Movie review: Free Style

by Alex Bentley

The stars of the High School Musical films exist to me as though in another dimension. I'm aware of their existence and the fervor attached to every move they make by tweens and teens. But as far as acting goes, the appeal of people like Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens has yet to be proven to me since they have done little outside of the Disney musicals.

With Free Style, Corbin Bleu appears to be trying to break out of the HSM mold, though not too far. He plays Cale Bryant, an aspiring motocross rider in an anonymous northern state who has to work two jobs to support his passion and his family, mom Jeanette (Penelope Ann Miller) and sister Bailey (Madison Pettis). His best friend, Justin (Jesse Moss), is also a rider, although one that doesn't have to worry about money as much since he comes from rich family.

Naturally, you can't have a guy who looks like Bleu without offering him some sort of female companionship. Two lovely ladies vie for his attention – Crystal (Tegan Moss), his girlfriend at the beginning of the film who may or may not be enthused about his prospects, and Alex (Sandra Echeverria), a comely Latina waitress who catches Cale's eye.

The story follows the typical TV movie arc (in fact, it probably should have been a TV movie) of rise, fall, and redemption, with the added benefit of a romance thrown in. No moment is too clichéd to be included here – in fact, it seems as if director William Dear and co-writers Jeffrey Nicholson and Joshua Liebner put out the edict that if it's not predictable, it's not worth filming. Of course, that doesn't have to be a bad thing if filmed well, but Dear and company hammer home every development, leaving no room for subtlety.

Bleu delivers what he's there to deliver, i.e. serving as brooding eye candy. His curly hair is mesmerizing in a “I can't believe that's real” kind of way, but his acting leaves a lot to be desired. Of course, acting is beside the point in this type of film. Miller is a familiar name for older viewers, but this film is just another notch in her long resume in the movie hinterlands. Pettis is another Disney “veteran” (having appeared both Hannah Montana and Cory in the House, and that sensibility comes through loud and clear in her performance.

The scenes of the motocross races are much like the roller derby matches in Whip It – full of unnecessary close-up shots that don't give the audience a full understanding of what's going on or how one rider gains an advantage over the other. Consequently, any excitement that could've happened is drained from the film, making the races little more than another way for the plot to get from point A to point B.

Free Style will undoubtedly have an appeal to the younger group it's trying to court, but it holds almost no entertainment value for anybody else.