Step Up 3D is the best live action 3D film to date…and I’m not even kidding. The “dance” movie might be the best genre for 3D right now because it adds so much to the experience. With typical dance flicks, you already have cool looking moves that are “in your face”…now you have really really cool looking moves in 3D and they can do gimmicky tricks like throw smoke in your face, blow bubbles, dance in water, and look straight into the camera which actually works in the movie because it’s supposed to be playful and entertaining.
I don’t even want to describe the plot because the story got in the way of the amazing parts of this movie. It’s your typical “woah, you got good moves dude, we need you in our dance crew, dude” to “oh no, we’re in danger of losing everything and our rivals did something bad to us but coincidentally there’s a dance competition that will fix everything if we win” and finally “you need to put dance in front of all other responsibilities in life because somehow everything works out if you win dance competitions” movie. But this one is in 3D! Honestly, the best part of the movie was when the credits started rolling and they just showed clips of dancing in 3D with some cool effects. I wish it was just a 2 hour documentary on dance in 3D…like a Planet B-Boy in 3D. That would be amazing.
Dancing, yo
For the Step Up fans who actually follow the series, you won’t be disappointed. It’s more of the same that you get from the first two movies. Moose returns to go to college in New York which is the dance capital of the world according to the movie. There’s a bunch of new characters as well as some surprises from the previous movies. There’s a bunch of corny jokes and “cutesy” scenes that will have the kids giggling and the girls going “awwww.” There’s a little something for everybody thrown in there so there’s mass appeal for all kinds of moviegoers.
Other than the visuals, the soundtrack was great. It’s pretty much a compilation of Now That’s What I Call Music cds and some lesser known tracks remixed in. Almost all pop and hip hop which will bode well with the target audience of this movie which is pretty much anybody that will sit down and watch it. I personally loved the music and was rocking to every track. There’s a lot of Major Lazer in there and I will argue that Major Lazer was the biggest musical influence of 2009 and still now in 2010. You might not know who they are, but you’ve heard their music.
This looks even better in 3D
The dance moves were great as well. Typically, I always think the other team should win when they have dance battles in movies. And I always think some dance sequence in the middle of the film is better than the finale. But in Step Up 3D…the main “House of Pirates” (the other “House” is Samurais…I’m serious) always has better moves and the final set is superior to anything else in the movie…they…step it up. I also like how they explain in the movie that the dancing is actually hard but they make it look easy for all the people in the audience who think to themselves, “I can do that.” The last dance battle in the movie was pretty awesome and actually got applause in my screening but it was filled with a few dance crews…
Dancing. In Water. In 3D.
The story again is worthless. It’s extremely predictable and when things get serious, the movie almost slows to halt. But luckily there’s not much of that to get in the way of the dancing. You’re almost always flung from one dance sequence to the next which is what should’ve happened throughout the whole movie. I believe that movie audiences right now want the gimmicky 3D as well as stunning visual effects and with other movies, you get either one or the other. With Step Up 3D, you can get both and it all fits because of this type of movie which is just fun to watch and have a good time. You can’t wait for this one on DVD or TV because the only reason to see it is the 3D so go see it in theaters.
Tags: Step Up 3D
Matthew Fong created advancescreenings.com and is the lead contributor. He watches every type of movie and will try almost anything twice. You can follow him on twitter here: @matthewfong
