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***½ of ****
Rated: PG-13
Credits:
Writers:
Duane Adler
Cheryl Edwards
Director: Thomas Carter
Cast:
Julia Stiles: Sara Johnson
Sean Patrick Thomas: Derek Reynolds
Terry Kinney: Roy Johnson
Fredro Starr: Malakai
Kerry Washington: Chenille Reynolds
After the mother of a high school girl, Sara, dies in a traffic accident, she moves from a small town near Chicago to the south side of Chicago. She must live with her musician father in a run down building. She transfers to a high school where she is nearly the only white person. She gets mad at a boy in class over an academic discussion. This boy is an African American with a less than perfect past. They find that they not only share a love of learning, but a love for dance. They deal with the problems of being hurt teens as romance blossoms, and then the hassles of being in an interracial relationship begin to show up as they continue to discover themselves as individuals.
Although this movie was quite predictable and the directing had a few hiccups, it successfully navigated through many potential problems with the writing. The temptation to drift into several arenas of preaching was avoided, and the unique view of inner city life was presented. The balance of the peripheral story lines surrounding Sara is commendable. The formula for the main story had many twists to keep it relatively original. Sara's adaptability seems too good, but kids are good at that. Her adjustment to life after her mother's death is sad, but there are many little things in it that are funny because they are true of all of us at some point in our lives. The presentation of this girls awkwardness was well done and kept the audience laughing. The battle with her inner feelings of guilt was dealt with well for the time frame of the movie. In a true chick flick fashion, we never really see why Derek is so motivated to aid this damsel, but he is there giving it his effort none the less. The chemistry between Sara and Derek works well for both the attractions and conflicts. Sara's inability to understand Derek's loyalty to his seriously messed up friend, Malakai, seemed to be a parable of a nation's failure to understand it's most disenfranchised people. The business as usual treatment of issues such as gang violence, drugs, and teen parents just made the telling of these stories that much better. The subtle subplot of Sara's father was good, but I think a lot of people may have missed that. All those gloomy and snowy scenes did not make for an uplifting view for the audience; it is the middle of January for gosh sake!
Fredro Starr as the troubled Malakai gave a very heart wrenching performance that really helped to make this film good. The depravity of his beliefs was more of a tear jerker than Sara's "I killed my mother" speech. Not that they both didn't need a few more crackers to go with that cheese. ;)
Sean Patrick Thomas as Derek Reynolds does a great job as the school boy stuck in the middle between his friends and bitchy ex-girlfriend, and the new babe in town. The uncertainty he feels is well conveyed to the audience, and you can feel the squirm of indecision as he tries to keep his life on track.
Julia Stiles plays Sara Johnson very well. The range of high intensity acting required for this role makes this a real break out movie for her. Additionally, she did all her own dancing in the movie except for the point work. Her discomfort in the ballet 'studio' scene was easy to see, but not too important in the movie. She is one to watch in the future. Her crying skills are second to none. The emotional scenes were as convincing as the goofy scenes. Stiles' future's so bright, I've got to wear welding goggles. ;)
Save the Last Dance goes above and beyond the normal teen flick. It is a dramatic comedy that shows that we all have choices of some sort in our lives, and what we choose and what we make of it does have consequences for better or worse.
The score solidly leads the mood of the story. The soundtrack is extensive and virtually all hip hop. The credits listed most of the songs as 'samples.'