I have to admit I am not a great dancer. I know it is hard to believe that there IS something I am not good at, but when I was in the 8th grade at Will James Junior High, I was known as “Break Dance Don” because I was one of the best break dancers in my entire school. Unfortunately, it is now basically a dead art. But I will admit, anyone who can dance professionally, I will give them their due!
“Step” is the new directorial debut of Amanda Lipitz and is a documentary focusing on the lives of Blessin Giraldo, Cori Grainger, and Tayla Solomon. They are members of the first graduating class of in an inner city and disenfranchised section of Baltimore that admits sixth graders via a lottery system whose goal is for all graduates to have college acceptance at graduation. The three young ladies started a Step Team their first year to mixed results, but the class really compliments their education and helps the ladies develop their inner strength and life skills.
I really liked the look of the film, showing the inner city of Baltimore in it’s true form, which just about every major city in this country has, without trying to beautify the city and put a false front of where these ladies live. It also does an incredible in showing the three main subjects and their teammates by showing the true life of the subjects and the issues they have to deal with day in and day out. This film truly shows some tough situations and how life is not always a bunch of roses, but also what hard work can do and the payoff for it.
The film is about 90 minutes long, which is just about perfect to keep me interested and invested in the raw emotion to get to know the subjects and feel for them. I also admire how “Step” holds nothing back and does not show its story as one sided. There is not much in this film that I did not like and I feel like it was done right. I will definitely recommend this film, especially for kids in Jr. High and High School, and of course for the entire family the coveted full price in theaters.