Save the Last Dance 2 DVD: Review By Mushy

Sara Johnson (Izabella Miko) has landed at Julliard in the sequel Save the Last Dance 2. Sara finds herself at a crossroads because this elite school has many top dancers, and she is being pulled in the direction of hip-hop. Having gone her whole life thinking that she always knew what she wanted, this film is actually an allegory for the choices we all make when choosing our life's path.

All in all, some solid performances were turned in by Miko, Jacqueline Bisset and the rest of the cast. However, like in my review of White Nights, the thing that stood out the most to me was the dancing. Unfortunately, I didn't feel that Save the Last Dance 2 had nearly as good a soundtrack.

On Their Toes

This is a small featurette that looks at the making of Save the Last Dance 2. We get to hear from the actors on two fronts because they talk about making this movie, but they also discuss the dancing. It's not like I becoming a big fan of dance movies all of the sudden, but again, I found hearing about this process to be intriguing. It's probably because I can't do it, but I can understand why younger people (especially girls) might relate to this film.

Widescreen - This film had a solid if not stodgy look about it. I guess considering that this film is supposed to take place at Julliard, that isn't 100% inappropriate, right? While there wasn't anything about the visuals in this film that blew me away, I was surprised at the almost warm, intimate quality this film had as it played on my DVD player. This isn't the greatest looking movie I have ever seen but it captures the world it is putting across well.

Dolby Digital 5.1. As I mentioned above, the soundtrack for this movie wasn't anything to write home about. Not that I had a hard time hearing anything, I just find the merging of the hip-hop and ballet worlds to be somewhat unnerving. Who knows? It's probably because I am getting older, I just wish I could have gotten into this aspect of the film more. Isn't the point supposed to be that these things really aren't that different?

Izabella Miko graces this cheap looking front cover that makes this film seem like the straight-to-DVD knock off that it is. They even have pictures on this cover that make the actors in the sequel look like the actors in the original! That back features some more pictures from the film, a description of what this movie is about, a cast list, and technical specs. All in all, I wish they would have tried more with this release considering how popular the first film was to so many people.

I guess a sequel to the first movie makes a lot of sense considering that that vehicle (then starring Julia Stiles) grossed $91 million against a budget of $13. I am just wondering why Save the Last Dance 2 came out straight-to-video? As far as I can recollect, I don't recall that this movie ever got anything close to a theatrical release. Also, why wouldn't Stiles reprise her role? I get the feeling that based on the success of this film, producers probably figured they had another Sandra Bullock or Julia Roberts. Now, while Stiles has bitten into that apple a little bit, she seems much more secure and happy doing indy films which is where she started.

All in all, if you saw the first movie and you liked it, I think you will enjoy Save the Last Dance 2. My biggest complaint is that this film doesn't seem that different.