Dance was absent from movie screens this summer when there was no new Step Up film to dazzle our senses. But fall brings a new dance movie, and a potential new series, with Battle of the Year, the story of a worldwide B-Boy dance competition that the Americans have yet to crack.

In Battle of the Year, hip hop mogul and former B-Boy Dante Graham (Laz Alonso) needs a new trainer for his crew. He enlists the aid of an old friend, and also former B-Boy, Jason Blake (Josh Holloway). Blake has been down on his luck since his wife and son died in a tragic car accident, but Dante knows that Blake’s experience coaching basketball is just what his crew needs to get them in shape for the competition.

But Blake sees nothing in Dante’s crew so he puts one together with the help of one of Dante’s employees Franklyn (Josh Peck) … except his new crew doesn’t understand the concept of “there’s no I in team” and things don’t go well at first, from bad feelings over a girl (who isn’t in either guy’s life anymore) to a case of homophobia. Blake has to wage his own battles with the crew to get them to form a team.

The Step Up series has certainly been uneven, but the dancing has always been spectacular (as has the 3D in the last two movies). Battle of the Year wants to be better than the worst of the Step Up movies, but it mostly comes off as a TV movie of the week. The B-Boys, at least the ones who are featured, are all stereotypes: the rivals, the one with the secret family, the gay one, the Jewish one, the Korean one … yes, this is a rainbow coalition of characters! But all of the guys do what they can with what they’ve been given to work with. They play the rivals perfectly, and you really do believe they’ve all grown to accept and trust each other by the end.

The two Joshes, Holloway and Peck, also give admirable performances. Holloway makes Blake’s sadness feel real, and even as you’re sitting there thinking “I can’t believe Sawyer is coaching a group of dancers,” you really do believe that he knows what he’s talking about. Peck’s Franklyn is Blake’s voice of reason when things go wrong, his idolizer as he sees what Blake is capable of doing, and his protector when Dante isn’t happy with the way Blake is training his guys. The two work well off of each other.

I know the big draw for many will be the appearance of Chris Brown as Rooster, the star dancer, and I will say that he does give a very natural performance that never seems like acting. But it just made my skin crawl to hear half the women in the audience squeal with delight the first time he comes on screen. That’s just all kinds of wrong.

Of course, the highlight of the movie is the dancing … but there isn’t a much as there could be. There are a lot of small moments here and there as the crew, dubbed The Dream Team, practice their moves, but we never get to see any full blown routines until they get to the Battle of the Year (which, by the way, is a real competition). Once the dancing starts, you can’t take your eyes off the screen, marveling at the sometimes inhuman moves these guys can make, not only the Dream Team, but some of the others from around the world as well. The 3D is also used very well at this point as hands and feet come flying off the screen and in your face.

The only major issue I have with the film is all the Sony product placement. Yes, the film was produced by Sony’s Screen Gems division but the way the crew slobbers over all of their Sony-branded goodies in their gift bags was just a bit much (the Braun shaver is also heavily featured). Other than that, I actually enjoyed the movie based on the performances of Holloway and Peck, and for the spectacular dancing and use of 3D. It may not be the best dance movie ever made, but it’s not the worst either. The clichés that pile up in the first half of the film are easily forgotten by the end … and that’s a good thing because if things go well, you can be sure there will be a follow-up.

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CliqueClack has partnered with Sony Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing to give readers in Maryland, DC and Virginia a chance attend an advance screening of the new movie Battle of the Year. Battle of the Year is the Olympics of break dancing, a tournament held every year that attracts all the best teams from around the world, but the Americans haven’t won in fifteen years. Los Angeles Hip Hop mogul and former B-Boy Dante wants to put the country that started the Sport back on top. He enlists his hard-luck friend Blake, who was a championship basketball coach, to coach his team. Armed with the theory that the right coach can make any team champions, they assemble a Dream Team of all the best b-boys across the country. With only three months until Battle of the Year, Blake has to use every tactic he knows to get twelve talented individuals to come together as a team if they’re going to bring the Trophy back to America where it started. Inspired by the actual world championship held yearly in France. The movie stars Josh Holloway, Laz Alonso, Josh Peck, Caity Lotz and Chris Brown as Rooster.

The screenings will be held on Thursday, September 12, 7:00 PM at the following locations:

• Regal Majestic, Washington, DC
• Cinemark Egyptian, Hanover, MD
• Regal MacArthur Center Stadium 18, Norfolk, VA
• Regal Short Pump, Richmond, VA

50 Admit Two passes are available for each location. Simply comment on this post with your choice of location: DC, HANOVER, NORFOLK, or RICHMOND. That’s all you need to comment with. ONE comment per person, per email address please. Duplicates may be honored if all passes are not distributed by the end of the commenting period. Passes will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis until they are gone or by 11:00 PM, Wednesday, September 11. Please note that passes do not guarantee you seats. Advance screenings are often overbooked to ensure a full house, so please plant to arrive early. CliqueClack has no control over the total number of passes distributed or seating at the theater.

Have a look at the film’s official trailer and let us know where you would like to see the movie! Battle of the Year opens nationwide Friday, September 20.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tAGaGxWrxg