This movie is basically the quintessential "If you wanna know Rose, here's an example" film.
The character Haley Graham, played by one of my all-time favorite actresses Missy Peregrym, is basically the kinda girl I was growing up. Stubborn, rebellious, athletic (seriously, I looked a lot like her when I was in High School, and she and I look a lot alike!!), and I have her kind of personality. I was into gymnastics when I was younger, and even though I didn't stick it* out, this movie brings back memories for me, especially of the bars and balance-beam (my two fav areas). If I could pick an actress to play me in a film (like that would ever happen :P) it would be Missy Peregrym.
*I know, it's a really, really bad pun, but how could I not? *Cheshire cat grin*
Ok, back to gushing. Wait, first, I must give you the deets of this amazingly fantastic movie!!! Without further adieu, drum-roll please!
Stick It
~Released: April 28th, 2006
~Written & Directed by: Jessica Bendinger
~Genres: Comedy, Drama, Sport
~Plot (from IMDb):
After a run-in with the law, Haley Graham (Missy Peregrym) is forced to return to the world from which she fled some years ago. Enrolled in an elite gymnastics program run by the legendary Burt Vickerman (Jeff Bridges), Haley's rebellious attitude gives way to something that just might be called team spirit.
Okay peeps, basically, this is one of my favorite films EVER!! I'm totally bummed, because I didn't find it until I was like 19 or 20 (4 years after it's release), but ever since then, I've been in love with it. It's my inspiration, and I adore watching a character so close to my own. At least, one big side of me.
OKAY! Onto the "review" portion of our post. Ahem! Herewego!
Obviously, this movie gets my 5 Rose rating, cuz it's just that awesome!
~Plot: Jaded young chick, pissed at life and parental mistakes (who isn't?), has a run-in with the law (again) and is forced, by her father and a very wise old judge, to face her past. How can this NOT be interesting?! Add in fantastic gymnastics, bmx stunts, some snarky humor, laugh-out-loud (what, she spelled it out? Laaaame. Doesn't she know she can use the ridiculously overused "lol" catch-all thingy??) humor, and Jeff Bridges on a trampoline. Ooops! Gave that away. Shoot! Now you really wanna see it, donchya? *grins* I know, it's epic.
~Character/Actors: Aaaaawe-some!! I don't think they could have done any better with casting. Missy is, just, superbly fantastic. She nailed Haley's character, and gave an awesome performance.
Jeff Bridges is, well, a legend, and his films are generally always entertaining. His portrayal of Burt Vickerman was awesome, and really entertaining. He was also really believable, and I found myself wondering once "Did he used to be into gymnastics, because he seems like a natural with it all!"
Nikki SooHoo (who plays Wei Wei) is just phenomenal! She's hilarious, and I LOOOOOVE her dancing! She's an inspiration in herself, and her character could have it's own film.
Joanne Charis (played by Vanessa Lengies) is an awesome character! I love the changes she goes through, and how much she grows up throughout the film. All the girls do, really, but she grows more than most. Overcoming petty jealousy, and getting over being an immature brat is always something to applaud ;)
~Ending: *cries* It. Was. Awesome!! Such a great ending- I always get chills, butterflies, and tear up. I love when they all pull out their bra straps, and support their fellow gymnast. (What, did she say bra straps? WTF?!) YES! It's epic, and you must watch the film to find out what I'm talking about. It's awesome, trust me :)
Ok, do you need more reasons to watch this movie? You shouldn't but if you need even more convincing, here's something...
For all you Twilight lovers out there!! Did you miss it? Up in the film info ^^ there's an actor there you may want to see. Yes peeps, that's Kellan Lutz, the actor made famous by his muscles and "monkey-man" moves in the Twilight franchise, playing Emmett Cullen.
Well, in this film, you see him several years younger than the first Twilight film (2008), and he's just adorable!!! He skateboards, does some awesome stuff on a bmx bike, and is hilarious around the gymnast chicks. He's a total bad-ass, and I adore his character. He rocks, his character rocks, just go watch it now.
If you're still here, well, there's not much else I can say to convince you...
Ok, some fun facts, several of which make me love this movie even more! *Warning! You may learn more about me as a person through these, so if you don't want to read about the gushing fangirl behind this post, you probably should stop, and just go watch the movie now ;)
If you're still reading- wow! You're either really bored, or you're kinda curious about me. If it's the latter, then I'm flattered! :D
OK! Fun facts:
~This movie came out on my 16th birthday!! I didn't know that at the time, but I do now, and it could be a freaky reason I love this movie so much. There's a connection there, I swear! :D
~(This is a fun fact associated with me- if you don't wanna know about my personal fun-fact, skip to the next one, please). I mentioned it a little bit at the top of the post, but Missy and I look a lot a like. I looked sooo much like her when I was in HS...you know, before crap-life happened. *sigh* If I was able to work out the way I want to, I'd look almost exactly like her. Same kinda face, similar hair, skinny & toned, etc. Except she's like 3-4 inches taller than me (5'6 1/2 vs 5'2), and I've got a few more curves that no amount of exercising is ever going to remove ;). Ok, enough with me, onto more about her!
~Missy Peregrym did have a stunt-double for some of the more dangerous tricks in the movie. Yes people, gymnastics can become life-threateningly dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. Yet another reason to watch Stick It- you'll see some awesome stunts! Aaaanyway, her stunt double was beyond fantastic, and I wish they'd do something official on her, because she's very difficult to find info on.
~While Missy Peregrym had a stunt double, she still trained for 4 months, just to learn the basics of gymnastics, and build up strength enough to be able to do the stunts she did perform- did I mention it's a difficult sport? It is. This movie will show you why. (Tired of my gushing yet? Don't care! I warned you at the beginning this is a gushing fangirl post.) This article has an awesome interview with Missy, where she talks about her stunt double, and training for the film.
Ok, so I'm outa fun facts, for now. I'm going to go watch this movie, and if you watch it too, let me know what you think!
Thanks for reading! I'm off to conquer the world, and as Haley would say, "Bring It On!"
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