StreetDance 3D

I was really entertained when I watched this in the cinema. The story is nice enough (yes clichés ahead, but it's a picture about dancing, about overcoming odds, you expect it to have a few), with obstacles build in the way, that you will expect and predict, but all told nicely. And it did not originate from the US, which came as a surprise to me (since almost every dance movie minus the Bollywood fare, seems to be made in the US)!

I liked the acting (for the movie that it is) and the dance scenes were good enough, to be told in 3-D. Though I have to admit, that there are a few sequences in the new Step up, that easily put anything to shame that is shown here. But in contrast to that, the story here is more solid, more believable (in my eyes). Nice entertainment and unfortunately overseen at the Box office (at least that's what I heard)

"Streetdance," to an extent, shares the same problem as other movies about dance. When the first dance movie (which was probably "Save the Last Dance) appeared, it seemed fresh and original not least of all because of the choreographed dance routines. But now the genre of dance films can do little more than repeat the same formula and the result is a bit tedious. Incidentally I had a similar reaction to the martial arts films. The first Karate Kid was great from beginning to end. But the spectacle and energy of these martial arts film soon faded and even the attempts to spice up the genre with explosions and shoot outs did not quite work.

So does "Streetdance" suffer from this trend? Yes. But does "Streetdance" also make up for this fact? To a surprising degree, it does. There is not too much to be said for the plot which is riddled with so many clichés, including the climatic little dance battle at the end, that it appeared to be recycled from the "Step Up" genre. Yet it is fresh in some respects. Nichola Burley, for example, brought something new to her performance as the head of the streetdance group Carly who also has to help ballet dancers bring some fire to their performances. Nichola is genuinely likable, sweet and fun all at the same time and these traitsallow her to get away with saying some very ridiculous grandstanding speeches like (I'm paraphrasing) we are going to combine ballet and street dance and "create something beautiful." If a lesser actor, like Amanda Seyfried, Megan Fox or even Kat Dennings, spoke like that, it would never seem believable. But Nichola miraculously makes scenes like that work. Nichola is also aided along the way by other likable characters like the implied love interest Tomas (Richard Winsor). Charlotte Rampling, who played one of the heads of ballet school Helena Fitzgerald, delivers the kind of great performance one would expect from someone with her calibre, even though she is unfortunately not given much to say or do. "Streetdance" also has some memorable scenes, such as the one where two street dancers pretending to be manniquins communicate with a little boy, who is also a great street dancer, through the medium of dance. Another memorable scene has Carly and her co-worker turning their mundane job of making sandwiches into a dance routine, which was kind of neat.

6.3/10

I always love musical movies, but what I never realized before is that there is one other category that I may love it as well as musical movies, it is dance movies! "StreetDance" is a perfect example of today's dance movie. The story just seems to be another repetition from other similar movies. It's all about rebellion against establishment of formal institutions and it's also about how to express yourself. It's the whole elements that have been occurring since "Footloose" (1984) to the modern breathtaking flick like "Step Up 2: The Streets" (2008), in which I think that it is still the best presentation of our time. The modern dance movie is also always about traditional art-school dancer Vs. freestyle street dancer, where on thiz movie is street dancers vs. ballet dancers. It is about Carly (Nichola Burley) and her dance crew which later named "Breaking Point". They have to mix together with several ballet dancers from The Royal Dance School in exchange for rehearsal place. Nichola Burley can deliver her character smooth enough to take us into energizing mood with her unique British accent and some enthralling dancing moves as well. Thiz movie really put Burley into the spotlight since last time I saw her in psychological thriller "Donkey Punch" in 2008. Other Cast members are Charlotte Rampling, Richard Winsor and real life professional dancer like George Sampson. Thiz movie is also featuring "Britain's Got Talent" stars, Diversity and Flawless. It is very exciting to observe how the recent street dance style has evolved outside of dance studios. The movie is surprisingly directed by first time Directors, Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini. It is delightful and enjoyable movie. It's filled with fascinating choreography and heart-throbbing hip hop music. The pop group N-Dubz said, "We Dance On".

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This could very well be the easiest review I've had to write. Do you like dancing? More particularly, do you like street dancing? However you answer this will determine if StreetDance 3D is for you. There's not much more to it really.

Those who enjoy eclectic, off-the-wall break-dancing will have great fun with the plethora of set pieces on offer here, especially the routines performed by previous Street Dance Championship winners The Surge (clearly a real-life dance group) who were engrossing to say the least. On the flipside, if you replied no to my previous question then perhaps you should steer clear. You won't be able to look past the atrocious acting – everyone from b-girl wannabe Burly to the sincerely out of place Rampling to the total cheeseball Winsor are on extremely poor form – the wafer-thin plot or the laughably rubbish dialogue all for the sake of some killer moves.

Strangely enough this is the first British 3D film to be produced. Thankfully it wasn't just tacked on at the end similar to what we saw in Clash of the Titans or The Final Destination, but the movie was actually filmed in digital 3D, thus utilising the feature to decent effect. It's arguable that a flick like this overly benefits from the extra dimension, however the additional depth is definitely noticed in a few of the dance segments.

With a thumping soundtrack and a range of enthralling dance sequences, StreetDance 3D could be the perfect no-brainer movie for you.

3 out of 5 (1 - Rubbish, 2 - Ordinary, 3 - Good, 4 - Excellent, 5 - Classic)

Let's be honest, here. Nobody expects any real movie quality from a dance movie, except for beautiful and entertaining dance moves and a director who's skilled enough to shoot them adequately. Anybody complaining about the cheesiness of dialog or the non-existent plot is missing the point. Dance movies are cheesy by definition ("Dirty Dancing", anyone?), so the viewers must adopt a kind of "suspension of belief" and embrace what is being offered. Does anybody enjoy ballet or operas for their plot? Compared to an opera libretto, an episode of "Gossip Girl" is "Citizen Kane". "Streetdance" has the merit of presenting nice choreographies (especially the very interesting finale) accompanied by an enjoyable soundtrack, with also a bit of professional acting courtesy of Charlotte Rampling. The 3D effects offer a pleasant support to the dancers' efforts. It's an honest movie. It doesn't promise anything more than what it is.