"Nick Frost might not strike many as a convincing leading man but Cuban Fury proves that looks can most definitely be deceiving"

Nick Frost might not strike many as a convincing leading man but Cuban Fury proves that looks can most definitely be deceiving. A homegrown romantic comedy, Cuban Fury was born out of Nick Frost drunkenly emailing producer Nira Park in the middle of the night. A salsa influenced justice-boner inducing flick - don’t let the Valentine's release worry you - this isn’t a throwaway comedy but a genuinely funny and thoughtfully acted gem.

The story starts with Bruce Garrett (Nick Frost) as a young boy twirling and salsa-ing his way into the top competitions in the country with his sister (the woefully underrated Olivia Coleman). Bully’s spoil Bruce’s dreams and we catch with him years later as he’s slogging away at the 9-to-5 and enjoying pints down the pub with his friends. Screenwriter Jon Brown and director James Griffiths deviate from the standard ‘lonely man is lonely’ cliché. Garrett enjoys his job and is good at it and we also learn what we does rather then being shown a non-descript office and he has friends who don’t seem like utter idiots. So far for romantic movie clichés about hard done by middle class white men, we’ve tackled some hurdles.

Bruce is okay, but he isn’t truly happy. It isn’t until his new American and annoyingly gorgeous boss Julie (Rashida Jones) jostles him out of his routine and reveals her secret love of salsa. Bruce realizes that his teenage passion isn’t embarrassing anymore but he can’t seem to really push himself to rediscover the passion that once made him so happy. Unfortunately for Bruce his co-worker Drew (Chris O’Dowd) has Julie in his crosshairs, O’Dowd plays the bullish, arrogant work mate perfectly. Bruce’s old salsa mentor (Ian McShane) is introduced to much acclaim and he accents the film with his miserable and typically British demeanor throughout. The film has intermissions of truly fantastic dancing and builds to an excruciatingly tense finale – okay that cliché is well and truly in place.

Cuban Fury is a film that is quick on its feet but also genuinely fun to watch. It’s heart warming in a way that will slyly bring a smile to your face whether you like it or not. It’s a perfect platform for Nick Frost, who usually can be found with Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, to find his footing from supporting player to leading man.