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In an equitable world, Levan Gelbakhiani, the lead actor in the Tbilisi-set “And Then We Danced,” would be thrust to stardom for his extraordinary performance as a dancer who finally acts on his gay desires. But this is far from an equitable world, and though the uneven film is likely to get significant attention from festivals, when was the last time a captivating young Georgian actor-dancer made it big on the international scene?

Following its launch in Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes, writer-director Levan Akin’s second feature should easily leap beyond the Lgbt ghetto and find love among multiple demographics. But as in Akin’s previous film, “Certain People,” the script here too often slips into cliché, yet the filmmaking skills are frequently exceptional and Gelbakhiani is riveting. Akin goes to great lengths to ensure that audiences unfamiliar with Georgian customs appreciate just how formalized and conservative traditional Georgian dance...