Save the Last Dance

Unless you like cheesy MTV-style teenage movies of the ilk of Flashdance, this may not be for you. If you do, it's a well-made piece of that easily digestible junk-food genre. For me, it was interesting mostly because of the dancing (fusion of hip-hop and ballet). There's some interesting performances, even if the editing is there to show the dancefloor moves to a perfection that might not have actually been achieved by Julia Stiles. The standard boy-meets-girl, gets-her-to-realise-her-dream-as-a-dancer-stuff is the stuff large buckets of popcorn were made for . . .

I just finished watching this terrific movie, I had always meant to see it but somehow never got around to it. This time when I came across it in the video store and saw that Julia Stiles was in it, I had to get it. I did not know who she was when the movie was released, but have since enjoyed her in Mona Lisa Smile and the Prince and Me and couldn't wait to see her in this film.

This was the best work I have seen her do to this point. It was so much better than I expected, based on the meager 6.1 stars it received overall on IMDb...Julia was wonderful in it, as was Sean Patrick Thomas. Their chemistry was terrific and the story was riveting and the dancing awesome (both the ballet and the dancing throughout the movie.) I don't know how much of the dancing Julia actually did, but all of it was beautifully done.

The film was sweet, touching and violent, and worked in all aspects. The rest of the casting was very good too, all the performances were terrific.

I will buy it on DVD asap...it was that good! I think it will be enjoyed by men and women, I can't wait to have my teenage son see it. Truly a must see!

Yeah, the movie started like it actually may have a point to it. Then, after she went to that club (I don't even remember the name of it and I saw it three hours ago), it just went downhill. It was more of a fish-out-of-water kind of movie than a movie about dancing. It was so predictable, I was counting off the seconds from when they were about to kiss! The only good point was that Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas had such good chemistry and were so cute. Still, it didn't make up for a shallow plot, stereotypes and an idea that went nowhere.

Throughout history there has been hardships for African Americans. Slavery, human rights, discrimination, and racism have been very obvious problems for them. Although they have gained their human rights and slavery has been abolished, discrimination and racism are still around in the twenty-first century. Within the romantic drama Save The Last Dance directed by Thomas Carter, 2001, it lets its viewers see and recognize what people are still like to this day when dealing with different races such as white and black.

Within this movie the main character Sara wants to be a ballerina. Her mother died in a car accident on her way to see her perform, in attempt to get into Sara Lawrence University. She had to move in with her father who is a struggling musician and live in a rundown apartment, in Chicago. Sara's new school is mainly of African American descent and she is the minority. She makes friends with a girl named Chenille and starts adopt some things that Chenille does in order to fit in.

Chenille has a brother Derek. Derek and Sara fall in love and it is hard for them because they get a lot of problems just because they are in interracial couple. Sara and Derek both get into fights defending themselves from their peers and friends. The explanation for Chenille to Sara about why she shouldn't be with Derek was because she was white. She said that since Sara was white, she was taking one of the only good men left for the black woman. This is complete discrimination against Sara, even thought Chenille is her best friend there in Chicago.

. Sara who grew up in the southwest, was not used to this ghetto Chicago area. She was taught how to dance like everyone else, and started to listen to the same music as they did, so she would fit in and have a good time. Her best friend from home doesn't think it's even possibly for Sara to find a guy down where she is because no one is white. She asks questions such as, "Have you seen anyone get shot yet?" Such questions and statements show that the low class status of this neighborhood is discriminated against.

Save The Last Dance portrays the discrimination that still going on during this day and age. Gun fights, death, clubs, music, romance, tragedy, dancing, and racism are all present within this movie. The lower class Chicago area shows how dangerous things can be. The events that happen between the Sara and Derek and other events within this movie truly show how America is still discriminatory towards people.

Save the Last Dance (2001) is a movie my daughter and I recently watched together on Amazon Prime. The storyline follows a young lady whose mom passes away the night of her dance audition and misses it. The daughter is sent to live with her dad and quits dancing. As she makes new friends she is inspired to dance and be happy again.

This movie is directed by Thomas Carter (Coach Carter) and stars Julia Stiles (10 Things I Hate about You), Sean Patrick Thomas (Till), Kerry Washington (Scandal), Fredro Starr (Torque) and Artel Great (Dahmer).

The best part of this movie is far and away the soundtrack. The characters are fun for the most part. Julia Stiles was solid, Kerry Washington was outstanding but Sean Patrick Thomas was a bit stiff and didn't feel authentic. The movie is well paced and I enjoyed the various circumstances and ending even if it was a bit predictable.

Overall, this is an entertaining coming of age picture that isn't perfect but worth a watch. I would score this a 7/10 and recommend seeing it once.