Stomp the Yard (2007)

Let me say right up front that my husband and I are White and around 50, and we really liked this film: my motivation for writing this review is to get other people to see it! Predictable but engaging, and very watchable: I needed to use the restroom but didn't want to miss anything(!), because the dance/step moves are so great. Lead Columbus Short (as DJ) is new to us, but he's nice-looking and charismatic, and definitely keeps your attention. On the whole, the film reminded us a lot of "Drumline," which we enjoyed too--both share a similar plot line and coming-of-age challenges. Anyone who likes dance films, even martial arts, should catch this one--you'll marvel at the athleticism and synchronicity of the moves, enjoy the posturing and confrontations, and buy into DJ's story. Ultimately, we cared about what happens to him, and the film kept our interest all the way through. Good for all ages in general, with some very attractive actors and good music...!

Fmovies: Take the drums out of Drumline and you've got Stomp the Yard, a clumsy, by-the-numbers look at the competitive world of a complex, synchronized dance form known as stepping, a tradition for black college fraternities.

High-caliber stepping is an exciting sight, and Stomp the Yard's dance scenes have a poise and visual flair that surpasses any music video: stroboscopic rapid-fire body popping, impressive slow-motion acrobatics and razor-sharp group steps backed by a thundering soundtrack.

It's tragic, then, that the thin, formulaic characters and plot are no deeper than your average music video, with the typical fish-out-of-water bad boy falling for his archenemy's girl, getting off on the wrong foot with his fraternity brothers and ultimately learning a valuable lesson about teamwork.

If the rest of Stomp the Yard were half as deft as its footwork, it'd be watchable. As it is, everything that doesn't happen on stage is a major stumble.

Reguardless of the other votes and forums I've read about this flick.. Firstly I don't think its racist why its gotten bad ratings... and heres why... Firstly I am white, not that it should matter.. Movie idea was unoriginal.. and in my opinion that effected ppls ratings on this movie.. They couldn't see past the idea that it was not a NEW IDEA.... blah blah blah. People are just watching the movies to be entertained and if they've seen something similar there not entertained where as there's the few of us out there that can appreciate great acting and with this movie its exactly that.. I really enjoyed drumline.. Possibly because I was a drummer in school but I've also enjoyed quite a few of "dance movies" even enjoyed them enough to buy on DVD.. This movie Stomp The Yard.. I DO intend to buy on DVD as soon as its available.. I do recommend seeing this movie regardless of what the few other ppl have rated this movie on.. I feel it unfairly got a bad IMDb rating because it was not original.. Hope this helps

Stomp the Yard fmovies. Apparently the makers of this movie did... actually they missed several things.

This movie is basically a mass of stereotypes. They're ALL there... let's run through it, shall we? First, you have the obligatory waste-of-time opening sequence. This is the part that might as well have had a red caution sign flashing that said, WARNING: this movie sucks. Get out of here and save yourself the trouble.

Next, you have the "too-badass for class antagonist." I believe I saw this kind of character in "You Got Served." (Another cinematic turd.) Then there's the chick on campus that takes a shine to the main dude, but turns on him once he screws up and does/says something stupid.

And finally, the fact that there's almost no good dialogue, and no comedy to flesh it out.

If you're going to make a movie, take these things into account... it'll help.

And now, for the verdict: this movie is a 1 out of 10.

By the way, this is based on the fact that I actually saw it... I'm not racist in any sense of the word.

Now normally, I'm not a fan of these kind of movies. But I work at a movie theatre and got to see this the night before it was released for free, so I sat back and watched. I expected a cheesy movie with some cool moves, but this dance movie gave much more. An interesting (yet predictable) story, an interesting lead, and incredible dancing. Stomp the Yard is as much entertainment as any film I've seen recently.

After a rage-fueled brawl takes his brother's (singer Chris Brown in a cameo) life, DJ (Columbus Short) moves out of the streets of L.A. and in with his aunt and uncle (Harry Lennix of The Matrix Series). His uncle allows him to start college and start a job, giving him the chance to start over. DJ soon meets a friend in his roommate Rich (singer Ne-Yo) and the beautiful daughter of the school's president (Meagan Good of Waist Deep).

You may be wondering how the dancing and stepping fits in with the plot, but that is the interesting thing. Even without the musical aspect of the film, Stomp the Yard would be a decent film. It's a good drama that puts the stepping in as entertainment. And boy does it work. The choreography is simply brilliant, blowing all other dancing movies of recent memory (Step Up, Take the Lead, You Got Served) out of the water. In a small, yet important role, Chris Brown will amaze you even more with his incredible ability at just 17 years of age. Columbus Short not only proves he can dance in the film, but he can act as well. Short gives a good performance and provides a likable character for us to see. Meagan Good gives another great show, with another good character. Her character, April, is a character that has a lot of depth and is very interesting to watch as she changes throughout the film. And she's very easy on the eyes. In a limited role, Ne-Yo does what is asked of him, but I'm not sold on him as an actor. The choreography gets a 10 out of 10 from me, because like I said before, it is original, stylish, fresh, and simply breathtaking to watch these people perform them. You'll see backflips, barrel rolls, head spins, kicks, middle fingers, and all that in between, not to mention multiple mixes of them all. The music used in the film is great too. The songs are always used in the right place, like in the beginning, when very hardcore, almost heavy metal sounding rap is used to display the mood of seriousness of the scene. The only downfall of this film is the writing and its running time. It is a little too long (almost 2 hours) and far too predictable. There were five of us in the theatre, and we all predicted at least one thing each that would happen in the film. It is a fault that you can easily overlook if you take the film for what it is: an entertaining musical that actually has a good story and good performances. Stomp the Yard will surprise you, so don't judge it before you see it. There really isn't much language beyond use of the n-word, and there are some violent scenes. I recommend this film to anyone ages 13 and up, but boys of ages 15-18 will like it the best.

8/10 --spy

I can't believe this is sitting with a 3 rating?! I found the dancing/choreography fascinating not to mention the eye candy element and just the logistics of how they do those moves? I had not seen the actor who played DJ previously but found him quite capable as was the female lead.

Plot-wise vaguely reminiscent of Save the Last Dance.

I don't know what people that rated this low were expecting - my thought is that "the dance" was the main point of the whole movie and entertainment enough in itself. The plot elements were somewhat predictable yet with a little twist I was not expecting & overall I thought the movie progressed well as opposed to movies that have long, drawn out plot development.

Perfect for those of us with A.D.D. ;)