The reviews are mixed, though most critics find something persuasive in the romance and performances. Praise clusters around Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas, whose chemistry and character work help make familiar material emotionally credible. Several critics also value the film’s willingness to address racial tensions, finding enough substance in the central relationship to offset some of the predictable plotting.
Reservations centre on formula, with even sympathetic reviews acknowledging how readily the story follows familiar routes. The dancing divides opinion: Total Film criticises awkward editing and the use of a body double, while Eye for Film welcomes the dance sequences as an education. The spread runs from warm approval to a strongly negative response from Empire, which finds the film patronising and its score intrusive, despite praising the cast and dance numbers. The clearest agreement concerns the performers; the disagreement is over how much they compensate for the script.