Step Up 3D Could Have Done Without the "D"

Author: GB Joiner (adpiprincess03) from Washington
7 August 2010

I have to say that I am a fan of the serie. The dancing in the first movie was great, but the subsequent films has had amazing numbers. I could see why Chu would want to do the film in 3D. 3D is the "it" thing these days, and the dance sequences were enhanced by the technology. That being said, 90% of the film didn't require 3D. I hate wearing the glasses unless I'm on a ride at Disney. I feel like a lot of the films that employ 3D technology also release a 2D version (a good thing for people like me). I wish Step Up 3D would have given the option, even if the name denotes the extra dimension.

As for the cast, I was disappointed in the male lead but not because of his acting or looks. He is beautiful and can act. However, he apparently can't dance. I felt like if he was going to stand on the sidelines during battles or have obvious doubles they could have played him even heavier as the "director". Moose and Camille pulled off what could have been an impossibility: tying the first and second film together with the third in a realistic manner. Unlike Channing Tatum's cameo to tie the first and second films together, making Moose and Camille besties going to college together was brilliant.

The soundtrack is great (even though some of the songs you'll recognized from other recent shows: Glee and Sex and the City). All in all, I enjoyed the movie and left the theater wanting to dance. The film (like any self- respecting franchise) leaves it wide open for a fourth. A word of advice: make like The Fast and the Furious and wait 'til you're missed and can get the entire cast together to go for #4.

The dancing = impressive. Everything else = dreadful.

Author: Troy_Campbell from Sydney, Australia
6 August 2010

If you've seen one break-dance flick, then let's be frank, you've seen them all. The blue print is the same each and every time, lots of awesome dance sequences with gap-filling  scenes of excruciating acting, non-existent plot and direlogue that wouldn't feel out of place in a Z-grade horror film. With those standards in mind, the most effective entries  into this genre do two very simple things: maximise the eye-boggling dance routines and minimise the yawn-inducing guff that fills the rest of the runtime.

Step Up 3D only gets half of the above equation right. An unnecessary amount of time is wasted on boring dross like predictable plot twists and deep and meaningful (read:  long and laughable) conversations about how profoundly dancing can affect people. Honestly, who cares? From the moment the main character tells his new BFF that "he's  BFAB, born from a beatbox" in the first ten minutes, all further dialogue should've been ceased immediately. I'm serious, they should've let the music and moves do the talking  for the remaining 90 minutes. That way our gag-reflex wouldn't have been tested by Vinson (ex-Home and Away star) and Malambri's acting.

When the bodies are twirling, contorting, flinging, jumping, smashing or moving like a robot the film unsurprisingly finds its legs. Choreographed with flair and panache, the  set-pieces incorporate the 3D technology decently enough by having dancers approach the camera with fast, whippy hand movements, however the depth of the stage was  employed more successfully by its British counterpart StreetDance 3D. Regardless, there are still a handful of entertaining dance-offs that impress on varying levels.

Replete with the freshest hip-hop tunes and sporadic inventiveness – mainly in the form of illuminated costumes – this trilogy-closer may tickle your fancy, but that is wholly  reliant on whether you're BFAB or not.2.5 out of 5 (1 - Rubbish, 2 - Ordinary, 3 - Good, 4 - Excellent, 5 - Classic)