Thanks for the memories!

Great Film overall

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

In 1994, ballroom dancing was introduced to 5th graders in the New York area. There are thousands of public school kids trying to enter into the annual competition between the schools. These kids come from varying backgrounds. Some have heart-breaking stories as they find discipline and comfort in their new interest. The most compelling parts of this documentary are the snippets of personal opinions coming from the kids. The major problem is there are so many kids that it's hard to keep track of them. The film would do well to limit the number of kids and spend more time with them at home. The kids dancing is cute and compelling. Those little interviews are what make the film sings.

Mad Hot Ballroom (2005): Dir: Marilyn Agrelo: Crowd pleasing documentary about the energy emphasized by children involved in ballroom dancing. Director Marilyn Agrelo details the repetitious structure with humorous comments and reactions of the children themselves who grow more passionate as the state competition grows near. We witness hard work rewarded as well as disappointment including teachers that inspire these kids to do better. One particular teacher voices the fact that it is difficult choosing finalists because these kids work very hard. It is inspiring with a lot of heart and soul. Three schools are combined here including Tribeca, Bensonhurst, and Washington Heights. These children are presented as very bright within each activity. There are various dance methods featured throughout as they learn new skills and struggle to connect with the opposite genders but viewers will likely applaud their efforts. Director Agrelo succeeds in presenting a film where children are given alternatives in terms of skill and communication, and teachers are rewarded for the long drawn hard work in coordinating the whole event. It also gives off the impression that one's dreams can be sought this early in life. It is a wonderful documentary that showcases a new scene to ballroom dancing resulting in a film that is every bit the winner as the children themselves. Score: 9 / 10

Charming, funny, ultimately moving, documentary about NYC public grade school kids in ballroom dancing competition. It's inspiring to see these kids transformed by the program, where kids in thousands of NYC public schools learn ballroom dances in 5th, 6th and 7th grade, often giving them a discipline and self-respect they'd lacked before. We meet a fun, colorful array of characters (both teachers and students). On the down side, we never really get to know any of the characters deeply, only bits and sound-bites, and some moments feel staged (a suspicion bolstered by the end credit 'writer', although there is no narration, and the film is done verite style). Also, while we see how great the effect of winning is on these kids, the subject of losing, the hurt feelings, the possible damage to these same fragile egos is touched on, but never explored. We see kids crying, we hear one teacher voice concerns abut the intensity of competition at that age, but that's it. Even as an endorsement of what is clearly a terrific program for the kids, it feels like a it of a cheat to bring up such an arresting element, and then never really deal with it. Certainly worth seeing, but I can't help feeling it could have gone deeper and still been just as entertaining.

I really liked this. I think it shows that you don't have to be a rich suburb to get good programs in your school.This documentary follows different groups of school kids over the course of eight weeks and how they are taught ballroom dancing and how to prepare for the annual competition.*Potential Spoiler*: I was watching this and when it came time for the contest itself I was observing the judges and kept seeing this one judge in particular that reminded me of an actress from Micky & Maude. I kept thinking, "Nah, that's not her. It's just someone that looks like her." But then I thought how this movie was made in NY and that is where this actress resides and that there's a very real possibility that it is her. So I watched the credits. And I saw her name. And yep, it was her. I am curious to know either how far her career has fallen that she's judging a group of kids at an annual school contest or if she just decided that she'd had enough of acting and wanted to do something different in her life. Anyway, the actress' name is Ann Reinking.*End to Potential Spoiler*Either way, this film was very good and I think it could potentially give hope to inner city kids (and maybe to kids everywhere) that you do have choices in life and you don't have to run out and join a gang. You could just as easily find your purpose in the classroom or in a specialized program.If you have kids and you want to show them that there is hope for their future other than gangs and violence, then this is a movie they should watch.