Bring It On (2000)

A champion high school cheerleading squad discovers its previous captain stole all their best routines from an inner-city school and must scramble to compete at this year's championships.

Director:

Peyton Reed

Writer:

Jessica Bendinger

Stars:

Kirsten Dunst, Eliza Dushku, Jesse Bradford

2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kirsten Dunst	...	Torrance Shipman
Eliza Dushku	...	Missy Pantone
Jesse Bradford	...	Cliff Pantone
Gabrielle Union	...	Isis
Clare Kramer	...	Courtney
Nicole Bilderback	...	Whitney
Tsianina Joelson	...	Darcy
Honorine Bell	...	Kasey (as Rini Bell)
Nathan West	...	Jan
Huntley Ritter	...	Les
Shamari Fears	...	Lava
Natina Reed	...	Jenelope
Brandi Williams	...	Lafred
Richard Hillman	...	Aaron
Lindsay Sloane	...	Big Red

Storyline

The Toro cheerleading squad from Rancho Carne High School in San Diego has got spirit, spunk, sass and a killer routine that's sure to land them the national championship trophy for the sixth year in a row. But for newly-elected team captain Torrance, the Toros' road to total cheer glory takes a shady turn when she discovers that their perfectly-choreographed routines were in fact stolen from the Clovers, a hip-hop squad from East Compton, by the Toro's former captain. While the Toros scramble to come up with a new routine, the Clovers, led by squad captain Isis have their own problems - coming up with enough money to cover their travel expenses to the championships. With time running out and the pressure mounting, both captains drive their squads to the point of exhaustion: Torrance, hell bent on saving the Toros' reputation, and Isis more determined than ever to see that the Clovers finally get the recognition that they deserve. But only one team can bring home the title, so may the...

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Plot Keywords:

championship | high school | cheerleading | punk | bra and panties | 

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Taglines:

Winning isn't Everything -- It's the Only Thing

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Genres:

Comedy | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sex-related material and language

Details

Official Sites:

Metropolitan Filmexport [fr] (French) Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 August 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cheer Fever

Filming Locations:

Oceanside, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£272,848 (UK) (20 October 2000)

Gross:

£1,704,786 (UK) (12 January 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Beacon Communications

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

All of the actors who were playing cheerleaders had to go to what they ended up calling "Cheerleader Boot Camp".

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Goofs

At one point, Torrance mentions that they have less than three weeks before Nationals and "since the football team sucks, they can use night games for practice". Earlier she said that Nationals were February 10, which would make it mid-January when she gives her "Three Weeks 'til Nationals" speech. In January, high school football season would be long since over.

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Quotes

Les: You know, everyone's saying that your ambition broke Carver's leg.
Torrance Shipman: When really it was the angle in which she slammed into the ground.
Les: Kasey did a massive e-mail last night, misspelled "leg".
Torrance Shipman: Shut up!
Les: Two G's.

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Crazy Credits

Bloopers are also shown along with "Mickey" in the background

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Connections

References Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)

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Soundtracks

"U.G.L.Y."
Written by Michele Chiavarini / Summer Burkes / Tracy Kilrow / Michael Marz
Performed by Daphne & Celeste
Courtesy of Universal International B.V.
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Flimsy stuff done rather well

This is a movie where more talent than necessary has been invested in a film basically aimed at entertainment-seeking adolescents, people interested in dance routines, and a few older men who enjoy watching young girls jump about. It follows the fortunes of an award-winning cheerleader team and the hapless football team they support.

A film about cheer leading, something that is, as far as I know, a uniquely American phenomenon, sounds pretty cheesy. The remarkable thing is that the acting and dialogue raise it a bit above the minimum required and the cheer leading dance sequences are a revelation for anyone who thought it was just about waving arms in the air and shouting support for the football team.

Gabrielle Union (10 Things I Hate About You) and Kirsten Dunst (Drop Dead Gorgeous & Virgin Suicides) were both cheerleaders at school - did this help with the authenticity? The amazing routines are quite dazzling to watch - requiring a very high level of stamina, physical fitness, athletic ability and dance technique. The overhead panning brings them almost to the level some of the old song and dance movie scenes with synchronized dancing. Synchronized dance in itself is difficult stuff, but fast paced synchronized dancing (to a great soundtrack, by the way) involving major aerial throws, difficult jive moves and lots of personality thrown in, is quite an achievement.

The film never takes itself too seriously, from the football announcer who says at the end of the match, "our next defeat is scheduled for next Tuesday", to the out-takes while the credits roll, the attitude is firmly tongue in cheek.

The script includes plenty of teenage bitching reminiscent of Clueless (adolescents often seem to show their intellectual prowess at clever, and often vicious repartee, that is all par for the course), but the acting is convincing and even the awkward issues of race and homosexuality are handled well. One cannot but help congratulate them for making a good film out of such a flimsy premise.