best movie i've ever seen.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Great movie. This movie is about a group of training ballet dancers from top ballet a school in NYC. The dancers become friends facing challenging situations together. A story about artists finding themselves in situations that help them overcome certain personality traits. Great talented cast, a staple in the dance community, a realistic storyline that captivates emotions and real life events. Thus a much too similar plot, the story was of great deliverance. A story many dancers can relate to. Not just about dancing. More so, about the obstacles you have endure to gain respect as a dancer. A must watch. Great film

Cartoony variation on "Fame" concerns a group of teenagers enrolled at the American Ballet Company who rebel against their instructors, struggle with their weight, battle with their parents and--most especially--check each other out during morning ballet exercises! While cobbling together scenes from "Flashdance", "All That Jazz", "A Chorus Line" along with "Fame" (its prime inspiration), director Nicholas Hytner and screenwriter Carol Heikkinen appear to assume that a few jazzy dance montages set to an artificial backbeat will substitute for the lack of honest characters--or any kind of characters, for that matter. Despite stray vulgarities and a bit of underage sex, "Center Stage" is squeaky-clean and square, the kind of matinée underachiever which attempts to combine Michael Jackson moves with tutus. As timid over its sexuality as it is about dramatic backstage business, the movie is nothing more than a smelly soaper scored for gullible 'tweens. * from ****

This movie isn't perfect. The acting and script are sometimes a little clunky, but considering dance movies are notoriously difficult to get right, I love this film and I think it gels together well. The casting of Ethan Stiefel as the lead male is a master stroke -- he plays the egotistical yet gifted star extremely well. Amanda Schull as the naive female lead is, to me, more of a natural dancer than actor, but overall, she really does well in quite a meaty role. I love the soundtrack, especially Jamiroquai's 'Canned Heat', and the dancing is fantastic. The locations are very impressive. The sub-plot of the pushy mom living her dreams through her anorexic daughter who doesn't want to be a dance star, is impressive. One flaw is how everything is neatly tied up at the end, and the love scene is terribly awkward, complete with over-wrought music. Also Schull's character stating to her ex-lover that "as a boyfriend, you kind of suck" doesn't ring true. I mean, he's her future employer, and she just wouldn't say that.

So to start off, i am a dancer (modern not ballet) and will be as along as i can stand. i found this story very relate able. I think fellow dancers can also identify with many of the same situations and perhaps see some of our friends (dancers) in the characters. This does not mean by any means that non-dancers can't appreciate it. I think they can appreciate it as well but perhaps not understand some concepts. The acting was fairly good not the greatest in the world and the dancing was absolutely superb. The dancing was never boring. The movie overall was pretty good but not something that i would want to watch 3 times in one night or anything.