Ballare per un sogno

Lauryn Kirk (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) from a small Indiana town goes to audition for the Chicago School of Music and Dance. They want real emotions and reject her. Her car gets towed and she is unwilling to admit defeat to her brother. She gets a place to stay from Dana (Tessa Thompson) who helps get her a bookkeeping job at the burlesque club Ruby's. Dana is one of the dancers and Russ (Riley Smith) is the music director.

This is a worn-out formula. The plot is a copy of every other one of these dance movies. This has to distinguish itself with great dancing but there is nothing exceptional here. Winstead is not a big enough star to carry this although she does have that wide-eyed innocent quality. She's tall and lanky. She fits the character but the movie is not special.

Are there many better ways to waste an hour and a half than watching the gorgeous Mary Elizabeth Winstead strutting her stuff as a burlesque dancer? I didn't think so, but I was wrong. Winstead is breathtakingly beautiful, and sufficiently lithe and lissom for the role, but this derivative dance movie -- obviously inspired by films such as Flashdance, Fame, Breakin', and Coyote Ugly -- simply hasn't got the moves necessary for a good time.

Written by one-trick-pony Duane Adler (check out his filmography to see what I mean), this predictable urban fantasy piles on the clichés from the get-go: girl from Hicksville dreams of making it big - check! Her only family is her hard-working mechanic brother - check! She fails to make it through her audition - check! She takes a job at a nightclub where she falls for the nice guy DJ - check! Brother pays her a surprise visit and is shocked to see her on stage - check! Nice guy DJ convinces her to re-audition - check! She wows the choreographer and gets a place at dance school - check! Everyone is pleased for her, even her brother, who has had a change of heart - check!

Director Darren Grant injects very little life into proceedings: the drama is instantly forgettable, but even the dance scenes - surely the most important aspect of this genre - are incredibly bland. Don't expect any iconic moments a la Jennifer Beals water/chair moment in Flashdance - there aren't any. Don't look for cool moves as busted by Boogaloo Shrimp and Shabba-Doo in Breakin' - there aren't any. Winstead tries her best but the choreography is terrible - the final routine for her second audition isn't any better than her first attempt, but I guess failing twice wouldn't have been clichéd enough for this kind of tripe.

I watched for Winstead, but should have watched something else instead. 3/10.

Greetings from the other side. You will get serious deja vu watching this movie.

Girl goes to dance try-out but doesn't make it, so she tries her hand at burlesque. You get the standard montage of trying on clothes, along with many other cliches, such as:

Hot DJ guy asks her out.

Evil dancer is jealous of her Says she can't dance like that, but after a rough start, she is amazing!

Her brother catches her doing burlesque, and is very upset and runs off in a huff, while she chases him to explain.

And many, many more.

A part that made me laugh was when she takes the stage for the first time, but has problems dancing to a slow song for no reason (people grumbling and shaking their heads at her dancing), so her DJ boyfriend changes the music to a fast beat song, and suddenly she is incredible! (And the crownd starts cheering and smiling).

This movie is watchable just once because Mary Elizabeth Winstead is in it, and she is just gorgeous, and talented. However, I didn't believe her kissing and make-out scenes. There didn't seem to be any chemistry with her boyfriend. Plus you have seen this all before in movies like Coyote Ugly, or Bulesque, and they did it better.

This film is about a young woman who works against all odds towards achieving her dream as a dancer.

"Make It Happen" is a predictable feel good movie. It has got all the ingredients to be a cheesy film. It has trendy danceable music, cool dance moves, great looking people, the jealous enemy; even the obligatory shopping scenes! As for the plot, there is no beating around the bush. Just six minutes into the film, there is already a dance audition. The pacing is fast, but it does not feel rushed. The dance moves are energetic and vibrant, which makes it a joy to watch.

"Make It Happen" gives the right youthful energy which makes viewers feel good. It is a great popcorn flick to turn your brain off. Just forget all the clichés, sit back and enjoy it.

All this is is a dancing version of Coyote Ugly. Dancing is good but if you have watched Coyote Ugly, you already know what's about to happen.

Examples: In both movies there is a colleague who is horrible to them right through the movie...

In both movies there is the guy who pretends to be the manager...

In both, its all about getting the audition

In both, there is a family crisis where they both decide to abandon their dream and run home but first have a good old fashioned drama scene where they abandon their boyfriends...

Seriously, if you have watched Coyote Ugly, don't bother watching this one.