Breaking Legs

There is an interesting phenomenon in TV today. Even the best shows, the ones with the highest ratings and reviews, tend to stumble and fall in the 3th or 4th season. It is almost as if the original writers, when the show was being created, stored only enough story arcs to hum through the first two seasons, but then season 3 arrives ... and there is no gas in the tank.

I mention this because normally, for A-list productions from the major studios and networks, there is really no "film equivalent" for this phenomenon, since the A-listers usually have considerable checks and balances built-in to their systems, so that a script does not get green-lighted unless it is 100% ready.

Which brings us to Breaking Legs, an indie written and directed by young auteur Mark Marchillo. The first 15 minutes or so are a nice setup, promising the audience a cross between MEAN GIRLS, FLASHDANCE, and FOOTLOOSE. But those promises are never kept.

After the setup, and for the rest of the over-long and disjointed, helter-skelter, film, dialog goes in strange and unpredictable directions; the characters behave out-of-character; the viewer has trouble keeping track of who is doing what to whom; and the film in general becomes tedious and vexing.

Newcomer Liv Southard does a nice job of trying (emphasize "trying") to be the "glue" for the film and maintain interest, but she is fighting the script and director every step of the way down the elevator shaft.

And Chris Kattan's character is so horrifically written (he comes across more as an autistic stalker than a parental figure) that one cannot blame the actor alone for the end result.

The high reviews here have to come from relatives of the people in this movie. No one else could give this movie a 10.

This movie really deserved some kind of theatrical release. It was so well written, directed and acted, that it is shame that it went direct to home viewing only. After the screenplay, to me casting is the most important part of a movie. If you have the wrong people in the parts it could really ruin the film. But here everyone was perfect for their parts. What I really liked was "real" teenagers playing teenagers. Not 20 or 30 somethings you find in so many movie and TV shows. I loved the soundtrack. My favorite two performances were William Leon's and Liv Southard's. They had really great chemistry together. I really liked Mark Marchillo (also the director and screenwriter) as the uncle. He really dances well too. I also loved Aaron Landon as the comic relief of the movie. A movie that gets very serious at times. It was a really good touch in writing that part and again great casting.

This film tells the story of an aspiring dancer from a dancing family, who moves to a new town to live with her uncle. Not only does she have to adjust to the new environment, but she also attracts the jealousy of Miss Popular in the high school.

"Breaking Legs" wants to be "Mean Girls", but unfortunately it is nowhere close in terms of meanness and in entertainment factor. It is more about the rather uneventful rivalry between two girls. Fortunately, the music in the film is uplifting and makes people want to dance. I am not exactly the target audience of the film, so I cannot say I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This movie was filled to the brim with clichés, A girl with no parents who has a dream, Check. A mean, bratty girl who is jealous, check. A boy who is in love with bratty girl, who then falls in love with protagonist, check. Quirky, idiotic sidekick, Check. It's just like every other teen movie out there, it started well but just completely fell apart, with no real resolution or plot, don't waste your time.