Rize (2005)

Director:

David LaChapelle

Release Date:

5 August 2005 (Canada)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Plot:

Rize chronicles a dance movement that rises out of South Central Los Angeles with roots in clowning and street youth culture.

Plot Keywords:

Dance | Clowning | Gang | South Central Los Angeles | Clown

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Larry Berry	...	Himself
Tommy the Clown	...	Himself
Dragon	...	Himself
La Niña	...	Herself
Miss Prissy	...	Herself
Kevin Scott Richardson	...	Music producer
Christopher Toler	...	Lil C
Ceasare Willis	...	Tight Eyez

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for suggestive content, drug references, language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

86 min | Argentina:86 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | Ireland:12A | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41728) | Argentina:13 | Germany:6 | Singapore:PG | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

David LaChapelle Studios

Trivia:

Dedicated to the memory of Quinesha "Lil Dimples" Dunford.

Quotes:

Swoop: The sky is the limit, and there is no limit.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Bring It On: All or Nothing (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

Raw

Truly a wonder of nature, this urban predator, Tommy the Clown and many a story to tell. But it was a rare occasion, such as this, that he did…

Primus fans, admittedly not exactly the target audience for this film, will immediately recognize the lyrics above and hopefully get a little kick out of it. People who don't know Primus, probably most of the people who would watch this documentary and read about it, will most likely send me angry e-mails.

I am not the biggest fan of hip-hop, rap, r&b, etc., but I decided to check out this documentary because I recently moved to LA and I appreciate seeing people who take difficult life situations and turn them into something positive, and that is exactly what happens in this movie. All of these kids living in the so called dangerous parts of Los Angeles take their frustration and their fear and channel it into a unique style of dancing, which is often quite a spectacle to behold.

It starts with a man who calls himself Tommy the Clown, who entertains at children's parties much like most other types of clowns, except that he specializes in an amazing dance performance rather than magic tricks and balloon animals, and before long other dancing clown groups are popping up all over the place, mostly staffed by kids and teenagers who otherwise would more than likely get involved in a life of crime.

This is an amazing look into the reality of the lives that these people live, right down to individual dance parties, some of the unwritten social rules of the people who dance together (the styles change so quickly that they can tell who has missed even a single day of dancing), and tragic events that take place in their everyday lives. Even if this is not your style of music or dancing, this documentary is definitely worth a look to see how some people take something so difficult and so bad in their lives and turn it into something good. Truly inspiring.