Breaking Thru - Blu-ray

Content: For Cassy (Sophia Aguiar) and her friends there is only one dream: they want to make it big as dancers. Again and again they come up with new choreographies, which they put into YouTube videos. Stars have often been born here. But the number of clicks on their videos is not really intoxicating. The competition is simply too big for that. But then talent scout Quinn shows up and senses a lot of star power in Cassy. He wants her to make it big and promises to invest a lot of time and money in her. And indeed, the professional clips quickly become real YouTube hits. And Cassy in particular becomes an idol for many young dancers. But the quick fame also has a price and so the girl becomes more and more alienated from her friends. And soon she has to decide if she wants to continue on this path, or if she will stay true to herself and stand by her friends.

Breaking Thru truly wins no prize for originality. If you've seen any dance film in recent years - whether Step Up, Streetdance or a similar work - the story, its characters and the interspersed conflicts will look familiar very quickly. It's also obvious that the production was made on a smaller budget, like the stylish entries of the successful Step Up series. But since movies of this genre, especially in the recent past, generally do not stand out for originality, but want to inspire their target audience with cool dance sequences, attractive actors and an appealing soundtrack, the high recognition value of the story does not really weigh negatively.

Nevertheless, Breaking Thru is overall rather one of the weaker representatives of its guild. The dance sequences are worth seeing, but not really spectacular. There has been more impressive stuff in this genre. Also, the acting in this movie isn't exactly on a first class level. This might be due to the fact that the actors are primarily dancers and not actors. Considering that, some of the weaknesses in the acting can certainly be excused.

There are many things to find fault with in a film like Breaking Thru. But in the end, the only question that matters is: does it serve its target audience well? And to this the answer then is: yes! Admittedly, there are better works to choose from for fans of dance movies. But if you just can't get enough of this genre and want to see another from-simple-girl-to-YouTube-superstar story, you'll get your money's worth here. And that's why the bottom line is a well-deserved: worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: Like the film itself, its technical realization also offers good average. Image sharpness, coloration, contrast matching - all of these are on a decent level, as is the powerfully mixed sound, which has decent surround movement to offer, especially in the dance scenes punctuated by music. Good!

Extras: Bonus features include short featurettes about the cast (approx. 1:44 min.), the director (approx. 2:08 min.), the dancing (approx. 1:55 min.), and the filming (approx. 2:19 min.). 15 interviews with cast and crew, as well as 5 minutes of uncommented B-roll footage, round out the additional offerings, along with the trailer.

Conclusion: Breaking Thru is a nice little dance film that always has the feel of a light TV movie, but at least it boasts likeable characters, a nice romance, and a few dance sequences worth watching. The Blu-ray presents the film in appealing picture and sound quality. The extras are scarce and very promo-heavy. But if you liked the film, you can definitely take a look at this one. For fans of Step Up and Co. despite many clichés quite still worth seeing!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp