High Strung

You know how people say about musicals "oh, it's just a bunch of singing for no reason?" This is that, but dancing and violin.

First, the pros: The movie was visually very nice (except for the choice to include strobing lights, which people should really stop doing). The dance sequences were amazing and fun. The climax involved a plot point I didn't see coming. The characters of the hip hop group are great (especially Pop-Tart). The protagonist is likable. There's this whole Fame vibe going on with the Manhattan conservatory. Jane Seymour is in it.

Cons:

Johnnie is terrible, and at no point did I want Ruby to end up with him. The movie wants to give us dark and brooding, but instead he either : 1. is outright rude to Ruby 2. Comes on EXTREMELY strong, in a very creepy way. They also have no chemistry. The lead dancer in the troupe, Hayward, has more chemistry with Ruby in the few minutes they're on screen together than Johnnie and Ruby do in the whole movie, to the point that I briefly rooted for Hayward and Ruby to kiss.

The dance sequences are all long and basically don't move the plot, at least one lacks explanation (although to some extent the inexplicability was something that kept me going). This movie has very little plot.

The whole plot with the roommate, Jazzy, is never really explained or settled (were we supposed to take that whole thing at face value? That ending felt way too neat, in real life there would definitely be an underlying reason why she did what she did). The movie couldn't quite keep up with the amount of characters it had.

There's a point where two women giggle and squeal and hit each other with pillows, which... look, I haven't met every woman in the world, but grown women who have just met usually don't behave this way.

Watch if you want to watch some really cool dancing, skip if you want to watch a movie for the plot.

This is one of those movies that make you look at the cast & crew list to see if the actors and directors/producers are related because there is no way that his movie is actually good. At all.

As another review said, these "poor" dance school kids live in ridiculous lofts in Manhattan. I mean gorgeous. And even the ones with multiple teens living in them are spotless. Seriously, they would be cramped dark and filthy if this were true to form.

There's a scene with a West Side Story wannabe dance "fight". Even the subway platform that this took place on had floors so clean and shiny, there's no way anyone ever urinated on them. Smh.

The acting was atrocious, the music playing was truly horrifying at time. The only reason I am giving this 4 stars and not 1 is because I think the downstairs dancers were pretty good.

It was a really poor version of a compilation of Save the Last Dance, Step Up, and Stomp the Yard.

Final note: this may just be an homage to the fact the the main female character, ruby, can pull her leg past her head. Because she does that gratuitously and often. Ugh.

There is obviously a lack of emphasis here. However, it is one of those fast paced movies and the producers also aware of the fact that the movie could easily be reputed as such a cliché. So they don't give hard time to the audience and directly delivers the story. Most of the time I enjoyed it, and recommend everyone who isn't only the fan of the unique, must seen movies.

We have got to know that not every movie is made to become a masterpiece.Besides, critical minds can easily detect the flaws and decide not to see the whole of it by watching the trailer.

Those who want to get some good vibes from a cheesy movie. Don't miss it.

What a gem of a film. I wasn't expecting much when I hit the 'Play' button, but as I kept watching, I was surprised at how good it turned out to be. It was predictable at times and yet I found myself still rooting for the main characters. Have you ever started watching a movie and during the opening credits, you start scrolling through your cell phone? That's what I did in the beginning. After hearing the music, I looked up, put my cell phone down and stared enjoying the scenery in the 1st few minutes. I was hooked after that. If you have seen a lot of dance movies (Step-up, Save the Last Dance, Stomp the Yard) I suggest you give this film a chance. It might surprise you, like it did me.

A dance movie made with the idealistic teenagers in mind. The best line is "I just can't be perfect like her". With people looking manufactured as they perform in dance and play offs. The lines and scenes are so extreme in their perfection it feels parodied. You have the same theme of Ballet and Street dance combined which has been done before, this movie also combines the violin making visually appealing music and dancing. But the script made me laugh out loud so many times. You know dance just allows us express raw emotions which gives the audience a more enriched experience. Lol.