A friend and I attended a Friday night showing of Fame. I think we both we’re intrigued by what this new film update was going to be like. Would it surpass the 1980 classic? Would it be a High School Musical or Center Stage knockoff? Would it possibly upstage all the past Fame productions that came before it and raise the bar to the heavens? My friend and I and about two bus loads of teens and tweens filled the theater to find out.

Fame brings us back to The School of Performing Arts (now officially known as The Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts) based in New York City. The story follows the paths of a select group of students from try-outs to graduation day. We’ll see the failures and triumphs they endure on their path to achieving success in their respective fields of study. The lingering question will be who will finish the race and who will end up disqualified from a twisted ankle.


Getting Down At The "Carn-Evil"

Among the featured clan is a talented pianist named Denise (Naturi Naughton) who follows the dictates of her overbearing father at the cost of her own deep seated desires and an intense lad named Malik (Collins Pennie) with dreams of becoming an actor/rap artist despite his doubtful mother (Michael Hyatt).

The romantic aspect of Fame is mostly handled by Jenny and Marco (Kay Panabaker and Asher Book, respectively). The two drama students carry on a sweet high school romance but Jenny’s ambitions could possibly throw a wrench in that well oiled engine. The other couple consists of Alice (Kherington Payne), the resident dancer extraordinaire, and an innovative musician named Victor (Walter Perez). Rounding out the rest of the main bunch is the prospective director, Neil (Paul Iacono) and another aspiring actress named Joy (Anna Maria Perez de Tagle).


Love & Drama Class: Marco (Asher Book) & Jenny (Kay Panabaker)

Fame is a weird movie. No, what I really mean is that Fame caused me some weird feelings about it. I didn’t hate it and it wasn’t the Save The Last Dance retread I feared it would be and I was extremely relieved by that. The dance and musical numbers are incredible but the plot and characters are a little less impressive.

Feel free to correct me if you think I’m wrong on this but my belief is that the main concept of Fame is about students becoming successful and acclaimed through their artistic talents. These students are out to make a name for themselves by finding that something inside of them that will set them apart from the rest of the herd. The competition is fierce so they’ll have to be tough, clever and utilize tools within and outside of the classroom. Honestly, I haven’t seen the original Fame movie in years but I remember a good portion of the characters, both students and teachers. I felt like I really got to know who the kids were underneath their powerful vocals or perfect pirouettes.

The new Fame has some intriguing new pupils but not enough time was spent on them. At 107 minutes this is one of those films that could’ve benefited from an extra twenty minutes to devote to expanding the portrayals of some of the cast. Even the ones in the front row of the plot get terribly reduced due to the rush to fit four whole years of school in an hour and a half.


Strutting Like They Mean It: Alice (Kherington Payne) & Dance Troupe

A lot of attention is given to Denise who arrives on the scene ready to hone her already impressive piano skills. We learn that her path has already been paved and lit by her forceful father (Julius Tennon) who is determined to make his little girl into a concert pianist. Denise surprises all by finding that not only can she play like Mozart but she can also belt with an incredible set of pipes. It’s fascinating to watch Denise play that internal tug-of-war between what she enjoys and what her father wants her to do but that seems to be all there is to her character. That’s all we can find out about her in that brief time period.

One of the worst victims of the time crunch is Alice. She gets a few notable dance numbers out of it but there isn’t much else. We find out that she comes from a privileged family and probably uses dance to escape the boredom of the elitist lifestyle. She even begins to date Victor (aka the boy from the other side of the tracks). But I never get to find out who Alice is. At this point I know that Alice is an incredible dancer with rich parents and a lower class boyfriend. Imagine if there were a few more scenes showing Alice fight with her parents over her dance style choices. Maybe they’d prefer her in ballet instead of modern dance.

Ooh, or howabout if Victor became terribly jealous of Alice’s success. Imagine the sparks that would’ve flown if Victor went into his dark place because his girlfriend was getting invites from prestigious dance companies while he can’t even get a gig at Sam Ash. Sorry, y’all, but none of that happens and Alice is left with a pretty face with pretty dance steps and not much more than that.

The kids also suffer from a lack of edgy-ness. They’re all pretty good kids, clean and respectful and substance free. Oh how boring, lol. You mean to tell me that none of these kids even pick up a cigarette habit? Malik shows the most ferocity out of the new cast but even this tiger gets de-clawed by the kid-friendlier ambience.


She Will Discover That She Isn't Totally On Her Own: Denise (Naturi Naughton)

I remember in the original Fame flick that one of the students gets suckered into posing nude for some letch of a photographer and a white prima ballerina manages to get knocked up by her black boyfriend. Overall, the only danger the new Fame kids have to face is flunking World History or missing the subway. Sure there are some intense moments such as a student putting too much trust in another fellow young actor and a struggling dancer that contemplates ending it all but they turn out okay. Every peril in Fame is secured by a safety net. No one loses a limb, goes to the clinic or even warrants a trip on the therapy couch. Again, there was a lot of opportunity to address the rough side of the performing arts world but the story never goes that deep. The filmmakers strive to make the new Fame as accessible to the new generation as possible. Unfortunately for generations new, old and in between Fame comes across more as a CW pilot instead of a no-holds-barred dramatization set at a highly competitive performing arts school.

And if you think the students get the short end of the reel just wait until you see how the teachers are treated. It’s a crying shame how talented pros like Bebe Neuwirth, Kelsey Grammer and Charles S. Dutton are given such measly moments of screentime. Did the remake’s creators forget how the presence of the teachers in the original film also helped to make Fame so incredible?

Thankfully, not all the teachers got super-snipped. Megan Mullally gets to show off more of “Ms. Rowan” thanks to a karaoke bar field trip that presents an important point in the story. In a conversation with her students the talented Ms. Rowan explains how she became a teacher and the students get that wake-up lesson about how the "Fame Express" can pass you by even if you have a ticket. Charles S. Dutton and Collins Pennie have a good start to the classic scenario involving a teacher trying to guide a troubled student out of the darkness but it never fully develops. The writers might’ve been afraid the relationship between Mr. Dowd and Malik would be too reminiscent of Stand and Deliver or Dangerous Minds. That would be very bizarre since they had no qualms about borrowing that Rita Watson (Lauryn Hill) plot thread from Sister Act 2 or Jenna’s (Tiffany Taylor) declarative “Here’s Where I Stand” moment from Camp.

The weirdness started when I bought the soundtrack the next day and I was cranking up my favorite tunes in my vehicle’s CD player and I found myself gleefully recalling certain scenes in the movie. At this point my two ultimate favorites are Sam Sparro’s “Black & Gold” played during a scorching Fosse-esque dance number led by Alice and Denise’s vivacious vocal debut with “Get On The Floor” courtesy of her schoolmates Malik and Victor. Though I was bummed about the stunted portrayals of the characters I was jazzed about the moments when they did they’re thing on the stage. My dream DVD release for Fame would include a special feature that shows the song and dance numbers in their entirety. Especially the “Black & Gold” dance. Wow, that was so slinky and sexy and cool. I would love to perform it myself or at least a mediocre copycat version since I wasn’t blessed with umpteen years of dance training since birth like Ms. Payne.


Clubbin' In The Cafeteria: Joy (Anna Maria Perez de Tagle), Neil (Paul Iacono) and other students

If you’re thinking about seeing Fame because you loved the 80’s film and tv show there’s a good chance you’ll feel partially cheated. The cast shows as much promise as the actors in the original but the rapid pace forces them to serve as above-average archetypes. I think the younger people will be too dazzled by the vibrant cast and fantastic musical numbers to care about little things like character development and a riskier plot. The best reason to see Fame at the theater is for the musical numbers that are spectacular on the big screen coupled with the surround sound. Otherwise, you can wait for the home release and save your box office bucks for a more worthwhile musical.

While I’m still disappointed in the frictionless storyline I can’t deny that I still rooted for the new class. I wanted them to succeed. I wanted them to win. Fame ’09 probably won’t win a lot of nods for screenplay but the movie should still manage to arouse some good vibrations in you and maybe even inspire you to do something that will make everyone remember your name just like the students in the movie.