There were a few fears I had going into the sequel to Step Up, a surprise dance hit from two years ago. Both fears were confirmed within the sequel’s first ten minutes. Despite being entertaining and energetic, the first film had lots of clunky dialog and unbelievable soap opera circumstances. The sequel is made from the same mold, and, no pun intended, really does get off on the wrong foot, at least in the first reel. It takes some time for the film to recover, the lifeline supplied by the dancing and one character who is played by Adam G. Sevani, who I had never seen before, but who steals scenes left and right from everyone else in the entire film. When his character gets interesting? They have him literally step aside.

Sevani’s comic relief is the true lifeline of the film, and I almost wished the movie were about that character, who is a bit of a geeky fellow who has a hidden talent (it’s a dance film-guess that underused spark if you dare), who really does reflect what the message the film wants to wear on the heart. Instead, it’s all about the hot bodies, the dull actors and the incredible, the mind-boggling, and the absolute insult to IQ levels across the land. The sequel starts out not only with stilted dialog, but a totally unrealistic dance number aboard a subway car, which is still mildly entertaining and puzzling at the exact same time. This will not be the first time an impressive looking number threatens to intrude on the story in the first reel alone. The problem with it and others like it is that if the numbers are impromptu, why do they look so choreographed? As to the damage to the story? A news report then suggests the street dancers are harmful to the public and the police are “looking” for them (right!) and our orphaned heroine Andie, gets forced exposition chucked down hers-and our- eardrums for no good reason. Did the dancers rob anyone? Not that I could tell. All they do is have some laughs and film their exploits for YouTube.

The next great dance number comes at the local club. It’s fan-tastic. I liked it. I liked it a lot. Sadly, we are are given two major problems at the same time. One not so bad, the other, devastating. The not so bad is the brief cameo by the first film’s star Channing Tatum. His return is set up well. The dance moves on the small trampoline is again, a positive highlight. The downside is two fold: not only is he not seen in the film shortly after this, he’s hardly even mentioned, but it’s a shadow over the story that refuses to go away. In the first film, despite being more of a street dancer and doing community service, Tyler (Tatum) was accepted into the Maryland School of the Arts (MSA). It is clear in the sequel he hasn’t left his pop and lock roots, but if the ending of the first film holds true, why does the crowd accept him *and* Missy as ‘from the streets’, being one of their own, when they frown upon those connected to MSA? Why, later in the film, do they act like they don’t know who Andie is? Only Tyler’s cousin. Guess that doesn’t count for much.

Andie’s old crew -the 410, led by Tuck, slowly morphs into someone the audience is instructed to hiss at, for no other reason that he’s now a hothead and a common thug, which seemingly comes from nowhere. Missy is also rebellious and there were times in the film where I wonder if her character moved to Texas to live with the offscreen aunt she’d get into line dancing instead. In any case, the character is hard to like. The actress is good looking, showing her midriff through most of the film (I personally find low rider jeans/pants on a girl unattractive) and Briana Evigan is pretty much there to suit that purpose. If you think I made that up, wait until the last dance number. Impressive visually, with tons of editing errors (set to the music video beat, understand?) and making a mockery of reason. The little speech Andie gives about unity? Should I laugh or should I weep? I will give this film a few brownies for doing the following: despite the story and continuity problems , the dance setups are mostly phenomenal, Sevani was a find for the casting department, and I am thrilled that Collins the dance instructor wasn’t written like a jerk or stiff buffoon. I bet the temptation was there somewhere. However, where was the first film’s Rachel Griffiths as Director Gordan?
I also wished I knew a little more of the MSA dance crew. It’s like a wafer thin, poor man’s Fame. All we really know about the new dance crew is a habit or two, a group of alleged misfits who really aren’t. When the film has a section where those misfits shine away from a dance floor (not including the salsa) as characters, it becomes the highlights of the film. Then it’s about the boring sexy people still trying to bring sexy back.
They do succeed in that right, but they are still boring.

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Step Up 2: The Streets
Directed by: Jon Chu
Starring:Briana Evigan, Robert Hoffman, Adam G. Sevani and Black Thomas.