Take The Lead is part of a conspiracy I think my wife is planning against me. We seem to be watching an increasing number of movies featuring dancing, and increasingly frequent suggestions are being made that we take dance lessons…

Conspiracy theories aside, Take The Lead is a really nice movie. Based on the true life story of Pierre Dulaine, who starts teaching ballroom dancing to the kids in detention at a local school. This somewhat unlikely plan is only tried by the school Principal because no-one else wants to host the detentions, and she even lays a wager that he won’t be back the following day. (Secretly though she thinks the threat of ballroom dancing might actually deter some of the kids at school from bad behaviour.) Undeterred by the initial lack of enthusiasm showed by the school kids, Dulaine keeps on going back for more. Eventually he hopes to win them and the school authorities over, and teach these kids some good values such as trust, teamwork, and gracefully going round in circles instead of vandalising cars (something like that, anyway).

What follows is a somewhat predictable journey to self-discovery for these kids, but two things stop it from becoming mediocre – firstly the good performances by pretty much every cast member (many of whom are new or newish to the world of films), and the little subplots about some of the couples. There’s the white girl with rich parents who becomes very close to a large black guy – and a sort of reversal with a white lad (who seems to think he’s black) worrying about his street cred as he falls for a girl several sizes larger than the fashionable size. There is of course a more obvious subplot between two characters who initially hate each other and have very hard family histories, and a (probably unavoidable) love triangle. The kids don’t really take all that well to the music Pierre uses to teach them though, and a hybrid music and style is developed with a bit of each. (Actually this was probably the most interesting part of the film but sadly they didn’t really go on to actually do anything with it.)

Antonio Banderas was probably the perfect choice for Pierre (who’s not got a great deal of French in him despite his name). He’s sauve and convincing with his little speeches, dances well (it seemed to me, anyway), and really looks the part. So much of the film relies purely on his charisma that a lesser actor may have crumbled, but Banderas is more than a match for this challenging role. The many plot twists and turns are quite well done, despite a certain level of predictability that’s very difficult to avoid in this sort of film. Comparisons with “Save the Last Dance” are inevitable, and on balance I liked Take the Lead more – the culture clash element was dealt with just as well and, unlike that movie, it wasn’t entirely an issue of race. There were plenty of emotional moments in the film but overall it wasn’t as bad-tempered (nor as foul-mouthed) as Save the Last Dance, and for me this helped make it a better film.

Movies that have music from such diverse fields as this – from George and Ira Gershwin to modern rap – always tread a shaky line between different musical tastes, but then that’s one of the main points of this film. One or two of the tracks are a bit weak but overall the soundtrack is really good. The students don’t come to exactly like the older music, but they learn to dance to it – on the other hand, Pierre never thinks much of the modern music, however he comes to appreciate certain elements of it. The main thrust of the movie is that he never gives up on these kids when everyone else already has, and by doing so he teaches them to respect themselves, and each other.

It’s not a perfect film but I really enjoyed Take the Lead. It certainly should appear somewhere in my Top Ten Movies for 2006 when I write it. I haven’t signed up for dance classes just yet though… Nearly five stars… but not quite.

Other Information

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for thematic material, language and some violence.
Runtime: 108 min

Originally, 'Antonio Banderas' turned down the part of Pierre when he looked at the script and realized the whole film was about ballroom dancing. The producers begged him for a few minutes for them to explain the story. After hearing this, viewing a documentary on and meeting the real Pierre, Banderas signed on. (source: IMDB.com)

Quotes

Basic philosophy…

Pierre Dulaine: You can get what you want.
Rock: No, some people get what they want.
Pierre Dulaine: Those are the people who show up to get it.

…

Pierre Dulaine: What I teach has value.
Ramos: Not where I live.

….

Pull the other one…

Rock: Doctor's note. I can't dance, I have a heart condition.
Pierre Dulaine: Interesting man, your doctor. Not many doctors write notes on three-hole paper.

…

Brutal honesty…

Principal: For these kids life is a fight to stay alive, and a hustle to make ends meet.

…

Eddie: Man, punk moves like that won't get you no play around here, trust me I've tried it.

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Another part of the recent “get Dave to go to dance classes” conspiracy was Shall We Dance starring Richard Gear, Susan Sarandon, and Jennifer Lopez


See also: My Top Ten Movies of 2006

Recommended:
Yes