Feel like dancing? Well, you won't find any new moves here. KILMENY ADIE reviews the film Make It Happen.Why is it so difficult to shake up the plot of an aspiring dancer film?
The tales are always the same: small town girl with a painful past, a dream to study at a prestigious dance school, an unlikely love interest, a jealous female enemy and, finally, success.
In ifMake It Happennf, the plot trajectory is so familiar you could fall asleep and only wake up to watch the ho-hum dance sequences knowing that any character development you missed while snoozing will be nothing out of the ordinary.
Why can't script writers come up with something new to the old gem of a protective sibling/parent stifling the protagonists' development after the untimely death of the character's mother?
Make It Happen tells the story of Lauryn (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) a small-town girl from Indiana who longs to study dance at the celebrated Chicago School of Music and Dance.
This dream is put on hold when her brother wants her to stay with him and rescue their late parents' business from financial ruin.
Eventually Lauryn realises she can't put off her dreams any longer and secures an audition at the school, packs her car and heads to Chicago.
When she does not get accepted for her hoodie-wearing performance with passionless moves, Lauryn can't face going home.
Instead she lies to her brother, loses her car and strikes up a friendship with a cafe worker, Dana (Tessa Thompson) who ultimately not only offers her a place to stay but a new career in the burlesque club, Rubys.
Rubys is one of the hottest clubs in the windy city due to its funky charm and dancing girls who push the boundaries of performance.
When Lauryn's bookkeeping work paves the way for a chance to take to the stage, things begin to change.
Throw in a new boyfriend, a moment of revelation and a realisation of her own dancing talents and the end of Make It Happen is obvious.
Unfortunately the script writers Duane Adler (who wrote the screenplays for Save the Last Dance and Step Up) and Nicole Avril did not come up with anything new.
The burlesque dance is combined with street style and while this might appeal to the younger market, it's missing a flair.
Despite the clash of genres, the dancing is similar to other recent films. Furthermore, the characters are not sufficiently appealing as they are in say, Coyote Ugly or Save the Last Dance where the dance/song sequences are enjoyable.
There are other flaws, like the film's grand finale which is just plain silly, or the odd disappearance of Dana only to have her crop up towards the end of the movie without explanation of her absence.
Dance fans will undoubtedly catch this film just to see what developments are being made in this genre.
For everyone else it's a colour-by-numbers dance film which flashes a little toned flesh, some generic dance moves and forgettable performances from its cast.
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