This movie , just like its dancers, is born from a boombox.
If you've watched the first two Step Up movie franchises, you would think that the 3rd Step Up movie would still involve the Maryland School for the Arts, where elite professional dancers team up with the rough street dancers, blah blah ..But I guess this stand corrected since during the whole course of the film, I see no ballet or jazz dancers in their prim ballet shoes and tight hair buns, not even the Maryland School for the Arts. It's all about that type of dance we became used to label as hiphop or streetdance.
warning: spoilers :D
Basically the movie's divided into three parts: how The Pirates (Luke's crew) are battling their way towards the championship for the New York's biggest underground dance showdown.
BATTLE ONE
The Pirates versus the First Crew
(I forgot the name, was it Red Hooks?)
atmosphere: Dusty dance floor
winning dance routine: Robot Rock
An excerpt from the Robot Rock routine. Damn coool
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BATTLE TWO
The Pirates versus the Asian Crew (I forgot the name)
atmosphere: dance floor flooded with water
winning dance routine: Dancing on Water
Probably my most favorite dance routine in the movie
FINAL BATTLE
The Pirates versus The Samurai Crew
atmosphere: underground stadium
winning dance routine: Dancing with Lights
Something cool I found in the internet
Take the Biggest Step of All in 3D
Meet the Pirates Crew
Another one of Hollywood's most creative movie kisses :)
Every Step Up couples always have their own ballroom dance
Cool Beans. Gonna make it my new wallpaper
In between the major dance battles you will witness The Pirates crew's preparations inside their super awesome underground basement which was magically transformed into one sick dance studio, complete with shoe exhibits, a wall made of stacked boomboxes, a training area of metal bars, an area padded with foams to practice your back tumblings and other air jumps and even their own sleeping area! Really, it's a place for a dance nomad!
Also, a dancer's usual struggle with academics and social life is also portrayed in the film through Moose. Yes, I believe Moose is the main actor AND dancer in this film. Luke (played by Rick Malambri) may be hot with his washboard abs and well-toned biceps, but he just can't dance as well as Moose (played by Adam Sevani). Not even Natalie (played by Sharnie Vinson) with her ripped and well-sculpted oblique muscles and toned arms, Moose is still the highlight of the Pirates' Crew winning dance routines. I bet without him, the Pirates wouldn't even get past Battle Two since nobody would accidentally destroy the dance stage and turn it into some flooded area. And definitely they wouldn't be able to come up with the light suits gimmick for the final showdown if Moose wasn't with them. Hello, meet the Double Major, Engineering and Dance :)
Though the acting is not as great and award-winning, who cares? The highlight of the film is the dancing anyway and the main actors did a good job in portraying their roles to give a more natural feel in the acting one way or another. As for the story, it's good enough considering it's a dance film, where you have to come up with a story that will give enough avenue for lots of dancing and a bit of drama. So expect everything to be predictable and recycled. Unlike Inception :D
As for the solid and stunning choreography, I think the Step Up 3D crew has brought something new on the table. From playing with dust, to water and lights, the dance routines are definitely jaw-dropping that would make you wanna go to the nearest club and dance like no one's watching. You're itching to dance yourself. And you can't help but notice some routines are Parkour and Capoeira-inspired. And yes, though movies in 3D this year are overrated (since it's like everything's been turned into 3D! :O), Step Up 3D Director Jon Chu did a good job in enhancing the movie's visuals with the 3D technology. The 3D experience enhanced the visual experience of the movie, especially in emphasizing the dance routines and giving more depth in a dancer's movement, making it look really real as if they're dancing five feet away in front of you. But even without the 3D technology, Step Up 3D can still pull it off.
And who cares if the movie only got 48% review on RottenTomatoes. You can't please everybody, right? And it's not like every critic out there's a dance enthusiast. Come to think of it, there's more to dance films than the itsy-bitsy technicalities of film-making. :) At least the 3rd installment has the highest reviews compared to the other Step Up movies. Take it as that.
Step Up 3D is probably my movie of the year so far. It gave its audience another unique kind of dance experience in theaters that the other two Step Up movie franchises missed to deliver. It has more dances (yes, expect pure dancing) and more cool stuff. And I'm not talking about the 3D experience. In fact, I think the movie doesn't need to be watched in 3D for it to be fully appreciated. The movie in itself -the solid choreography and dance routines that makes you wanna shout "Tis so sick man!", the innovative dance atmosphere which shows how man can literally adjust to its environment since a dance showdown is definitely the survival of the fittest (Dancing on Water routine FTW), the half-baked yet whole new story compared to the other Step Up franchises -makes Step Up 3D as one of my favorite dance films of all time.
PS: I forgot that I haven't watched Streetdance 3D yet :))
And this movie's not that racist compared to The Last Airbender :P
*Disclaimer: the photos are not mine and are copyrighted to its respective owners.
