Movie Review: Work It 🕺🏽💃🏼

Work It has a groovy rhythm that falls flat towards the end.

Sabrina Carpenter (left) stars as Quinn Ackerman and Jordan Fisher (right) stars as Jake Taylor in Work It. CREDIT: Netflix

This post for Work It is spoiler-free.

Work It (2020, directed by Laura Terruso) follows the main protagonist Quinn Ackerman (Sabrina Carpenter) who is eager to do whatever it takes to get into the college of her dreams, Duke University, even if it means having to start her own dance group to participate in a prestigious dance competition.

To sum up Work It’s plot in a more truthful sense, the movie is actually about a selfish high school student who gathers her best friend Jasmine Hale (Liza Koshy) and a group of individuals to help fulfil her dream of getting into Duke University. The movie was cool at the beginning, as it dazzled audiences with its popping-locking dance moves, but it ultimately falls flat towards the end with a really too good to be true ending.

I think it’s unconvincing that Quinn learned how to dance skillfully in a matter of weeks before the Work It dance competition. Is this Dancing with the Stars that I’m watching? It is obvious that Carpenter, who plays Quinn, is a skilful dancer or is at least an experienced one because she is clearly a natural performer on stage.

The performance I was most impressed with is Keiynan Lonsdale as Isaiah “Julliard”. His character is so over the top and unlike any of his previous roles in television and movies. It was certainly believably that Lonsdale trained hours to perfect his dance moves for his role. As for other supporting characters like Jasmine and Quinn’s love interest Jake Taylor (Jordan Fisher), Jasmine fulfils the role as the goofy sidekick, but she’s nothing more than that, whereas Fisher suits the role of the charismatic dancer Jake way better than his role as John Ambrose in To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You.

Work It isn’t a movie that is meant to be taken seriously. It serves as a treat for people who just want to be entertained and the movie definitely accomplishes that.

Rating: 3/5