Well, not really, but the fourth installment of the dance series Step Up takes place in Miami and centers around some of the city's most pressing issues: over-development and gentrification. Oh yeah, shit gets serious. Might this be the most important Miami political dance film ever? The first official trailer for Step Up 4 (AKA Step Up: Revolution) hit the web yesterday. Watch below.
Yeah, lets break it down.
See, there's this crazy, guerrilla dance troop called the MOB that emerges by creating a "public disturbance" of dance on Ocean Drive. Which, OK, ignores the fact that just about everything on Ocean Drive is a public disturbance.
Spot on casting with the local TV reporter. Some of them do actually look like that.
So the Latino leader of the MOB (Ryan Guzman) meets this mysterious white chick (So You Think You Can Dance's Kathryn McCormick) and finds out that homegirl has moves. Or as his dad puts it, "Not bad for a gringa."
They then go on a date at what appears to be a Wynwood art gallery, because this film knows whats up in Miami right now.
Enter the villain: White girls' dad, who happens to be a wealthy, ambitious developer. He plans "to start construction on the greatest hotel property Miami has ever seen." He's going to rebuild the Fontainebleau again? No, something bigger and more ostentatious apparently. Shades of Genting? Or, really, any mega developer from the past 15 years in Miami.
But, oh no! In order to do it he's going to force out an entire Latino neighborhood! Gentrification at its worse!
So newly enlightened white girl decides to rebel against daddy, and wants to use the dance prowess of the MOB for "protest art." That apparently includes a big dance off at 1111 Lincoln, and this... Whatever this is... It is in the movie, and it is not 4 Sale. True story: There's actually an ordinance against giant protest puppets in the city of Miami, so this thing is breaking the law.
And then there's a bunch of big dance numbers. Some of which involve police officers! And we suppose everything works out in the end. Or maybe not. Maybe everyone leaves the theaters really depressed, but also kind of making plans to stay at a mega-resort in Miami. Who knows? Whatever the case, we're somewhat pleasantly surprised this movie takes into account some of the realities of modern day Miami and doesn't just use the city as a sunny backdrop for bikini dance numbers.
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