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Review - Streetdance 3D

Every so often a trend comes along that's so big a film has to be made to cash in on. Is Streetdance 3D worth the money? Discuss on our blog.

Words: David Barros

Streetdance 3D poster

Streetdance 3D is a first. It's the first film to be shot entirely in 3D, have a worldwide release and features a cast of genuine street dancers.

Carly (Nichola Burley), a dancer working part time as a sandwich maker, is in love with her boyfriend Jay (Ukweli Roach), while her dance crew has qualified for the UK Street Dance Championships. But everything is thrown into turmoil when Jay decides he's leaving the crew to focus on other things, leaving Carly to run things. With no team leader and nowhere to train, she's left in jeopardy.

Richard Winsor - the love object Then one day, when Eddie (George Sampson) is late for work she's left to deliver sandwiches herself, ending up in the unlikely presence of Helena (Charlotte Rampling), head teacher at the Ballet Academy, who will let Carly use her dance facilities for free - only if her unmotivated ballet dancers can join them.

Predictably, their two worlds collide, taking a little bit of everything that's worked in past dance films and giving it a London accent and a sparse sprinkling of humour.

The producers are venturing into uncharted waters by doing a British dance film and because of this you get the impression that certain sacrifices were made. Namely, character development and plot complexity in order to make way for a chart friendly soundtrack that will probably do better stateside than the film itself.

Nichola Burley - poorly casted This is a glossy film: There are gurning smiles, group hug moments, served with a use of language that never quite rings true. The over use of "We're a streetdance crew" "Me and my streetdance crew" and the general overuse of "streetdance" as a buzzword is repetitive an annoying, it almost seems as though we are being given “streetdance 101” and yet somehow misses the real authenticity of the world it tries to portray.

It's not just the glorious colours on screen that makes it glossy, but the costume too. They've done a good job in styling, getting the right flavour of swagger over the false portrayal of leg warmers and leotards that so often crop up when the notion of dance hits the screen.

The most frustrating 'gloss' for many will be the casting of Nichola Burley as main character. Whilst easy on the eye, the role is insubstantial; her Northern accent contrasts too much with the rest of the cast, and with no back-story to the character it simply feels as though the producers conceded to making it less London and more UK audience friendly by casting her to to give it nationwide appeal. It doesn't work. It's like the Queen's English Londoner in an American film - forced and inauthentic. Burley's expressions grate too - whilst London dancers will understand the familiar front dancers put up when confronting their rivals, audiences are left with Burley's sneering upper lip in place of a mean mug.

Burley is from up north, okay. But there's no context for many of the character's being. Why did she move to London? How did the crew come together? Why does Jay end up leaving? There's no development to show any of these questions that genuinely interest us as an audience.

Streetdance 3D Bullet Time

It's a shame more lines weren't given to our own dancers. We don't really get to know much about their characters at all. Brooke (Brooke Milliner, one of the few dancers in the film to use their real name, along with Lil Steph) is one of the core members of Carly's dance crew, and has two lines in the whole film. While the camera centres on him throughout, you're expecting him to say something before one of the lead characters cuts him short.

The producers also did a good job of recruiting the best choreographers. Kenrick Sandy and Kate Prince are responsible for most of the routines on screen, Will Tuckett for the ballet. There are no two step routines, but properly thought out dance sets. If you're scrutinising it as closely as we were you can try and spot who choreographed which routine. Kenrick's choreography is the easiest to recognise, although some of the choreography style doesn't translate equally amongst some of the dancer's abilities.

Flawless as the Surge in Streetdance 3D

Flawless, who did their own choreography, danced consistently as it was their own style.

Thanks to the films pro-UK music approach to the soundtrack, many of the routines feel like they've had to concede genuine street routines to watered down pop promos to match the music provided. Aside from Mikey J, composer for Boy Blue Entertainment, nobody else on the soundtrack were specifically dance routine composers. Had a couple of familiar dance tracks that aren't on the soundtrack CD been licensed then at least the on screen action would hold some weight instead of counting against it - Pixie Lott - not your typical street dance song. A shirtless routine montage from Richard Winsor would have genuinely been breath-taking in its mixture of capoeira, contemporary and breaking were it not for an N-Dubz song playing over it.

The soundtrack also provides backing to the montages - a staple part of every dance film, but here, a little over done. I counted 10 in total, but they added precious little to the narrative, leaving sizeable gaps in the storyline.

For those attracted to the film to watch the headline appearances will find they're only advertised to make it more appealing, cast because they're the hot groups at the minute. Diversity have just a minor cameo. George Sampson's character was written in to provide appeal for its teenage market. Akai was a last minute cameo filmed after the wrap and Flawless as the Surge are cast as mute anti heroes.

People new to street dance may well feel disappointed in this movie. Driven by its soundtrack, flaky script and patchy cameos, it might be 3D, but there's no depth to it. The visuals have depth. The story does not. Don't get carried away in the hype, you'll be asking too many questions afterwards.

Streetdance 3D synopsis

Sparks fly as the worlds of street-dance and ballet collide in Streetdance 3D, the vibrant, uplifting and ground-breaking 3D feature film from Vertigo Films.

While training for the UK Streetdance Championships, a streetdance crew are forced to work with Royal ballet dancers in return for

rehearsal space. With no common ground and with passions riding high, they realise they need to find a way to join forces to win.

Streetdance 3D features the cream of UK dance talent, including show-stopping performances from Britain’s Got Talent dance sensations

Flawless, Diversity and George Sampson, as well as from Matthew Bourne protégé Richard Winsor and breakthrough Brit actress Nichola Burley (Donkey Punch, Love & Hate).

Streetdance 3D cast

Who plays who in Streetdance 3D?

Main cast/supporting dancers:

Carly - Nichola Burley

Tomas - Richard Winsor

Jay - Ukweli Roach

Fred - Frank Harper

Aaron - Ashley Banjo

Eddie - George Sampson

Helena - Charlotte Rampling

Madame Fleurie - Eleanor Bron

Mr Harding - Patrick Baladi

Shawna - Teneisha Bonner

Boogie - Lex Milczarek

Mack - Kofi Agyemang-Prempeh

Gabe - Hugo Cortes

Chloe - Sianad Gregory

Bex - Jennifer Leung

Isabella - Rachel McDowall

Justine - Rhimes Lecointe

Aimee - Sacha Chang

Frankie - Bradley Charles

Steph - Stef ‘Lil Stef’ Nguyen

Brooke - Brooke Milliner

Michael - Jeremy Sheffield

Dancing Kid in Shopping Mall - Akai Osei-Mansfield

Aaron's Crew (Diversity):

Jordan Banjo

Ian McNaughton

Jamie McNaughton

Matthew McNaughton

Mitchell Craske

Sam Craske

Warren Russell

Terry Smith

Ike Ezekwugo

Perri Kiely

The Surge (Flawless Entertainment):

Marlon Wallen

Anthony Duncan

Nathan Kabongo

Paul Samuels

Allan Kabeja

Christian Alozie

Leroy Dias Dos Santos

Simon Smith

Paul Steadman

Nathan Gordon

Finalist Crews / Dancers:

Karizma

Peridot

Status

Juke Box Juniors

Persuasive

Finale Supergroup

Duwane Taylor

Minica Beason

Calvin Francis

Jasmine Cox

Jonathan Hart

Jade Hackett

Carrie-Anne Ingrouille

Jeffrey Felicisimo

Sarah Richards

Jasmin Saulo

Choreographers

Kenrick Sandy (Boy Blue)

Kate Prince (Zoonation)

Will Tuckett

Judges:

Mark Pembroke

Paulette Minott

Simeon Qsyea