Yet another film about dancing. Joy. In this one, a thuggish young brute learns to love dance thanks to a beautiful girl. How original! I went into this film fully prepared to hate every frame, but despite it’s glaring errors (and it has more than a few) somehow I enjoyed myself enough to, marginally, recommend the film. I think fans of this genre will be satisfied and enjoy themselves (and the dates they drag along may be able to enjoy themselves a little too).
Step Up
3 Stars
You’ve seen this before, we all have. A girl falls for a guy from the wrong side of the tracks. A classically trained dancer learns to use hip hop moves to create a new revolutionary routine that will get her into the big time. Step Up is the latest dance film to recycle these themes. There is little originality, and even fewer surprises, but the choreography and presence of the films leading lady make up for some, though certainly not all, of its flaws.
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Tyler Gage (Channing Tatum, in a very accurate John Cena impersonation) is a thug who enjoys stealing cars, partying hard, destroying and vandalizing, and quitting anything that requires the smallest bit of effort, commitment, or time. After breaking in and vandalizing a fine arts school with his friends, Tyler is sentenced to 200 hours of community service at the school.
While working as a janitor Tyler meets a young dance student, Nora (Jenna Dewan), in need of a partner for her showcase. Discovering Tyler’s ability to dance the two partner up. Nora begins to make Tyler believe more is possible, and as they work together…well, star crossed lovers from opposite sides of the tracks, you can guess where the film goes from here.
It is odd how every student in the film looks like a college graduate. In fact the revelation that they are supposed to be high school students was shocking. What, does high school in this area go up to the 27th grade?
Odd casting aside, the actors do their best with the roles. Dewan is the stand-out, and based on her performance here I think we’ll be seeing much more of her in the future.
Tatum is fine as the ogre-like Tyler who spends half his time trying not to scrape his knuckles when he walks and the other half as a dance wiz. Drew Sidora and Mario have a nice subplot (which is the only thing that feels teenage about the entire film). And Rachel Griffiths adds some class as the stern but loving principal of the school.
The film marks the directing debut of Anne Fletcher who has worked as a dancer and choreographer in more than 30 Hollywood films. The dance scenes are some of the best of the film.
It’s not a must see, but in terms of chick-flicks guys might be able to survive this summer, Step Up gives you more than you’d expect. Hey, it’s got some good dancing, beautiful girls, and a good sense of humor about its subject. The film does have some darker spots involving gangs, and violence. These scenes don’t exactly mesh with the rest of the film but do help carry the storyline to its conclusion. It’s Dewan’s spirit and personality, not to mention her tights-clad body in motion, that helps carry the film. She reminds me a little of Susan Ward, and I’ll be interested in seeing where her career goes from here.