Title: Romancing Sydney (2025)
Director: Anmol Mishra
Writer: Anmol Mishra
Studio: Prosya Productions

IMDb Plot: Live. Love. Dance. Through a saga intertwined with dance pieces, six individuals embrace their emotions.

Joe Says: A light-footed love letter to connection, timing, and shared rhythm.

A romantic comedy using Sydney, Australia as a backdrop intertwines the lives of six couples who, like many a framed cliche commands, live, love, and dance the night away. Writer/director Anmol Mishra moves comfortably between heartfelt sincerity and sitcom-level antics, finding a groove that never fully collapses. When the dancing starts, Romancing Sydney truly comes alive. 

Romancing Sydney directed by Anmol Mishra

At the center of the dance floor are Elisa (Susanne Richter) and Sachin (Mishra), two strangers brought together by fate, timing, and the genre’s unbreakable rules. Their meeting ripples outward in a Robert Altman effect, pulling other couples into the pattern. Elisa dances with Alex (Connor Dowling), who is engaged to Zac (Brendan Wong), while Sachin works in a thrift store run by Lilli (Gabrielle Chan), the object of George’s (Peter Hayes) quiet longing.

Mishra structures these intersecting stories like a social dance, keeping things brisk and playful, favoring a foxtrot pace and saving the waltz for moments that need breathing room. 

When the waltz does occur, beautifully filmed in Sydney’s Hyde Park, it is an elegant showpiece. The sequence allows movement, music, and space to do the storytelling.

Romancing Sydney starring Anmol Mishra, Susanne Richter and featuring Hyde Park

Not everything glides effortlessly. Mishra flirts with Bollywood energy but ultimately opts for a Westernized, messy tango instead. He keeps the mood light and the dialogue even lighter. The comedic asides lean toward eye-rolling, while the relationships are often more grounded than dreamy. As Alex and Zac’s steps falter, Elisa and Sachin begin to move in sync. Lilli and George simply require mouthwash.

Romancing Sydney is at its best when it stops explaining feelings and lets bodies, music, and motion take over. 

Romancing Sydney starring Susanne Richter, Connor Dowling

Romancing Sydney is a charming indie that finds its heart in motion. This is a family-friendly romantic comedy elevated by movement, chemistry, and rhythm. Although the narrative may occasionally miss a step, sometimes all a love story needs is the right beat, a little swing, and the courage to stay on the floor until the music ends.

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