Cinema Review: Step Up 3D

"One move can set a whole generation apart", recites character Moose (Adam G. Sevani) from the poorly written script that would first handedly set the film as one of the year's worst. Still, Step Up 3D is a film primarily focused on one thing: dance.

NYU freshman Moose (Sevani carrying on his role from the second) and his BFF (Camp Rock star Alyson Stoner) become entangled in a tight-knit group of NY dancers led by Luke (Rick Malambri). Grabbing a few handfuls on the way - including Natalie (ex-Home and Away star Sharni Vinson), Luke's love interest - the group train for the World Jam competition, with all hopes of beating their rivals for the £100,000 prize money.

It's incontrovertible that there hasn't been an original dance-orientated film in years. Continuously re-hashing the overall blueprint of the film, leading on the same old drivel on how dance sets off a rippling effect of positive change in somebodys life. Step Up 3D does nothing to stray itself from the theory of re-hashing, with a script as diabolical as the pervious two, with the acting (Vinson, especially) proving an extensive amount worse with lines such as "BFab, born from a boombox".

Fortunately, this truly comes as no surprise. However, the hammy acting and dreary dialogue are vastly overpowered by what audiences clearly wish to see. Vigorous from start to finish, the quirky, lightning fast movements (choreographed by returning dance star Jamal Sims) are jaw-dropping. From street to stage, solo to group, they never fail to impress and dazzle. Presented with the upmost enthusiasm, each move sets the screen alight and, as a bonus, genuinely uses the 3D technology to its advantage, with every hand movement perforating the screen itself and allowing for an immersive experience for everybody, fan or not.

While the dancing maintains your attention, the backlog of hideously inconsequential characters, failing to include any partial significance to the film, is unmissable. Excluding Sevani and Stoner's sweet, albeit shortly screened, romance about young love in the city, the true power couple of the film (Malambri and Vinson) fall flat. While gorgeous to look at, the pair are sadly devoid of any real chemistry.

Envigorating entertainment that fits well within the rest of the summer flicks. Harmless enough for the cinema goer, but an absolute must for die-hard fans of dance.

3.5/5