I dont know why it had a rating that low (5.3). I think its a good film. Very energetic dancing scenes, emotional scenes (in the restaurant, in the subway, etc). Good acting from the girl. Bad: mainstream representation of the "scientist" ("i'm a scientist" / typical nerd).
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parker332825 April 2002
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tizmoth17 December 2001I was really impressed with this feature. It is very much a simple visual treat, and an emotional and inspiring story.
India is an exceptionally talented dancer living with her brother and scarcely making ends meet. She is a mute and encounters various problems in her daily life and also in gaining employment as a dancer. This is a well acted and beautifully shot film. Jarrod Bunch in particular gives real gravity to the marginal character Bruno, makes him seem like a real person! It holds a European flavour but fits in the New York mould perfectly. I suggest that this will be enjoyed by most folk. It's a triumph of the human spirit film, without cheese. It is in a word exceptional. -
nomoretitanic4 June 2002I just read a review that told me the female lead, star of this movie, was a dancer in real life. I'm no dancing machine, but she just didn't dance very well in this movie. Her moves looked exactly the same as all the extras who were in the movie. She just got framed a little more properly. At least choreograph something a little more interesting. For a movie about a dancer whose entire life was about dancing and mesmerizing others with her moves, she was wildy wildy wildy average. Don't expect any Janet Jackson or even Britney Spears. Expect the cool girl at a party somewhere in some college kid's parents' summer home. Another big complaint was the direction. This director, another protege of Luc Besson, did not know the American culture very well, or Americans very well, nevermind the subculture of hiphop. His car-commerical type green-and-red tone looked totally out of place. Many interesting cuts and wild camera movements, but added nothing to the movie. The way he filmed the actors, especially black actors, was very obvious through a foreigner's gaze. People looked objectified. And many sets in the movie--the audition studios, the clubs, the streets of New York, all looked like exaggerated versions of sets from other American movies. The director probably has never been to very many hip clubs. And nevermind the science labs. The sci-fi elements of this movie was grade-b tv material. It was offered late in the movie as some kind of cheap deus ex-machina. So a mute girl can't get respect as a dancer because she's mute, what does she do? Oh, just turn to a scientist whose new advice can turn your moves into post-new age electronic music that sounds like retreads from The Fifth Element (oh yeah, of course, and a little Bjork here and there just to be safe.)
The music and the images at no point of time really connected, it shows how far we've gone from those MGM musicals movies where the lines may be crappy and the filmmakers may be racist, but at least the dance sequences were good. Or 10 years ago when Michael Jackson was still making music videos.
But the movie is harmless, its visual is pretty smooth so you can turn off the sound and just kinda stare at it, kinda like a really colorful lava lamp. If you must watch it, it probably won't kill you. -
tarablossom6 March 2004This movie belongs in the group of movies that people watch not only for a story (or in spite of the story) but for the dancing. Mia Frye is inspirational. I watched this movie with my 5 year old daughter and it gave her lots of dance ideas which she added to her repertoire (as best she could). It's not classic ballet or choreographed Broadway Musical stuff, but a bit more wild, more basic and definitely electrifying.
The story line is not bad either. If you've seen "Children of a Lesser God" and had a connection with that plot, you might get a connection with this one. Without writing any details to spoil the story, I thought there were a few provocative twists dealing with communication and "being creative" as a mute. One was the Dancer's ability to engage a class of children without speaking (her part time job). The job discrimination part of the plot was realistic and educational. And in particular the synergy between a geek with a crush and the artist, well it was sweet, without being too sappy and ended in a fairly provocative finale. Not an action movie, most guys would probably label it a chick flick, but might like it for the sexuality in the dance numbers.
I've been trying to purchase it but have had a lot of difficulty finding it. I found a place out of Hong Kong, but then you get tangled up in the DVD region coding system. -
I work the night shift in a hotel; so I regularly watch late-night films to keep myself awake- and that's how I stumbled across this one at 2am in the morning.
When I started watching it, I immediately assumed that it was going to be just another throw-away movie; a pretty lead actress, dominating male role alongside, and we're introduced to a side-plot which we assume will eventually merge into a love-interest.
Well, how wrong was I? Not only did this film decide to throw things in the air and tip the balances that are so often routinely reinforced in almost every movie that comes out these days, but the acting abilities of the cast were stunning! You could really empathise and care about each of them, the storyline keeps you interested, and I didn't find myself wanting to turn over from a cringe-worthy one liner or throwaway comment once! I only found out this film was by Luc Besson a few moments ago- but after seeing this film, plus 'angel-a' (another of his wonders!), I will most definitely be adding him to my list of favourite directors.
Fantastic film; 9 out of 10- it lost a point because I couldn't hear the music all that well over the top of the very noisy steam-compressor at work, so I hold back that point until I know whether or not there are any clever sound intricacies that I like.
I most definitely recommend this title- especially to fans of 'step up' who will be amazed not only by the far superior dancing, acting and storyline, but will love the fact that this movie is devoid of Disney's home-brand default trash sexism and clichés.
WATCH THIS! -pookie x -
Dr_Coulardeau15 March 2007It could have been a soft erotic film but Besson made it a hardcore lovely fairy tale that can mesmerize you by bringing together opposed and contradictory elements, de-multiplying a Romeo and Juliet fable into a criss cross of antagonisms and happy endings. A mute dancer is the best dancer of them all and yet she is refused in an audition because she is mute. What about that as for segregation? She is black and managed by her brother who is an artist, and a successful one what's more, at antagonizing others, being fired and having his friends fired. What about that as for a chip on his shoulder? Then she is seen and at once adopted by a young scientist, Isaac, who is trying to create a mechanical system that would turn bodily movement into music and a dance into a symphony. What about that as for body language? And she accepts to cross the racial divide, the cultural divide, the sexual divide and a few other divides to do it! And the world does not stop, does not roar, does not kill any one. What about that as for optimism! Luc Besson must believe the world has improved and cooperation is possible beyond, over and across any divide at all, which makes this film charming indeed, even if not the turning point in imagination that will bring the new world that is possible into being. Luc Besson is in no way a politician and his dreaming tomorrow's world is hard enough a task for him to be satisfied with the smile of his dancer and the grin of his scientist.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine & University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne -
plazmatick4 January 2003As an electronic musician and admirer of dancers (especially body expressionist like Mia)I enjoyed this movie. Simple and warm story of perfect-but-not-so-perfect glory-chaser India with the most beautiful eyes in the world, great beats and body language,ups and downs, disappointments with the people and their conservativism and an evidence that it has sense to make something from the heart, to express, to be what you feel, and to believe in your goals and your ways of reaching them. It gives you great and warm feeling inside and it reminds you of what a human being means.
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SebastienSpa10 March 2019If we consider ourselves as "quite" serious movie reviewers, we must acknowledge the fact that a movie tells a story - that's what it's supposed to do.
Just like action movies - dance movies traditionally run short of a story to make room for the action, uhm, dancing. This is an important background fact to review this movie.
I also have to admit that I don't really like dance movies - I never saw the necessity to push a story with dancing scenes - Indian movies rely heavily on it and even in western movies some productions have reached the point where the story is, well, the gap filler between the dancing. And that would rather make for a "performance flick" than an actual movie.
Luc Besson tries really hard to makes this one stand out. He gives the protagonist characteristics that make her very special. He adds characters that really try to propel a story. The settings are great, the sound is mostly awesome and avantgardly cool, the camera and editing is (of course) Bessonesque deluxe - so what's there to complain?
Let's jump back to the beginning of my review. Even though there is a lot of substance compared to other dance movies - in the end it's a dance movie and the crucial part is the final performance, like in any other dance movie. And that, unfortunately, makes it very predictable and prototypical.
It makes me a little bit sad as you can tell that everybody here is working so hard to make this movie stand out as something different. As a performance flick this is probably one of the best and most original I've seen - but unfortunately as a movie it's only average. -
jbunch3222 June 2000"The Dancer" Movie that I know is about a young lady, India who is mute and a great dancer. The movie is about the strong relationship between India and her brother Jasper and what affect a scientist who helps to change her life has on there sister/brother bond. Rudy, the cousin of Jasper and India adds a unique dose of comedy that shows what type of life these city youngsters have to deal with everyday.