My boyfriend asked me last night whether I planned to review Step Up 2 the Streets. (By the way, I don't think he understands my love of dance flicks or my need to see them in an interactive audience.) I told him I didn't review everything I saw, that sometimes I went to movies just for fun. He still thought I should write about it, even though I didn't take any notes. Well, OK. ...
Teen me: OMG! You must see Step Up 2 the Streets! The dancing! I downloaded the soundtrack!
Critic me: The dancing and music are cool, but could we ditch the plot and dialogue? How many times must we see a troubled teen (Briana Evigan) sent for a “last chance” to a seemingly snooty place (Maryland School of the Arts, the main link to the first Step Up)?
Teen me: Oh, hush! Isn’t it great to see a color-blind movie? When Andie (Evigan) gets kicked out of her crew and the cute boy (Robert Hoffman) convinces her to form a new one, it’s not just white people; it also has Asians, blacks and Hispanics. It’s a Barack Obama world!
Critic me: The racial subtext bothered me. Andie’s original crew is mostly black, and the leader (Black Thomas) comes across as a menacing thug. When he and two of his buddies attack Chase (Harrison) … had the races been reversed, Al Sharpton would call for boycotts.
Teen me: But Step Up 2 brings people together - like The Streets, like Andie says …
Critic me: In by far the corniest speech of the film …
Teen me: Whatever. Who was in your audience?
Critic me: Actually, it was a rather mixed group in terms of age and race. And they were pretty into it.
Teen me: Uh-huh. See?
Critic me: Yeah. Those dance sequences were great, albeit increasingly preposterous. The subway? The rain??? My favorite was the simpler salsa party.
Teen me: But wasn’t it great to really see the routines? We knew the actors were doing the dancing.
Critic me: True. Step Up 2 didn’t look completely like an MTV video.
Teen me: I caught you grooving in your seat once or twice. …
Critic me: OK, I admit it: I went home and downloaded some of the songs! I guess that in spite of myself, I liked Step Up 2. Gaah!
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5 comments:
You willing went to "Step Up 2????" Lisa, I think you just lost some 'cred' with me. ;)
Oh, Sandra! Critics must see everything, whether it be "There Will Be Blood" or "Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins." (I have NOT seen the latter, BTW, nor do I want to. But it might be part of the job.)
True. I did willing subject myself to "Crowned" so I have no room to talk. :)
Hey - I liked the way you interfaced Teen You and Critic You in this review, nice and different style of reviewing!
Thanks! It definitely was one of the most fun reviews I've written in a while. I doubt I could pull it off in print. ...
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