Stomp the Yard Review

"Stomp the Yard" reviews

Movie

Stomp the Yard

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-02-20 21:53:30

Rating

2.5/5

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

Despite its predictability, all that stompin' in this Yard will get you moving in your seat.

Story

Who knew about the traditions of "stepping?" Stomp the Yard lets moviegoers in on this age-old style of dance customarily done in the black fraternities and sororities, where teams demonstrate complex moves and create rhythmic sounds by using their bodies. It's exciting to watch, to say the least. But in between the powerful dance sequences, we're handed a corny plot, revolving around a wrong-side-of-the-tracks guy named DJ (Columbus Short), who moves from L.A. to Atlanta to escape his woes and inadvertently gets in on the whole step deal when he attends Truth University. DJ's raw talent as a hip-hop inspired dancer places him at the center of a fierce rivalry between two fraternities—one who has won the annual stepping championship seven years in a row and the other who wants to claim it for themselves. Guess which fraternity DJ joins? Guess who wins? Yeah, not too hard to figure this one out.

Acting

The cast thankfully sells the hackneyed story, starting with the incredibly charismatic Short (Accepted). A former choreographer for pop stars such as Britney Spears, Short certainly pulls off the dancing with ease, and he handles the dramatic chores with aplomb. He also has nice chemistry with the lovely Meagan Good (Roll Bounce), who plays a rich girl DJ pursues despite being the girlfriend of rival frat stepper, played by Soul Food's Darrin Henson, another excellent dancer. The third actor/dancer to watch for in Stomp is Brian White (The Family Stone), as the leader of DJ's fraternity and an old school step master who gets a little education from the streetwise DJ. Let's just say everyone is very easy on the eyes and their moves sizzle and pop.

Direction

Much like Tyler Perry's movies (Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Madea's Family Reunion), Stomp the Yard may appeal to a niche market, but it's definitely a refreshing change of pace from typical urban street movies. Sure, Stomp is one cliché after another, but newbie director Sylvain White knows exactly where the film's bread is buttered: It's all about the dance and music. And while other dance movies--the recent Step Up comes to mind--fall in the same category, White distinguishes Stomp by skillfully highlighting this particular pulse-pounding dance style, as well as showing the rich culture and traditions of our black college campuses.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 2 1/2 stars.

Movie

Stomp the Yard

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-03-15 00:00:00

Provider

MyMovies

Review

For anyone eagerly awaiting a sequel to "You Got Served", here's "Stomp the Yard" to tide you over until the big day arrives. Columbus Short plays DJ Williams, a troubled youth from Los Angeles who winds up at the prestigious, historically black Truth University in Atlanta, after an urban LA dance battle results in the death of his brother (dangerous things, these dance battles). Initially DJ feels out of place at Truth, what with its elite fraternities and privileged students. However, two things quickly change his mind: campus hottie April (Meagan Good) and the discovery of "stepping", an African-American tradition that, the press notes handily explain, has its roots in the centuries-old African Boot Dance (essentially a combination of chanting, percussive rhythms and dance moves, with a bit of mime thrown in). When DJ shows off his "street" moves at a local club, he attracts the attentions of two rival fraternities, both of whom want him to help them win the national stepping championship. There's just one problem: the cocky star stepper of reigning champions Mu Gamma X (Darrin Henson as Grant) is also DJ's rival for April's affections and he doesn't take kindly to being dissed in front of his step brothers.

Short makes a solid lead and there's strong support from Good but the lacklustre script just recycles the same old tired cliches from a million other 'underdog overcoming incredible odds' movies without adding anything new except what seems like a recruiting advertisement for black fraternities. Similarly, while the stomping is undoubtedly energetic, it's not all that exciting to watch and it's difficult to see what constitutes a winning move, particularly during the stomp-based finale. In short, "Stomp the Yard" is only really worth seeing if you're a hardcore stepping fan.

Movie

Stomp The Yard

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-03-09 16:00:31

Provider

Review

You can usually guess the plot of urban dance movies but most people who enjoy them are probably hoping to be impressed by the moves rather than the story.

And that will be the case here as Stomp The Yard boasts some spectacular 'steppin' scenes and great hip hop tunes which generate all the excitement music video veteran Sylvain White would have hoped to capture.

Columbis Short play DJ who's sent from LA to Atlanta following a family death. There he enrols at university where his dancing skills are soon noticed. Rivalry between two fraternities (both called Gamma something -any non-American who's ever seen Spike Lee's Schooldays will have an idea how silly the frat stuff can be), is manifest through dance. DJ's develops a fierce rivalry with a extremely talented dancer named Grant and is mentored, Karate Kid-style, by frat leader Sylvester.

It all leads to a dancefloor battle between the two rivals and, of course, there's a bit of love interest thrown in and guess what? The object of his affection is the girlfriend of his nemesis.

Clichés aplenty then and you can imagine the film working better on DVD with the viewer having control of the skip button but the movie did top the US box office chart when released there so millions of Americans can't be wrong... can they?