Plot

The West Coast Sharks Cheerleading Squad, captained by Carson (Ashley Benson), are attending Camp Spirit-Thunder where they’re confronted by their arch-rivals, the East Coast Jets Cheerleading Squad, captained by Brooke (Cassie Scerbo). Both squads are fierce rivals because each is the best on its respective coast; however, the Jets have beaten the Sharks at the annual Cheer Camp Championships for the previous three years in a row.

Cast

• Ashley Benson as Carson
• Cassie Scerbo as Brooke
• Jennifer Tisdale as Chelsea
• Michael Copon as Penn
• Anniese Taylor Dendy as Aiysha
• Kierstin Koppel as Sarah
• Noel Areizaga as Ruben
• Adam Vernier as Vance Voorhees
• Lisa Glaze as Pepper Driscoll

This film, which is the second sequel to Bring It On, has a tenuous link to the previous films, featuring only a similar plot of competing cheerleading teams that have to try something different in order to win. There are no recurring cast members or canonical references to the previous films. However, the film stylistically refers to its predecessors in that it is the second in the Bring It On series to open with a choreographed musical number that turns out to be a dream sequence of the protagonist, and like all three films, the end credits feature outtakes and clips of the cast having fun dancing.

As shown in the outtakes, the film’s working title was Bring It On Yet Again.

The film was followed by another sequel titled Bring It On: In It to Win It, which was released direct-to-DVD in December 2007.

Response

The film was a very successful straight-to-DVD feature when it sold more than 750,000 units (50% more than its predecessor Bring It On Again) and earned $12 million in its first week rocketing it to the #3 spot in DVD sales that week. It was the second-highest debut of a live-action DVD premiere in history behind American Pie: Band Camp which was also from Universal Pictures and director Steve Rash.

The movie has also become a popular showing on American cable network ABC Family where it’s frequently paired up with the original Bring It On as a part of a Double Feature Cheer-a-thon. ABC Family airs an alternate version suitable for television which has been mostly stripped of foul language and vulgarity.

Soundtrack

• Rihanna’s SOS is featured at the start of the film.
• The song for the music video that the team wins the right to perform in is Rihanna’s Pon De Replay.
• One of the songs featured in the film soundtrack is Gwen Stefani’s Hollaback Girl. The music video for Hollaback Girl, released in 2004, famously features a cheerleading squad. What You Waiting For? and Rich Girl another two of Stefani’s song, are also used.
• The hip-hop group Fu-Schnickens’s “Can We Rock?” is featured as a remix during the end credits. The remix is a mash-up of the song “Can We Rock?” with Hardknox’s “What’s Up Doc?”
• The title song from Solange Knowles’ debut album Solo Star is featured in the movie when the Warriors squad are auditioning.
• The Unreleased song “Let’s Move” by The Transcenders is also used in the movie during the Pacific Vista Pirates’ practice (with Britney as captain).
• My Happy Ending by singer Avril Lavigne features twice in the film.
• Weezer’s Beverly Hills is also featured.
• Dirty Little Secret by All American Rejects is also featured.

Pop culture references

• Hayden Panettiere (Britney) and Marcy Rylan (Winnie) have both played the character Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light.
• Hayden Panettiere stars as a cheerleader on the NBC TV series Heroes, which reunited her with co-star Danielle Savre who also played a cheerleader on the show.
• On the TV Series One on One, Solange Knowles guest-starred as a high school student who auditions for the cheerleading squad and claims she was cheer captain in her old school. The episode even features one character uttering the phrase “Bring it on”.

Plot summary

Whittier was head cheerleader in high school. She is now moving on to California State College and hopes to make the varsity cheerleading team there. She and her friend, Monica, made the team, but Dean Sebastian tells the head cheerleader, Tina, that Whittier will be the next head cheerleader. Tina’s friend, Marni, gets angry because she was ready to become the next head cheerleader. Whittier meets and starts dating a D.J. named Derek, but she’s forced to break up with him because Tina says that Derek isn’t the type of boy Whittier should be dating. Tina doesn’t like Monica’s attitude, so she also tries to make Whittier choose between Monica and cheerleading. Whittier and Monica both get angry and quit the team. They decide to start another cheer team with the outcasts from clubs and groups around the school that have lost their funding so they can beat the varsity squad and make it to the national championships.

The film was followed by three straight to video sequels, 2004’s Bring It On Again (which only shared producers with the original), 2006’s Bring It On: All or Nothing and Bring It On: In It to Win It, , which was released December 18, 2007.

Production Details

Locations

The movie was filmed at locations around San Diego. The field shots were filmed at Torrey Pines High School, in the Carmel Valley area of San Diego. The East Compton High School gym scenes were filmed at Kearny High School and the Rancho Carne High School gym scenes were filmed at Academy of Our Lady of Peace. The locker room and scoreboard scenes were shot at Mt. Carmel High School. The exterior shots of Rancho Carne High School were mainly filmed at San Diego State University. The stands and field at the Toros game was shot at Eastlake High School.The NCA’s were shot in Oceanside, California next to the pier.

Reception

The film earned USD$17,362,105 in 2,380 theaters in its opening weekend. The film went on to gross $68,379,000 in the U.S. and an additional $22,070,929 in other countries for a total gross of $90,449,929.

This movie ranked number 30 on Entertainment Weekly’s list of the 50 Best High School Movies.

Cast

• Kirsten Dunst as Torrance Shipman
• Eliza Dushku as Missy Pantone
• Jesse Bradford as Cliff Pantone
• Gabrielle Union as Isis
• Clare Kramer as Courtney
• Nicole Bilderback as Whitney
• Tsianina Joelson as Darcy
• Rini Bell as Kasey
• Nathan West as Jan
• Huntley Ritter as Leslie
• Shamari Fears as Lava
• Natina Reed as Jenelope
• Brandi Williams as Lafred