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Save the Last Dance (2001)
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Genre: |
Drama |
Director: |
Thomas Carter
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Rating: |
R |
Running Time: |
115 Minutes |
Release Date: |
January 12, 2001 |
Official Website: |
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Movie Trailer: |
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Discuss and vote: |
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Cast: |
Julia Stiles
Sean Patrick Thomas
Terry Kinney
Fredro Starr
Kerry Washington
Vince Green
Bianca Lawson
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Pickup Line: Gets You Groovin'!
Quickie: An aspiring ballerina who gave up her dream after her mother died finds new hope and inspiration in a hip-hoppin' guy she meets upon moving to Chicago. Awwww...
The Long Review:
When it comes to "Save the Last Dance," what you see in the previews is pretty much what you get. No surprises here. It stars Julia Stiles as Sara Johnson, an aspiring ballerina whose dreams and hopes are shattered when her biggest fan, her mother, dies in a tragic car accident. Motherless and hopeless, she moves to the South side of Chicago to live with her jazz musician father. There, she meets Derek (Sean Patrick Thomas), the popular boy in school and resident dancing star of Steppes, a popular hip-hop nightclub, and the two develop a romance. So Sara is not only inspired to hold her own at Steppes by learning the coolest hip-hop moves, she's also driven by her hip-hoppin' boyfriend's love to make her dancing dreams come true and audition for the infamous Juilliard dancing school.
"Save the Last Dance" is low on story depth and plot/character complexity and high on predictability. This film is good for people who detest surprises. Roger Ebert begs to differ. He says, "The setup promises cliches, but the development is intelligent, the characters are more complicated than we expect, and the ending doesn't tie everything up in a predictable way." Hmmm. 'Guess Roger Ebert hasn't seen that many "dance" movies! This movie is the most predictable of them all yet! On a different note, however, it does deliver some good entertainment. It's hard not to like the lively dancing scenes, catchy soundtrack, colourful (and sometimes very cheesy) dialogue, and juvenile humour. Audiences will also appreciate the slow and sweet development of the romance between Stiles' and Thomas' characters. It sure reminds you of those good ol' high school days! And the somewhat dramatic, sentimental quality of the movie will surely touch some people out there. *Sigh*
Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas play their parts well. They sure had us convinced that they were high school kids. But we needed a bit more convincing that their characters were real dancers, particularly Stiles'. "Save the Last Dance" is one of the very few movies where the actors playing dancers aren't really dancers. Which explains why we see Stiles' upper body doing some of the ballet dancing and someone else's lower body doing the rest. She pulls off the hip-hop moves better than she does the ballet moves, we'll tell you that! Sean Patrick Thomas holds his own but it's not like he has a whole lot of solos where you can really see him get his groove on. Just call it strategic filming. All lack of dancing ability aside, Stiles and Thomas delivered solid performances; we can see why these actors were chosen for the part. They have a certain charisma that can draw and enrapture audiences. The supporting cast delivers solid performances as well, particularly Kerry Washington as Chenille, Derek's brother and Fredro Starr as Malakai, Derek's ne'er-do-well best friend .
"Save the Last Dance" is a film that delivers a lot...but not perfectly. You got your less-than-stellar plot. Less-than-stellar dance performances. Less-than-stellar thrill factor. But in defense, this "little bit of everything and anything approach" succeeds in presenting a light, entertaining movie that gets you humming to some cool tunes and moving to a different beat. If you're in the mood to groove or see other people groove and are not in any mood to engage in deep thought, this movie's for you.
In Two Minutes:
Did you know?
- Julia Stiles is apparently trained in modern dance and hip-hop. That explains why she's more convincing as a hip-hopper than a ballerina! She's currently a Liberal Arts student at Columbia University.
- Does Sean Patrick Thomas look a tad bit familiar? He played Selma Blair's suave music teacher in "Cruel Intentions." He can currently be seen in the series "The District."
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