Save the Last Dance

Okay, so it won't bring home a little golden guy. . .it's from MTV Films for crying out loud. But who says everything has to? I will say this; this movie actually had a little more substance than what I walked in expecting. I went to the theater on opening night with 5 girlfriends expecting to hear some good music and see some good choreography and scenery of Chicago--a city I dearly love. I got all of that. But I also got a glimpse of broken homes, the dynamic between a father and daughter who don't know each other, friends who've gone by the wayside that you still don't want to let go of, I could say more. Oh, and the thing that really still pisses people off though it's 2001. . .interracial relationships. I'm not saying the plot isn't a little rehashed, but there's not a whole lot that's new out there. No, it's not a great film--I give it a B, but I'd see it again. In fact I did see it again with another set of friends on Saturday night. All in all, I saw this movie with 10 friends of varying sex, age and race and all of us liked it. I think that's a pretty good showing.

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.

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.

I just saw Save the Last Dance and I loved it. Julia Stiles is now one of my favorite actresses. She and Sean Patrick Thomas share a chemistry that makes every scene seem so real. I also enjoyed the performances of Fredro Starr and the rest of the cast. I am definately going to buy this movie when it comes out on DVD. Despite what others might say and have said, MTV makes great films(The Wood is one of my top three, and I loved Varsity Blues and Can't Hardly Wait). Anyway, I recommend this movie. 10 out of 10.

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.