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Arriving in the United States in 1981 on a cultural exchange as a dancer with the Houston Ballet, Li (Chi Cao) is bemused and enthralled by the Western influences he's been taught in China to distrust. It's vastly different to the life he's led growing up in rural Shandong province then training at the Beijing Dance Academy in the 1970s, which we witness through flashbacks for the first half of the film.

The rest of the film is much more linear and depicts the muddled circumstances that led to Li's decision to defect as well as some of the political machinations that complicated that decision.

Frustratingly, the drama arrives half-an-hour too late, the motives seem mixed and the outcome too amiable for the level of intrigue depicted. At times the film feels a little bit like “Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story” meets “Centre Stage”, but with communists (lite) throwing spanners in the works.

Putting aside that Sydney audiences may be distracted by familiar city locations masquerading as Houston in the early 1980s, the main problem with “Mao's Last Dancer” will probably be its redeeming quality for many audience members.

A number of elegant dancers have been cast in leading roles, but the dialogue is delivered less convincingly than the pirouettes are performed. Mind you, it's probably easier to forgive overly earnest acting than it would've been to ignore clumsy dancing, particularly if you fancy going to the cinema to see the ballet.

Two stars from me ( for the dancing)