In Brooklyn, Angel is a breakdancer who lives with her single mother Gabby. Her abusive boyfriend Hector won't accept that she wants to break up. One night Angel and her best friend Rosie trade hats and jackets and Hector fatally stabs Rosie thinking she is Angel. When he realizes his mistake he stabs Angel too. After many weeks of recovery, Angel wants to breakdance again but is having difficulty. Gabby moves with Angel to Los Angeles to live with Angel's grandmother Crescencia, where she believes Angel will be safe. Angel gets a night job at a car rental company and goes to college during the day. She also joins a group of breakdancers who need a sixth member to compete.
Crescencia is demanding and strict and did not approve of how her daughter left years ago. The family goes to Crescencia's church, where Angel becomes friends with Carlos. Righteous is a girl who sees Angel as an outsider but eventually accepts her.
Angel and Rosie are so good together, it's a shame their friendship ends so early. But Angel and Carlos offer an acceptable substitute later on. The question is will they be more than friends?
Julie Urich is a great dancer, at least when Angel isn't supposed to be hurt. In most of the movie, Angel can't do all the things she could before, but she tries hard. We want her to succeed, I'm sure. The dancers in this movie are all talented.
The so-called music got on my nerves, but rap music and related styles are to be expected here.
Graffiti may not be everyone's taste, but the art on some of the Los Angeles buildings certainly appears worthy of comparison to other modern styles that hang in museums. Only the "museum" is outdoors.
It is a hard movie to watch but appears to be well-done. It comes across as a quality independent production. I believe most of the actors did a good job.
Once we get past the scenes with Hector, violence and other offensive content is minimal. But this a movie about street culture and it may not be for everyone.
I still felt this was a worthwhile experience.
