Step Up 3 - Movie review

STEP UP 3
U; Drama/Dance
Dir: Jon Chu
Cast: Rick Malambri, Adam G Sevani, Sharni Vinson
Rating: ''1/2

WHAT'S IT ABOUT: It starts out with a few guys and gals telling the camera what dance means to them. The words seem heartfelt. One says it means becoming someone else; another says dance saved him, yet another says it set her free. The guy shooting the footage is Luke (Malambri), blessed with the soul of a filmmaker. He runs into freshman Moose (Sevani), who has just applied for an engineering major at New York University.
If you've been following the franchise, Moose was there in previous instalments in minor roles. He has a slightly bigger part to play in this one. His parents want him to give up on "that dance thing" and work on getting a taste of the "real life".
No such luck. Li'l Man is drawn to boogeying like a moth drawn to flame. Luke runs something called The Vault. It is a safehouse for talents that have nowhere to go. He has a set-up most choreographers would give a right hand for. There's even a club in the basement. Not all is as cool as it seems though. Luke is behind on the rent and the bank's fed up of sending reminders. His dance crew, called the House of Pirates, find themselves sparring with the House of Samurai run by rich kid Julian, who wants to buy out the place where the Vault is housed. Luke sees Moose as his lucky charm and as quickly, finds love in the enigmatic Natalie (Vinson). However, Natalie isn't being entirely truthful.
Come to think of it, neither is Moose. He even starts ignoring bestest friend Camille (Alyson Stoner), who begins feeling left out of all the fun. Meanwhile, the Pirates begin preparing for a dance-off called the World Jam and sooner than later, find a Judas among them. Any idea who it is?

WHAT'S HOT: The choreography is several notches above the first two Step Up offerings. Unlike most films of the genre which lose steam (and the plot) midway, this one thankfully doesn't. The chemistry between Luke and Natalie might be a little awkward, but Moose and Camille are charming to the hilt. Watch out for that one track they jive to.

WHAT'S NOT: The film's soundtrack has a few potential foottappers, but is mostly just noise. While you like that they've taken a fairly predictable plotline (a girl infiltrating a rival camp) and done something more with it, you wish they had not used it all.

WHAT'S THAT! There's definitely something quirky about a lead pair where the guy resembles Ashton Kutcher's elder brother and the girl resembles Demi Moore's younger sister.

WHAT TO DO: While I didn't get the chance to see the film in 3-D (the format that the film was originally shot in), it is the kind of film that entertains while keeping the preachiness to a minimum. Put on your dancing shoes, then!