Every Little Step (film)
Encyclopedia
Every Little Step is a 2008
American
documentary film
produced and directed by James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo. It follows the process of casting the 2006 Broadway
revival of A Chorus Line
and explores the history of the award-winning musical
, beginning with the informal interviews with Broadway dancers conducted by Michael Bennett
that served as its basis. Their personal observations and feelings were captured on audiotape, many of which are heard in this film.
3,000 dancers arrived to audition for the revival on the first day. Some of their stories are interwoven with recollections of members of the original cast, including Donna McKechnie
and Baayork Lee
; composer Marvin Hamlisch
; and Bob Avian
, who co-choreographed the original 1975 production and directed the 2006 revival
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
in September 2008 and went into theatrical release with the title Broadway Broadway in Japan
the following month. It was shown at the Berlin International Film Festival
, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival
, and the Sarasota Film Festival
before going into limited release in the US on April 17, 2009.
said the film "plays off the echo effect of [its] premise with skill, grace and heartfelt sympathy; it's clearly the work of people who love dancers, whether they're grinning in the spotlight or fighting back tears after a failed tryout . . . [W]hat surfaces in the film is the fierce dedication [dancers] have to their craft and the sense that they're here singing and performing their guts out in front of choreographers and producers because there's no other place on Earth they'd rather be."
A.O. Scott of the New York Times observed, "There is a superficial resemblance between Every Little Step (and, for that matter, A Chorus Line itself) and television reality shows
in which ordinary people use their talents to scramble for the spotlight. But those programs are spectacles of amateurism chasing after celebrity, an impulse that could not be further from what Mr. Stern and Mr. Del Deo, taking their cues from Mr. Bennett, set out to honor. The 17 members of that chorus line — and the thousands like them, including those who dream of playing them — are professionals, and one of the names they give to the glory they seek is work. The other is love."
Kenneth Turan
of the Los Angeles Times
said the film "doesn't do anything unexpected, and it doesn't have to . . . it's a can't-miss effort that knows how to please."
Kyle Smith
of the New York Post
rated the film 1½ out of four stars and called it a "sloppily directed" film that "assumes you know everything going in, which makes it more a souvenir scrapbook than a narrative."
Peter Travers
of Rolling Stone
rated the film three out of four stars and described it as "a thrilling combination of documentary and musical dazzler" and "a heartbreaker."
Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly
graded the film A, calling it "a movie as layered and as enthralling as its subject."
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
American
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
produced and directed by James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo. It follows the process of casting the 2006 Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
revival of A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. The book was authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante, lyrics were written by Edward Kleban, and music was composed by Marvin Hamlisch....
and explores the history of the award-winning musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, beginning with the informal interviews with Broadway dancers conducted by Michael Bennett
Michael Bennett
Michael Bennett was an American musical theater director, writer, choreographer, and dancer. He won seven Tony Awards for his choreography and direction of Broadway shows and was nominated for an additional eleven....
that served as its basis. Their personal observations and feelings were captured on audiotape, many of which are heard in this film.
3,000 dancers arrived to audition for the revival on the first day. Some of their stories are interwoven with recollections of members of the original cast, including Donna McKechnie
Donna McKechnie
Donna McKechnie is an American musical theater dancer, singer, actress, and choreographer. She is known for her professional and personal relationship with choreographer Michael Bennett, with whom she collaborated on her most noted role, "Cassie" from the musical A Chorus Line, for which she...
and Baayork Lee
Baayork Lee
Baayork Lee is an Asian-American actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, theatre director, and author.-Early life and career:Lee was born in New York City's Chinatown to an Indian mother and Chinese father...
; composer Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Frederick Hamlisch is an American composer. He is one of only thirteen people to have been awarded Emmys, Grammys, Oscars, and a Tony . He is also one of only two people to EGOT and also win a Pulitzer Prize...
; and Bob Avian
Bob Avian
Bob Avian is an American choreographer and a theatre producer and director.Born in New York City, Avian's spent his early career dividing his time between dancing in such Broadway shows as West Side Story, Funny Girl, and Henry, Sweet Henry and working as a production assistant on projects like I...
, who co-choreographed the original 1975 production and directed the 2006 revival
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
in September 2008 and went into theatrical release with the title Broadway Broadway in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
the following month. It was shown at the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival
Thessaloniki Documentary Festival
The Thessaloniki Documentary Festival – Images of the 21st Century is a film festival specialising in documentary films which takes place every March in Thessaloniki and is affiliated with the International Thessaloniki Film Festival.-History:...
, and the Sarasota Film Festival
Sarasota Film Festival
The Sarasota Film Festival has been held annually since 1999 in Sarasota, Florida. The festival is held in April and has become one of the top ten independent festivals in North America...
before going into limited release in the US on April 17, 2009.
Critical reception
Kaori Shoji of The Japan TimesThe Japan Times
The Japan Times is an English language newspaper published in Japan. Unlike its competitors, the Daily Yomiuri and the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, it is not affiliated with a Japanese language media organization...
said the film "plays off the echo effect of [its] premise with skill, grace and heartfelt sympathy; it's clearly the work of people who love dancers, whether they're grinning in the spotlight or fighting back tears after a failed tryout . . . [W]hat surfaces in the film is the fierce dedication [dancers] have to their craft and the sense that they're here singing and performing their guts out in front of choreographers and producers because there's no other place on Earth they'd rather be."
A.O. Scott of the New York Times observed, "There is a superficial resemblance between Every Little Step (and, for that matter, A Chorus Line itself) and television reality shows
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
in which ordinary people use their talents to scramble for the spotlight. But those programs are spectacles of amateurism chasing after celebrity, an impulse that could not be further from what Mr. Stern and Mr. Del Deo, taking their cues from Mr. Bennett, set out to honor. The 17 members of that chorus line — and the thousands like them, including those who dream of playing them — are professionals, and one of the names they give to the glory they seek is work. The other is love."
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan is an American film critic and Lecturer in the Master of Professional Writing Program at the University of Southern California.-Background:...
of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
said the film "doesn't do anything unexpected, and it doesn't have to . . . it's a can't-miss effort that knows how to please."
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith is an American critic, novelist and essayist. He is a staff film critic for the New York Post. His film reviewing style has been called "an exercise in hilarious hostility" by Entertainment Weekly....
of the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
rated the film 1½ out of four stars and called it a "sloppily directed" film that "assumes you know everything going in, which makes it more a souvenir scrapbook than a narrative."
Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Peter Travers is an American film critic, who has written for, in turn, People and Rolling Stone. Travers also hosts a celebrity interview show called Popcorn on ABC News Now and ABCNews.com.-Career:...
of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
rated the film three out of four stars and described it as "a thrilling combination of documentary and musical dazzler" and "a heartbreaker."
Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
graded the film A, calling it "a movie as layered and as enthralling as its subject."