A father daughter story that needs some better dance moves.

“Rhythm is a Dancer” regards a young woman secretly trying to find her biological father, and she’s probably right to do so, because of the cliche where her lesbian mother wants nothing more to do with him. It would be conceivable that whoever her father is, he would be well-meaning, but caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. And it would make sense that this movie is on a small scale, because it doesn’t really delve itself into new territory or into further territory.

When I first heard about this movie, I found out that Tate Donovan would be cast, and I was delighted. He has made a name for himself with movies like “Hercules,” “Shooter,” “Manchester by the Sea,” and “Argo,” and the list goes on, indicating that he is a great character actor. When I told him “Manchester” was my number one Best of the Decade choice, he said: “It’s a powerful movie.” And when I found out he played a stern stepfather in “The Holdovers,” I was thinking: “Naaa. I can’t stay mad at him. He’s such a likable guy.” He’s likable in “Rhythm is a Dancer,” but his story sells itself short.

Ro (the writer/director Lauren Caster) is a young dance instructor who loses her job, can’t keep a steady relationship, and is looking for her biological father. She was raised by her lesbian mother Susan (Amy Aquino) through insemination, and therefore, she never grew up with any father figure. In fact, her mother had lesbian friends who helped out a bit, which is why they would be known as a “lesbian wolf pack.” And her friends include retirees (Robert Costanzo, Beau Billingslea, and Ellen Gerstein), who don’t get visitors at the nursing facility, and her childhood friend (Jasmine Ashanti), who is also a mom with two boys.

Then one day, she receives a phone call about a man named Gregory (Donovan) being her biological father. Without telling her mother, they meet and it works out well. He has a family with a wife and two smart sons, and he acknowledges that things were different for him back then, which is why he donated sperm. But don’t go thinking it’s another take on “The Kids Are All Right,” because it starts to lose some of that development.

Caster does some good work in front of the camera as she tries to figure out her own life-where did she come from, where is she going, and how can she thrive on whatever life throws at her. And her respective scenes with Donovan and Aquino have truth, while her scenes with Costanzo, Billingslea, and Gerstein have more charm than a “Book Club” sequel would have, and I skipped the second film. Their characters are likable enough for an indie film to contain, but the screenplay doesn’t give them much credit.

We also have the main heroine arranging a prom for the elderly, while her mother finds out about the truth and gets upset a little early. She has to find out at some point, but it seems desperate to be like those movie mothers being estranged. I’m just glad the film is never a broken record on the subject matter. “Rhythm is a Dancer” is about a dancer trying to figure out her life, but the story needs better dance moves.

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