“How She Move” has some fantastic, hip, new style of dancing that combines elements from break dancing, competitive cheerleading, tap, and even Irish step dancing, driven by a fast pace beat. These kids can really move and it is amazing to see some of the elements present in their dance routines. Much like the urban elements depicted in “West Side Story” of gangs and kids challenging other kids, “How She Move” has dance teams known as “crews” and they challenge each other through “step offs” instead of violence. Although occasionally tempers do flare enough for a few punches to be thrown.
Raya, a beautiful young gifted student tries to acclimate herself to the urban environment and in doing so discovers a new talent of dancing or “steps” as it is called. Her mother wants her to concentrate only on her studies and getting into college but Raya says “Just because I’m moving ahead doesn’t mean I have to leave all of this behind.”
This PG-13 gritty tale is not family friendly and in my opinion should have received an R-rating because of the language and sexual content. Families might wish to “step aside” on this film and step quickly to one of the many other family films around.