompting Haru to confront uncontrollable jealousy and anger.

Kikuchi, known for roles in Babel, Pacific Rim, and Tokyo Vice, smoothly transitions between sorrow and joy. The film concludes with Haru finding her way forward through music and dance, suggesting that moving on requires accepting change one step at a time.