A young dancer lands in the Miami with high hopes of become a famous dancer, somehow she forms a bond with Sean; the leader of a dance crew in the crib, but unfortunately a development plan in the neighborhood involves her father.
With the most wooden leads of the series to date - an MMA fighter and a "So You Think You Can Dance" alum - the drama between the dancing has never felt more interminable.
Many of the old tropes and gimmicks from the previous films are recycled into an all-too-familiar plotline: An edgy, streetwise guy falls for a classy, upper-crust sweetie, and together they dance their way past obstacle after obstacle.
The ubiquitous product placements tend to undercut the anti-corporate speechifying.
Alonso Duralde
TheWrap
July 27, 2012
There's too much color and energy and frenzy in this movie to discount it entirely, but it has a disconcerting tendency to undercut its best notions with some singularly awful moves.
While dance purists won't be impressed by the energetic and athletic choreography -- the dancers have clearly learned routines but not necessarily technique -- date-movie audiences will likely want to go out dancing afterward themselves, and that's fun.
The Step Up franchise has never been noted for its astute screenwriting, but this instalment sets the bar so low that even its bendy cast members would have trouble limboing under it
It's equal parts 'Flashdance,' 'Burlesque' and 'Lambada', all parts ludicrous - but we aren't here for the story any more than we watch Béla Tarr for the salsa numbers.
