Review of Step Up 2: The Streets (2008) by Rainer K — 21 Sep 2012

As I wrote my review of the original Step Up, I suggested leaving out the tedious romance parts and replacing them with various dance numbers.

Step Up 2 has all what I wished for now. More dancing and fancier choreographies, even cooler music than the first film but also worse acting (Briana Evigan is pretty pretty bad, even compared to Channing Tatum) and a paper thin plot.

The premise is laughable, and sometimes I wasn't sure if the creators tried to make an underdog-against-all-odds story or just a love story but they're not trying too hard - in contrary to the first film which really tried to tell a genuine story and failed big time.

I can overlook such filmmaking inferiority though if a film just doesn't aim for it. Like in The Expendables 2 (another film I watched recently) I'm not really expecting good storytelling, writing or any other filmmaking values when I just get enough action - or, in this case, dancing.

The choreographies are fascinating, even for not so big street dance fans (I like to watch the performances but I'm not an expert by any means), and especially the final contest with the two crews performing (one of them outdoors in the rain) are breathtaking.

The entertainment factor of Step Up 2: The Streets is higher than the one of its predecessor although it's technically not the better film. Strictly for fans of the subject but definitely rewarding for them.