Center Stage (Special Edition)
by Nicholas Hytner
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Amanda Schull, Christine Dunham, Ethan Stiefel, Sascha Radetsky, Stephen StoutDirector: Nicholas Hytner
Brand: GALLAGHER,PETER
Cinematographer: Geoffrey Simpson
Editor: Tariq Anwar
Producer: Caroline Baron
Producer: Laurence Mark
Writer: Carol Heikkinen
DVD: Region Code 99
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1
Running Time: 115 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-10-24
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Movie Reviews of Center Stage (Special Edition)
Movie Review: Didn't know if I'd like it at first, ended up loving it
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't know if anyone will actually read this considering how old the film is, but this was such a great movie that I wanted to encourage anyone else who happens to come upon it.
I'm not really a fan of ballet... the only reason I found this movie in the first place is because I was looking up Mandy Moore videos and saw her 'I Wanna Be With You' song was featured for Center Stage, and after reading some other reviews, I thought I'd give it a shot. I'm always up for inspirational movies with a good ending (which, without spoiling anything, this movie has a great ending). If you're not into ballet, if you're totally disgusted by it, think it's a sissy's activity, then you probably won't like this movie at all. But if you don't really mind it and you're open to it, and you want a good story with a happy ending, then I recommend this.
Center Stage is a pretty standard story - children enrolling in a school geared toward a specific talent, and only a handful will actually be able to succeed in the end. While the story is mostly about the three main girls, I was interested in the stories and contributions of everyone as it went on. I expected in a school mixed with new and veteran, intermediate and pro dancers competing for spots that there would be cliques, bullying, petty fights - lots of annoying, spiteful drama - but thankfully there was really none of that in the film.
I think what I loved most about Center Stage was the way the characters change or the way you see them differently as it goes on. Within the first half hour, you'll probably think you know exactly what each one of them will do, and if you're like me, you might end up disliking most of them. But you'll be very surprised by the end when you actually wind up liking and cheering for all of them.
The acting was pretty good and enjoyable. Most of it was realistic, nothing quite too over the top or unbelievable. A character might take a totally different shift, but it's actually nice to see them growing up. There's some romance in the story, not too much that it overshadows everything else, but enough.
So the ballet... like I said, I'm not a ballet fan, I was not particularly interested in a couple of the scenes, but you have to give credit where it's due. Watching the dancers, as someone who does not do ballet, was awe inspiring for me at times. The dedication and grace of ballet itself, and not knowing if the scene was going to be end up being about a success or a flop for one of the characters (obviously it's not a real live performance, but you still never really know where the scene/story is going until it's over) made it very interesting to watch.
My only comment about the packaging itself is that the current picture on Amazon shows it in a box with a pink border. Mine does not have that, just the same picture of the characters without any border, with a silver trim on top that says Special Edition, and a black case. Just putting that out there for anyone who didn't want a pink case on their shelves (although I can't guarantee there isn't another version that does have a pink case).
In terms of extras, there were a couple of deleted scenes, a couple of extended dance scenes, some commentaries, and couple of other extras I didn't really care about, and the 'I Wanna Be With You' music video.
Like I said before, if you want an inspirational movie of kids trying to find their place in the world, who grow up and make their own decisions and find out they can enjoy life, and you don't hate ballet, I would definitely recommend Center Stage.
Summary of Center Stage (Special Edition)
Young dancers at the American Ballet Company compete and strive to succeed.Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 4-FEB-2003
Media Type: DVD
The primary appeal of dance movies is the dancing, with some added emphasis on the romance the art expresses. Center Stage wins on these counts, despite its reveling in overly familiar characters and formula plotting. Or maybe this reveling is responsible for what goofy fun this film is. The arduous task of becoming a professional ballet dancer is incarnated by many good-looking teens, all stock dance-film characters affectionately portrayed mostly by newcomers. But center stage holds Jody Sawyer (Amanda Schull), who may never be a great ballerina, but she's certainly one sexy jazz dancer. Then there's the arrogant genius (Ethan Stiefel), the dictatorial impresario (Peter Gallagher), the demanding instructor, the bulimic, the stage mother, etc. As we follow these characters, the message develops that one should let go and do what feels good. Jody may not be ballet material, but she scorches the stage when she's uninhibited. And that's really the fun of this movie, which is never seriously interested in ballet to begin with. One ludicrous scene depicts one of the dancers quitting because she realizes she never wanted to be a dancer to begin with but was pushed into it by her overbearing mother. She stands up to mom in the lobby of the auditorium where she's supposed to be performing, the music of her piece providing a syrupy backdrop to her little drama. When she's finished talking, she walks off to the audience's unwitting applause. The scene is so ham-handed you can't help but laugh at its audacity, if that's what it is. The rest of the film is not so overdone, but it's all fun. --Jim Gay
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