Movie Review

I watched a few good movies recently. Specifically one of them was great, one of them was so-so and the third was crap! Here are a couple good points about the movies. (I'm no professional movie critic, but I know what I like!) Edit: I think I may have to make these movie reviews into separate posts! I have a lot to say and I don't like making enormous posts!

The great movie I watched was called Mad Hot Ballroom. It was a wonderful documentary about 5th grade boys and girls in New York City learning how to ballroom dance. Three groups of children are followed as they qualify for and compete in an all-city ballroom dancing competition. The movie captures segments with the children being themselves. The boys talk about what they think of the class. They kind of talk about girls, but it seems they haven't yet reached the point that they are "girl crazy." The girls talk about how they want to have careers, get married, have children and especially how they want to have boys treat them with respect. The directors do a wonderful job of capturing the innocence of childhood in these segments.

The rest of the movie focuses on some of the gym classes where the children learn the form and poise of dancing rumba, merengue and swing. It is all proper and innocent, not sexualized like you would find in a club or bar. It's not quite as flashy or complicated as Dancing with the Stars, but the children need to practice to get the moves down well. They learn to cooperate with each other inspite of being awkward and disliking the opposite sex. One phrase from a teacher sticks out "I'm smiling! I may not like you at all but I'm smiling!" That brings me to the teachers. I admire their positive attitudes as they illustrate and guide the children. The movie shows what being a teacher really is, with discipline issues and all. A couple of the female teachers openly cry when they express how proud they are of their children. They are truly dedicated.

I found myself rooting for these kids. My heart went out to the team that didn't make it to the finals. A few of the girls grabbed each other and started crying. I was happy for the girls as they went by subway with their teacher to find just the right outfits for their competitions. It's a rite of passage for the girls to find something pretty and feminine to wear rather than the jeans and sweatshirts in their regular wardrobes. The male teacher at one school helped the boys with their button down shirts and ties as well.

I loved how the film captured the spirit of the teams during the competition. The camera's view cut back and forth between all of the teams performing a particular dance on the floor and reactions of the children along the sidelines. The girls on the sidelines get pretty excited about how well their teammates perform. Some of the children did very well, others weren't as good. One tall hispanic girl danced with flair. She swept her arm dramatically over her head at the end of a turn which illicited quite a reaction from a nearby judge. Another short blond boy danced with a girl who was quite a bit taller than him. He moved his hips, but he wasn't that light on his feet. They really did put a lot of effort and energy into the competition, though. The only thing that I would change about this movie would be to make it a little less obvious which team was going to win. The directors seemed to give more attention to the team that ultimately won the competition. I was hoping for a surprise ending. All in all, I really enjoyed this movie.