Save the Last Dance

Following her mother's death, aspiring teenage ballerina Julia Stiles (State and Main, Down to You) moves in with her negligent father (Terry Kinney) in the ghetto of Chicago's South Side. Sara feels like an outcast in this jarring, urban world of drive-bys and people who say "aaaight!" Then she meets Derek (Sean Patrick Thomas, Cruel Intentions), a charming, hip-hop intellectual (he wants to be a doctor and can quote Truman Capote!) and discovers that--to quote the press kit provided by Paramount and MTV Films--"they share one fervent passion--dance!" Sara rediscovers her devotion to ballet through romantic hip-hop dance lessons, while Derek faces a tough decision when his troubled, pure-ghetto best friend wants him to help avenge a gang hit. Blah, blah, blah. A pathetically contrived and predictable effort containing a wee bit of spark thanks to a glowing romantic chemistry between Stiles and Thomas, this is an optional purchase. (R. Blackwelder)[DVD Review—Oct. 17, 2006—Paramount, 112 min., PG-13, $14.99—Making its second appearance on DVD, 2001's Save the Last Dance (Special Collector's Edition) sports a nice transfer with Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. DVD extras include audio commentary by director Thomas Carter, a 20-minute “making-of” featurette, “The Writers' Story” featurette (14 min.), a 13-minute retrospective featurette, the dance featurettes “In Step: The Choreographers' Story” (6 min.) and “What It Takes” (6 min.), two deleted scenes (6 min.), a sneak peek at the straight-to-video 2006 sequel Save the Last Dance 2 (3 min.), the music video “Crazy” by K-Ci & JoJo, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a so-so film re-released to coincide with the 2006 sequel.]