“Dance Flick” is more than just the worst movie I’ve seen so far this year… its insulting to moviegoers.

With this being a dance/musical parody I could be cute and say this movie stumbles, is out of tune, misses a beat, missed a note, is off its mark, has no rythm but I’m not going to waste your time with cliches – this movie is bad on soooo many levels.

 I’ve covered my face before in a movie theater: like when I was 5 years old during the scary sights at the end of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981), for some recent scary movies, like “The Ring” (2002), or over the shocking and sad images of “Schindler’s List” (1993)… but this is the movie I covered my mouth for and shook my head at more than any other movie in recent memory.

“Dance Flick” fires off sight gags and one-liners in rapid machine gun fashion, hoping that eventually something will make you laugh… but most of the jokes shot at the audience are blanks: many are juvenile, most are predictable and a majority are offensive or insulting to the audience.

You shouldn’t be surprised by most of these jokes… you should see them coming a mile away, the humor in the movie is so stupid, I found myself laughing at the movie, not the jokes.

As with most parodies, “Dance Flick” makes fun of a lot of dance/musical movies, but most of the references are to movies that have been out on DVD for more than a year: “Save the Last Dance”, “Step Up”, “Dance Off”, “Hairspray”, “High School Musical”, “Ray”, “Stomp the Yard”, “Fame”, “Flashdance”, “Dirty Dancing”, “Coyote Ugly”, “Black Snake Moan”, “How She Move”, “Honey”, “Twilight”, plus the drinking and driving PSA where the liquor spills out of the car and the Maury Povich show gets a mention.

I like good parodies: “Spaceballs” (1987), “Airplane!” (1980), “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” (1993), “Young Frankenstein” (1974), “High Anxiety” (1977), “Princess Bride” (1987), “This is Spinal Tap” (1984), “Hot Shots” (1991)…  even the Wayans’ “Scary Movie” (2000) was okay, but this movie is really bad.

The writers also play heavy to stereotypes, whether making fun of how the movies they are making fun of stereotype or just doing it themselves, “Dance Flick” only does more to uphold stereotypes than to tear them down.   Just one example is the name of the male lead character “Thomas Uncles” (played by Damon Wayans’ son)… which was a poor excuse to switch the names around later to make a stereotypical joke.

Add to all that… the acting is not impressive, the writing is poor, the story is shaky, the cinematography and editing are okay, the makeup and costumes are a joke themselves… other than the end credits, the best part of this movie might be the soundtrack.

Wayans Brothers veterans from “In Living Color” David Allen Grier, Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Kim Wayans, and Keenan Ivory Wayans… and veteran comedienne Amy Sedaris all try to help the movie with their supporting roles… and while some are a little funny, its just not enough.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

There is little to no redeeming value, except maybe for the little bit of escape this movie gives you, because it is so absolutely absurd.  Get the Golden Raspberry ready…. I give it 2.0 out of 10… this movie is a train wreck that you should not stop and watch… just move along… move along.

 “Dance Flick”

(2009) (1 hr, 23 min)
(rated: PG-13 for crude and sexual content throughout, and language)

Starring: Shoshana Bush, Damon Wayans Jr., Essence Atkins, Affion Crockett, Chris Elliott, Christina Murphy, David Alan Grier, Amy Sedaris, Kim Wayans, Brennan Hillard, George Gore II, Chelsea Makela, Ross Thomas, Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Keenen Ivory Wayans

Director: Damien Wayans

Genre: Comedy/Parody/Musical/Action

The Plot: Street dancer Thomas Uncles is from the wrong side of the tracks, but his bond with the beautiful Megan White might help the duo realize their dreams as the enter in the mother of all dance battles.

So what did you think?  Please post a comment!

.
“Dance Flick” poster courtesy Paramount Pictures

 ** CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY OTHER MOVIE REVIEWS **

 Follow my updates on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

Add to your RSS feed: http://feeds2.feedburner.com/woodtv8-blogs-laff-at-the-movies?format=html

YouTube Highlights: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=WOODTV8&view=videos&query=laff+at+the+movies