Save the Last Dance
Save the Last Dance is a 2001 drama film produced by MTV Films, directed by Thomas Carter and released by Sony Pictures on January 12, 2001. The film stars Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas as a teenage interracial couple in Chicago who work together to help the main character, played by Stiles, train for a dance audition. A direct-to-video sequel, Save the Last Dance 2, was released in 2006.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack, filled with music underscoring the dance scenes from the film, also became a success. It features a lineup of R&B and hip hop performers such as Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Pink and Notorious B.I.G., Jesse Powell, K-Ci & Jo-Jo, Donnell Jones, X-2-C, Athena Cage, Chaka Demus and Soulbone. Fredro Starr, of the hip hop group Onyx, who also appears in the film in a supporting role, performs the main theme on the soundtrack.
Earnings and awards
The film was, according to Clint Eastwood, “a surprise success” in theaters especially with the teenage female audience[citation needed], and is regarded as having two of the best breakthrough performances for its leading actors, Stiles, and especially Thomas.[citation needed] It was a financial success as well, with box-office earnings of $91,038,276 in the US alone and toppling the $100 million mark worldwide.[citation needed]
Save the Last Dance was also successful at a number of movie awards, most notably:
- The 2001 MTV Movie Awards, winning in the category “Best Kiss” for Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas, who also won “Breakthrough Male Performance”; and being nominated for “Best Female Performance” for Julia Stiles and “Best Dance Sequence” for a scene in the hip hop club
- The 2001 Teen Choice Awards, winning in the categories “Film – Choice Actress” for Julia Stiles, “Film – Choice Breakout Performance” for Kerry Washington and “Film – Choice Fight Scene” for Julia Stiles and Bianca Lawson; and being nominated as best “Film – Choice Drama”
- The 2001 Young Hollywood Awards, winning in the category “Standout Performance – Male” for Sean Patrick Thomas
- It was also nominated for the 2002 Black Reel Awards in the category “Theatrical – Best Supporting Actress” for Kerry Washington and the 2002 Golden Reel Awards in the category “Best Sound Editing – Music, Musical Feature Film” for the music editor Michael T. Ryan.
Despite these awards, the movie was not well received by critics. Rotten Tomatoes’ rating assesses the film as “Rotten,” with 47 of 92 reviewers panning the film, and summarizes the critical consensus as “This teen romance flick feels like a predictable rehashing of other movies.” Even the reviews marked “fresh” are hardly enthusiastic, with remarks such as, “Look elsewhere for reality or good drama. Look here, however, if you’re in the mood for a good heaping of fantasy and some fun”; “a decent, well-put-together romantic drama to hold hands to on the weekend”; and “A sometimes predictable, but mostly enjoyable tale.” Salon’s reviewer called the film “a bad, friendly, enjoyable movie,” observing that “for all its dumb clichés it offers the basic appeal of teen movies: the pleasure of watching kids be kids, acting as they do among themselves instead of how parents and teachers expect them to act.”
Cast
- Julia Stiles as Sara Johnson
- Sean Patrick Thomas as Derek Reynolds
- Kerry Washington as Chenille Reynolds
- Fredro Starr as Malakai
- Terry Kinney as Roy Johnson
- Bianca Lawson as Nikki
- Vince Green as Snookie