We have the success of Scary Movie and its run of sequels to blame for the shameful movie that is Dance Flick. Both films were helmed by the same team, the Wayans family. So confusing are all the members that a family tree was handed out at Dance Flick's press junket, so let's hand them all equal responsibility for the monstrous film they created. As the name implies, the subject matter is dance. As the Wayans' past form suggests, the film is a parody. References to Save the Last Dance, Flashdance, Little Miss Sunshine, Fame and High School Musical, among others, are thrown into the mix. But the film's level of humour is so basic that it is generous of the Wayans to assume their intended audience has such a rich span of cultural reference. Basic, in fact, is a generous summation of Dance Flick. It is unsophisticated, crude and vulgar. And yet all of these can have their place in a film (see Scary Movie) if handled properly. In Dance Flick, they are not. It tells the story of a good, small-town girl, Megan (Shoshana Bush), who heads off to an inner-city dance school. There she meets a street-dance-obsessed bad boy, Thomas (Damon Wayans Jr), who's caught up working for an obese gang leader. You can guess what happens along the way, with rubbish gags interspersed. Instead of creating another hit spoof, Dance Flick merely leaves the Wayans with egg on their faces.
* Sophia Money-Coutts
