We watched this because of the "talented musician and dancing" tagline.
Perhaps that tagline oversells the movie a bit.
The acting is fine. The cast is fine. The intent of the story is poignant.
But the actual plot is, in a word, unbelievable.
There is an entire town in North Dakota that regularly sends its best and brightest off to war, and they return broken--or not at all.
And the entire town is traumatized, generation after generation, by their deaths.
But the boys go off to war, friends and family stay behind, and the cycle continues
BUT ALSO this tiny town in Western North Dakota somehow becomes the host of the statewide high school cheer dance off which is filled with cheer teams from across the state all dancing in the most suggestive poses and steps and outfits possible, something that notoriously conservative North Dakota is known for.
These two threads are maybe connected.
But how they are connected is a thread too fine to see.
None of these people *for generations* will talk about their grief.
And yet they are completely accepting of Las Vegas showgirls as cheer squad. Because that's how small towns are in America's heartland.
It's not a terrible movie. The actors are fine, and the production values are good.
But ultimately this film just doesn't land.
3/10 stars.
Perhaps that tagline oversells the movie a bit.
The acting is fine. The cast is fine. The intent of the story is poignant.
But the actual plot is, in a word, unbelievable.
There is an entire town in North Dakota that regularly sends its best and brightest off to war, and they return broken--or not at all.
And the entire town is traumatized, generation after generation, by their deaths.
But the boys go off to war, friends and family stay behind, and the cycle continues
BUT ALSO this tiny town in Western North Dakota somehow becomes the host of the statewide high school cheer dance off which is filled with cheer teams from across the state all dancing in the most suggestive poses and steps and outfits possible, something that notoriously conservative North Dakota is known for.
These two threads are maybe connected.
But how they are connected is a thread too fine to see.
None of these people *for generations* will talk about their grief.
And yet they are completely accepting of Las Vegas showgirls as cheer squad. Because that's how small towns are in America's heartland.
It's not a terrible movie. The actors are fine, and the production values are good.
But ultimately this film just doesn't land.
3/10 stars.