5 cinematic dance scenes bound to spark joy

In these uncertain times, when Covid-19 has restricted us to doing nothing, a little movement could do much more than what we need. Some people consider retail therapy while some consider binge-watching something online while in quarantine.

For many, binging and retail may not be ‘it’ though. The next best thing? These scenes that can make you groove without the intention of dancing at all. As compiled from Entertainment Weekly, here are some iconic cinematic dance scenes from the last few decades.

·  Gene Kelly in ‘It's Always Fair Weather’

Kelly’s remarkable ‘singing in the rain’ scenes have always been famous but have you seen the Hollywood classic tap-dance on roller skates? The fancy steps were seen in the 1955 number I Like Myself as a celebration of his character’s newly found self-esteem, a showcase of his athletic expertise.

·  Rosie Perez in ‘Do the Right Thing’

The kinetic opening few minutes of Rosie Perez’s Do the Right Thing (1989) feature a rather fierce intro with upbeat moves to Fight The Power while Perez flaunts a red leather jumpsuit and at one point, a body-hugging bodysuit. Perez said in 2017, "I don't watch it often 'cause it makes me crack up, especially the way my face was."

·  Hugh Grant in ‘Paddington 2’

Ben Whishaw’s protagonist and the ursine is a sweet marmalade in 2018’s Paddington 2 as he sows peace and generosity throughout London. The film’s happiest scenes include the very end moment when Grant’s choreographed rendition of Stephen Sondheim’s Rain on the Roof takes over our screens.

· Jon Heder in ‘Napoleon Dynamite’

The 2004 classic where Heder as Napolean left it all on the dance floor would make you want to grove to Jamiroquai’s Canned Heat. Heder shocked with funky, rhythmic but mostly improvised dance moves.

· Oscar Isaac in ‘Ex Machina’

Most scenes in this tech thriller tend to spark more dread than joy. But the film has one brief moment of pure exhilaration: when Oscar Isaac's character Nathan decides to "tear up the dance floor." Sporting a beard and a very low V-neck, he boogies to Oliver Cheatham's Get Down Saturday Night — an instant-classic dance scene that soon triggered a thousand memes.