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Review:
 Jessica
Bendinger has had it too good. A former supermodel who decided to
become a writer and has covered the music scene for a number of
years, she's written about four or five screenplays, mostly about
unlikable teenaged girls who somehow triumph over theirs and
everyone else's shortcomings.
For some reason she's especially good when she's really snarky,
and this film is about as bitchy and mean spirited as you can and
still have sweetness and light all around at the end.
We start out with two surfer dudes, Poot (John Patrick Amedori)
and Artie (John Balma) skateboarding in an unfinished swimming
pool and doing tricks with a third person on a mountain bike in
order to claim it from some rivals. Unfortunately, the dude on the
bike, our heroine Haley Graham(Missy Peregrym), crashes into a
very expensive picture window, and can't escape before the police
get her. Now, in the only implausibility of the film, the judge of
the juvenile court sentences her to go to the Vickerman gymnastics
academy.
Why? It seems that Haley was among the best in the world and was
about to take the gold in at the World championships when she
decided to just chuck it. [Yeah, there's an explanation]
Consequently, everybody in the sport hates her guts.
Highest on the list is Joanne (Vanessa Lengies), who lost her
chance for glory because of the above act. The eponymous head of
the school Burt Vickerman (Jeff Bridges) is notorious for bringing
in more injuries than medals. They get along like oil and water,
which is typical for this kind of thing. Feel the hate!!!
It's obvious that Bendinger had tried gymnastics herself, because
there's a true appreciation as to how hard it is to succeed and
how easy it is get badly injured. She also likes to use cheesy
cinematic tricks, and the stunt doubles do routines that are
photographed to look like they were done by the late Busby
Berkeley, which isn't a bat thing, it looks really good. It's also
really funny in parts.
While Bendinger has more than enough scorn to go around, she gives
a huge share to the judges, who are made to seem both tyrannical,
petty, and completely ridiculous. Inexplicable fantasy sequences
show up with them doing some routines badly. It's a hoot. The
title of the film has to do with Haley's reaction to the crap that
they pull. Then the revolution.
This film is a lot better than it should be. Worth the bucks even
if you're not a teenaged girl.
Eric Lurio
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