Take the Lead
Liz Friedlander's Take the Lead is a very well-acted inspirational movie. There are dozens of points where, in less capable hands, the movie would fall flat on its puss, and if the film does have a defect, it's that you recognize these points as they occur. The trajectory is entirely predictable. A nice guy gives the kids of hard knocks a chance, and the kids succeed. He teaches them ballroom dancing, and they learn trust and respect. Hollywood loves a makeover, and Take the Lead is full of them, all more than skin-deep. It's a movie to love.
Antonio Banderas, at forty-six just beginning to look like a serious grown-up, plays the part of Pierre Dulaine, a real-life ballroom dance teacher who decided to do some good for underprivileged children. Because Mr Dulaine is very much alive, the film focuses not on his personal life but on his success with a bunch of high-school students. We learn that he was married and that his wife is dead, and that is that. Mr Banderas is so authoritative that we don't ask questions until the movie is over, when it really doesn't matter.
Like all good inspirational movies, Take the Lead is about behavior, not motivation. The behavior that Pierre wants to see begins with a courtly politeness that, even though it is not available in all sizes, looks very good on Mr Banderas, and you really believe that good manners can cut the grease of gritty New York life. Alfre Woodard is perfect as an initially skeptical, eventually supportive principal, while Rob Brown, Yaya DaCosta and Lauren Collins are affectingly troubled adolescents.
IMDb to the contrary notwithstanding, Ray Liotta is not, to the best of my knowledge, in the movie.
I mean it. You'll have to work hard not to love this picture.
