Save The Last Dance

Will You Want To "Save the Last Dance"
Save The Last Dance is quite a bit smarter, and more entertaining, than the majority of what some people call teenybopper flicks. Much of this is due to the performances of Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas. I know Thomas only from a small role in Cruel Intentions (one of my guilty pleasures from 1999), but Stiles always seems to bring an added depth to her movies, from 10 Things I Hate About You to Hamlet. This movie's no different. She's the protagonist, the heart and soul of the movie, and she doesn't disappoint.

Stiles is Sarah Johnson, a suburban teen whose life is torn apart when her mother is killed in a car accident en route to her daughter's ballet recital. Sent to live with her estranged father Roy (Terry Kinney), a down-on-his-luck jazz musician, she is forced to adapt to her new environment -- inner city Chicago. There she enrolls in a school in which she is pretty much the only color. She makes friends with Chenille Reynolds (Kerry Washington), a single...

TO DREAM THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM...
This is a well acted, somewhat sanitized and idealized story of a talented teeage girl who, on the cusp of achieving her dream, loses everything, only to find it again in a way no one would have predicted. It is a story about attaining one's dreams and the process by which they may become a reality. This is a well acted, though predictable, coming of age tale that can be enjoyed by young and old alike.

Here, the talented Julia Stiles plays the role of Sara, a teenager who happens to be a talented ballet dancer. Auditioning for the famous Julliard School, while angry at her single parent mother for being late to her audition, she fumbles her audition. She finishes, only to discover that her mother, in her haste to make Sara's audition, died in a tragic car accident on her way. Blaming herself for her mother's death, Sara gives up ballet.

Her pleasant life suddenly snatched from her, Sara is forced to go live with her estranged dad, Roy, wonderfully acted by Terry Tinney. A down and...

Sweet!!!
I have to say that this movie was a lot more than the fluff that is passing for movies these days. It correctly portrayed conflicts with interacial dating and how two people overcame it. Not only was it a great love story but the Julia rocked the screen with her moves and Sean Patrick Thomas heated things us a notch. Only in this movie would anyone be able to combine classical ballet and hip-hop so well. It just makes ya want to get up and dance. I found the movie not only to be entertaining but inspiring. You don't have to be a teenager to enjoy it, I would recommend this movie to anyone who loves to dance or just likes a good movie. Incredible!

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