If you're looking for a thought-provoking exposé of the lives of performing arts students, then Fame will sorely disappoint you.
But if you want a fun two hours filled with pounding music and exceptional dancing, then look no further.
Fame, a remake of the 1980 film that spawned a Broadway musical and a television series, is exactly what you would expect it to be. While it never goes beyond stereotypical portraits of characters we've all seen before, it delivers the dance-filled, family-friendly vibe the previews promise. In other words, don't expect much -- just sit back and enjoy it.
The movie follows the four-year journey of a group of students at the prestigious New York High School of Performing Arts. From nerve-wracking admissions auditions to graduation, viewers follow these dancers, singers, musicians and actors as they navigate the cutthroat world of performance, struggle with parental pressure and develop romantic relationships.
While the film is nominally a character-driven drama, the musical and dance numbers really make it worth a watch. Students clad in risqué Fosse-esque costumes slither across classroom dance floors in choreography you'd expect from a Broadway musical, not students, and school Halloween dances are filled with choreographed carnival routines. What's fun about this film is the ability to put yourself in a world you've never seen before: This is not your everyday high school, and even with all of the drama, it feels like something new and different.
Nowhere is this more apparent than in the film's first 20 minutes, where we are treated to an in-depth look at the audition process. The school receives 10,000 applications for only 200 spots, so viewers quickly become involved in the worry these students are feeling. At about 14 years old, these kids decide that this is want they want to do for the rest of their lives, and viewers can easily feel that passion.
What you'll think when you watch this movie is, "I want to go to that high school." Loud jam sessions break out during an everyday cafeteria scene, and the students' teachers are played by the likes of Megan Mullally, Kelsey Grammer and Bebe Neuwirth, real-life singers, actors and dancers who are believable as knowledgeable teachers.
But the film has two major problems -- the first being the lack of personality from the lead performers. For a film with a theme song boasting a desire to "live forever," you won't remember the name of a single one of the young actors. Their characters are a bundle of clichés (one student's father wants her to only play classical piano; another's mother doesn't want him to pursue a career in acting, and so on). In an effort to change the original film's plot, this version takes tired stories from other teenage films.
And it's hard to believe how "PG" these teenagers act. There is no mention of sex and only one small scene involving drinking. You'd expect that in such a high-pressure school, where students are expected to be awake and moving all the time, drugs would be much more prevalent.
Fame doesn't exceed expectations, but it doesn't fall below them. It has none of the camp of High School Musical, but it is a mindlessly enjoyable time at the movies.
Grade: B-
