How She Move is a film with its fair share of flaws, but you probably won't remember any of them thanks to the movie's gobsmacking dance sequences.
Set in Toronto's Jane-Finch neighbourhood, How She Move is a coming-of-age story about one woman's fight to make a better life for herself.
It's a fight that includes ferocious stepping routines.
Raya (Rutina Wesley) has had a rude awakening courtesy of her sister. Sis's drug habit has sucked up all the family money, and Raya has to leave boarding school and put aside her dreams of becoming a doctor.
She's back in her old neighbourhood and attending the local high school, at least until she can find the money to go back to private school. She's viewed as a bit of a snob and a traitor, and now that she's home again, her old cronies are happy to try to take her down a peg or two.
Friction with a childhood friend, Michelle (Tre Armstrong) leads to a stepping throw-down. Once another old classmate -- and love interest -- (Dwain Murphy) sees Raya's moves, she's encouraged to involve herself in the big Step competitions. Raya can dance but she isn't really interested, until she finds out the prize money is enough to get her back to boarding school.
How She Move doesn't shy away from showing the poverty, apathy, drug problems and immigrant angst available to Raya and her family, and it never candy-coats her ambition to get out of the 'hood and get the life she wants.
Raya talks her way on to an all-male Step squad, for example, then switches to a better squad without a backward glance. She eventually learns that turning her back on her own history is not the answer; an urban High School Musical this ain't.
Gritty in look and content, How She Move is distinguished by the performances from Rutina Wesley and Tre Armstrong, although everyone in the cast, which includes Vancouver's Brennan Gademans, is very good. The stepping-dance sequences, choreographed by HiHat, are a sort of hybrid of muscular dance moves, acrobatics and gymnastics; they are exhilarating to look at.
The story leans into cliche at times and at other times doesn't quite make sense, but there's an energy about How She Move that makes it work regardless.
The movie, which was shot in Toronto and Hamilton, includes cameo appearances from Keyshia Cole, Shawn Desman and DeRay Davis.
(This film is rated PG)
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