Center Stage

Rating:
Summary: Buy this for the DANCING
Review: After seeing this movie twice on television, I bought the DVD solely for the dancing, which is by far the highlight of this movie.

Storywise, "Center Stage" has much that I'd seen before in movies with a dance theme: jealousies and affairs among directors, choreographers, principals and/or students; ballerinas with eating disorders, lack of desire, lack of talent, attitude problems or pushy parents; two guys exercising their egos in a "dance duel" . . . you know how it goes. Stereotypes abound, but the characters are engaging enough so that a predictable plot can still render a movie that is watchable.

Now, for the REALLY good part. There is excellent dancing in this movie: Ethan Stiefel, Julie Kent and Sascha Radetsky each provide eye-catching performances. Zoë Saldana, Amanda Schull and many of the others are also worth a look. I thought the portrayal of the trials and tribulations that accompany dance academies were both interesting and entertaining. A pleasant surprise under the "Special Features" menu is Radetsky's fantastic solo dance scene which wound up being deleted from the final cut (why?). Stiefel and Kent show us why they're stars in the excellent "extended dance sequences" (although the video quality of these bonuses is way below that of the feature presentation, big disappointment). There's also a cool music video by Mandy Moore, featuring the dancing of Radetsky in a more upscale setting. For cinemaphiles, the commentary by director Nicholas Hytner is pretty interesting, though not eloquently delivered.

Overall this is an enjoyable movie that will appeal especially to dance fans.

Rating:
Summary: A little incorrect, but still a good movie
Review: This movie is very entertaining, but lacks of significant substance. This movie has fantastic dancing, but what they do in the movie is supposably Ballet, when in truth, any real dancer could tell you its hip hop/jazz. There are other incorrect parts of this movie, but unless you had been dancing for some time, you would not pick up on them. Also, lovely way of rephrasing The American Ballet Company (does that sound a little like the American Ballet Institute to you?). Well, either way, this movie follows the typical chick flick, teenage film. Girl falls in love with the wrong boy for her, achieves a dream, everyone falls in love with her, the people who sterotyped her apoligise, she "finds" herself, and in the end everything works out great. Yep, when was the last time that happened for you? Well, this movie is really great. It inspired me to dance. I watched it a couple times. It really has some great moments, but unless your a teenage girl who is very feminine, don't waste your time on this movie. If you are a teenage girl, you should rent this, especially for a sleepover.

Rating:
Summary: The truth behind beauty
Review: This DVD is one of the most lovely but real stories about ballet dancers .
The lovely is because when you see the reviews for this film , you expect just to see ballet trainings or classes , but what you receive is 2 great love stories and some ballet performances at the end .
The real is all the preparations and the suffer that a ballet dancer could have .
In my case , as a former ballet dancer , this is the true story of all of us , maybe shown as a fairy tale more than the reality , but the good part is that the director showed the problems like anorexia and competition plus all the frustrations but at the same time the beauty and the dreamworld of the Ballet .

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely magnificent dance performances
Review: This is a movie about fresh-faced young ballet dancers who attend the American Ballet Academy and compete for a few coveted spots in the ballet company.

This is the first film for the stars, Amanda Schull, who in real life is an apprentice at the Corps de Ballet in San Francisco, and Ethan Steifel, who is the principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater and considered the best male dancer in the world. Their acting is good, but it overshadowed by their absolutely magnificent dance performances.

There's a good universal story here of the competition among the young dancers, their hopes and dreams, romances and mishaps. There's Zoe Saldana as the wisecracking rebel with an attitude who nevertheless loves to dance. There's Susan May Pratt as a bulimic who has been pressured into ballet by her mother. There are several love triangles and some surprises in the plot.

But most of all -- there is the dancing. Ah, the dancing! There's classical ballet and Latin dancing and a finale that combines elements of jazz, modern and ballet. The music is perfect for the dance pieces. And everyone is beautiful.

The film stirred longings in me to get up and dance myself, and in a way I was doing that as I completely got into watching this video. For all lovers of dance and for 117 minutes of total enjoyment, Center Stage gets a high recommendation from me.

Rating:
Summary: Let's Dance!
Review: Center Stage is greater, better than the sum of its parts. It's easy to quibble about the acting being a bit amateurish, or plot elements being inane, or some of the characters being clichés. But that misses the point, which is that Center Stage is perfectly wonderful entertainment of the sort we don't often see on film these days.

Young Amanda Schull, who plays Jody, would be a drop-dead gorgeous American beauty even if she couldn't dance a step. But she's a fine ballerina, and in the modern dance number that she performs with her two rival suitors, Cooper and Jonathan, she's so sexy you'll forget all about Flashdance (where I believe a double did the dancing for the star).

Zoe Saldana (who plays Eva) is just as beautiful, ten times as saucy, and perhaps even more talented than Schull. She's the only one of the young "actors" who seems totally comfortable and credible in her acting. Her performance of the dance from Swan Lake will bring tears to some eyes.

And if you're into guys, step right up: Center Stage has guys! -- and they're just as numerous, handsome, and talented as the girls.

Years go by without a chance to see the talent and entertainment value you'll find in Center Stage. Don't miss it!





Rating:
Summary: The reality of ballet exposed
Review: Some think that ballet is for the weak and timid, but this movie exposes that it is for the strong, the bold and the incredibly talented. The gifted cast performs wonderfully in their acting and dancing roles, most notably Amanda Schull(Jody Sawyer), Ethan Stiefel(Cooper Neilson), and Zoe Saldana(Eva Rodriguez). The sound track is also delightful with such songs as Jamiroquai's "Canned Heat", Mandy Moore's "I Wanna Be With You" and P.Y.T.'s "We're Dancing". Center Stage is a must-see for anyone who dreams of dance, and it's worth buying because you'll definetly want to watch it again and again.

Rating:
Summary: I simply love this movie.
Review: I'm not going to tell you that the acting is Oscar-caliber or that the plot is daring and original. The "actors" are mostly dancers and the plot lines tend toward the stereotypical. I am going to tell you, however, that this movie is simply great fun. Whenever I want to put I smile on my face, I pop in this DVD.

The dancing in this movie is spectacular - especially Ethan Stiefel(Cooper)who is amazing. Too often dance movies are made with actors who can't dance so that the "dancing" is shot in a way to disguise the fact that no dancing by the actor is actually occurring. The fact that Cooper, Jody and Charlie are all played by dancers, and in Ethan Stiefel's case one of the best dancers in the world, allows the film to end with a bang up dance sequence that you'll want to watch again and again. Other reviewers have said that the DVD extras aren't worth it, but the extras are worth it just for the extended dance sequences of "Romeo and Juliet" and "Stars and Stripes".

And yes, the plots are contrived, but they are engaging. Not every movie has to be edgy or deep or meaningful. It's often quite enough for a movie to make you feel good which this movie does in spades. If you love dance, you won't regret buying this DVD.

Rating:
Summary: "I'm gonna learn how to fly"
Review: Reminiscent of the 1980s backstage movie, FAME, CENTER STAGE offers a pretty accurate view of the New York dance world/community. The movie also provides it's audience with interesting and innovative choreography while exposing to them classical dance. Sure, the plotline is a bit on the schmaltzy side, but how many of us can say that we don't appreciate a good chick flick now and then? We thrill when the naive ingenue finally gets things together in the end, we struggle in sympathy with the bulemic girl, we enjoy the cynical ballerina's sarcasm, and our hearts go out to Charlie, the great guy who's unrequited love will finally (and predictably) be dispelled by our ingenue. Hey, there's even a love triangle.

However, most of us who watched this movie watched it for the great choreography and I can tell you that I was not dissappointed. The choreography was only enhanced by Hytner's liberal use of rhythmic cuts and the searching camera lense. Very modern MTV directorial techniques. By the end of the movie, you will believe that many of these dancers can fly.

As for eye-candy, Sascha Radetsky and Eion Bailey provide mad amounts of it. Truth be told, the whole movie is worth watching just to see the oh-so cute Sascha Radetsky dance. So, go out and buy the movie... what're you still doing sitting here and reading... go... watch the movie.

Rating:
Summary: Boasts every cliché you¿ve ever associated with dancing
Review: "Center Stage" tries desperately to be an entertaining, insightful look into the world of ballet dancers, but fails miserably. The acting by almost all of the actors is wooden and laughably bad. The dialogue is ridiculous without an ounce of believability. The dance sequences, which, if well-done, could have made this film so much more enjoyable, were dull and overly flashy.

As for the story, think of every cliché you've ever associated with the dance world and I guarantee you'll find it in this movie. Let's see, we have the Young, Beautiful Dancer in awe of the big city who falls in love with a hot star dancer. Then we have the Arrogant Girl ("I am the best goddamn dancer in the American Ballet Academy. Who the hell are you? Nobody") with an eating disorder and problems with her mother ("It's your dream... and it means more to you than it ever did to me"). And then there is the Rebellious Dancer with an attitude who refuses to conform to her instructor's direction. Lastly, of course, we have the Cute, Thoughtful Male Dancer whom Young Beautiful Dancer is secretly in love with. Yeah, okay. If this sounds interesting to you, you may enjoy this trite little soap opera set against the glamorized backdrop of the American Ballet Academy in NYC.

Rating:
Summary: Center Page
Review: My opinion of the movie: I love it.
I am interested in dance so the theme attracted me, but there are some special aspects to the movie.

The different love story and eating disorder(...) plots may seem cliche and/or corny, but this is how life can be in the dance world. I believe the movie accurately portrays the tough world of the ballet dancer.
Less accurately portrayed is some of the dancing. While most of it is beautiful and well-done, some of it isn't up to a professional standing, but in the making of a movie it definitley works. Some of the acting is also a little if-y, but only in some minor parts. None of this amounts to enough to take away from the rest of the movie.

Some more of the highlights of the movie are: scenes of New York, a sneak peek into the dance world, a catching plot, and great music! (I would also recommend the soundtrack!)