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SYNOPSIS: In
the countdown to a national step-off, rivalries at Truth University
run red hot. The Theta Nus are counting on new pledge Chance
Harris to lead the team to victory. But he's too caught up
in romantic troubles and targetted by a street gang for an
unpaid debt, Chance must decide what is truly important and
make the choices that will shape his life.
MOVIE
REVIEW:
This direct-to-video sequel of the modest hit of a dance movie “Stomp the Yard” is an example of what you would call an under-achiever in school. You see the best dance movies take a simple story, tell it with heart and wrap it with scenes of astounding, breathtaking, and awe-inspiring dance moves. Yes, it’s the dancing audiences ultimately want to watch- never mind the clichéd story and familiar melodrama.
On the contrary, “Homecoming” just does the opposite. It thinks its audience is here for the clichéd story and the familiar melodrama, so it decides to tell a complicated story, takes its time to do so- but only ends up doing it superficially- and in the process leaves little time for what its audience is ultimately here for. That’s right- there is surprisingly very little dancing to be seen, or step-dancing as it is referred to in this movie, which is good reason to be disappointed.
Picking up a year after the events of the first film, this sequel bears a whole new set of characters and consequently a whole new cast (except executive producer Columbus Short who makes a cameo appearance as DJ from the earlier film). The lead character is one street dancer called Chance (Collins Pennie) who has a whole laundry list of problems, thanks to the overambitious pair of first-time screenwriters Albert Leon and Meena Payne.
Not only does he owe money to a local gangster after losing in a rigged street dance competition, he has just joined the Theta Nu fraternity at Truth University and waded into a rivalry with another college stepping fraternity. As he prepares his frat brothers to battle it out at the big stepping competition on campus during homecoming weekend, Chance also has to contend with a disapproving dad (Keith David), a meddlesome ex-girlfriend and a jealous girlfriend (Tika Sumpter).
That’s a lot to pack into an 88-min movie and it shows. None of these subplots are given much development over the four days the film is set, and director Rob Hardy’s choice to give each equivalent screen time leaves little else for the main attraction. That also means after the initial street dance competition, there’s only one stepping sequence before the big finale. As much as one can pretty much guess the outcome of the showdown, it doesn’t hurt to show us believe that the characters we root for actually worked hard for their win.
Even if it’s too little, choreographer Chuck Maldonado still makes the best of the time he has been given to stage some impressive step-dancing. The finale- a good 15 min thankfully- is executed sharply and turns out suitably rousing. Newcomers Collins Pennie, Pooch Hall, Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss and Terrence J Kiely do a better job dancing than acting, and stand out more in those final minutes than in the rest of the movie.
Ironically, it is the climax that exposes the faults of this movie. It spends too much time on what it should not be doing, and too little on what it should. There’s a reason why “Stomp the Yard: Homecoming” is called a dance movie, and this forgettable sequel gets it wrong by forgetting its raison d’être.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
Start off with the audio commentary by director Rob Hardy, producer Will Packer and cast Collins Pennie and Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss, a light-hearted and amusing affair that reveals the camaraderie that would have been on the set of the film. There’s also a featurette “Stomp the Yard: Choreography” that talks about designing the stepping moves in the film, a fusion of traditional stepping with gymnastics. Finally, there are eight deleted scenes that true to their nature are inconsequential to the movie.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
This is a surprisingly solid package from Sony Pictures Entertainment. The Dolby Digital 5.1 boasts a strong solid bass and excellent surround sound especially during the stepping scenes. Visuals are clean and sharp and the colours rich and beautiful.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Gabriel Chong
Posted on 10 October 2010
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