Review of Rize (2005) by Rebecca V — 29 Nov 2005

Here's another movie that didn't get enough credit.

Rize is David LaChappelle's documentary about the fierce new dance style that's come out of the Los Angeles ghettos, known as "crumping" or "clowning" or "stripperdance", in some circles. The idea is to move so frenetically spasmodically quickly that this movie begins with a disclaimer explaining that none of the footage has been sped up. And indeed, at casual glance, it really does look like it's being played at the wrong speed, because human beings normally don't move like that. These kids do, and Rize pretty much documents where the dance style came from (Tommy the Clown's clowning academy, beginning in 1992), and where it's gone since. But the real story of Rize is about the human spirit, and I found that aspect of this film downright inspiring.

What we have in [u]Rize[/u] (beautifully shot in pastels, like many of LaChappelle's videos, but, as he points out, not hyper cut all to shreds, because let's face it, these kids move so fast, they don't need to be sped up with music video jump-cutting) is the story of kids who are, in their own words, "gutter kids" - so entrenched in the ghettos that, as one of them puts it, they're intimidated when going to Hollywood or any other place out of their 'hood (comfort zone), who nonetheless find a creative outlet despite a completely criminal lack of opportunity - a little girl gets shot going to the liquor store to get a soda. Why? There are no supermarkets in her neighborhood. As LaChappelle explains on the commentary, where these kids live, there are churches, liquor stores, and fast food places, and that's it. There are no community centers, no real "hang outs," and as a result and as many of them note, their only real options are either to dance or gang bang. And miraculously, these kids choose to dance. No money, no support, no education - indeed, LaChappelle can't believe it when he learns that the African footage that he includes in this film, showing the eerie similiarity between the face painting and dance styles of African tribes and these kids, is the very first time these kids have seen /any/ footage of Africa at all - and yet they find a way to express themselves and do something positive. It's absolutely beautiful, inspiring, powerful, and moved me to tears in at least two places. The 2Pac song at the end is so fitting, like all of the musical choices in this movie, that the whole thing has an almost divine quality. I couldn't believe this film was hated on and mocked as it has been. Which is where we have to go now.

Many people used the term "mockumentary" in describing how this film feels to them, because many of the dancers dress up like clowns. I find it depressing that in spite of LaChappelle's footage of the African tribes painting their faces, people still find ways to mock these kids trying to get ahead. As they explain in the bonus material, nobody ever told them they were good at or talented at anything. In spite of everything - how they're forced to live and how little they have to show for it - they still find a way to rise, and yet people still mock them. It's pathetic, and very stupid.

[u]Rize[/u] is an excellent film. Both from a filmmaking standpoint (LaChappelle's status as a noted photographer is evident throughout), and as a chronicle of life in this forgotten part of Los Angeles (since Miami and Atlanta are the new media "hotspots," most people assume nothing great culturally can come out of LA anymore. They assume wrong. [u]Rize[/u] shows that the human spirit will rise in spite of anything and everything that's thrown at it. These kids have nothing - literally - and make something out of it. Very few human beings, period, can say as much.