From the trailers and commercials alone, you learn everything you need to know about Step Up 2 the Streets. It's Bring it On meets Save the Last Dance. As a matter of fact, since the commercial pretty much shows every major plot point in the movie, I'm tempted to pass on spending my time and money of sitting through this case of going-through-the-motions film-making. But that would be my cynical self making pre-judgments about the (probably hack) writing and (pedestrian) film-making.

Part of what set me on edge was the vibe I picked up in the ads for the movie. It's largely a problem of context. I see it within the cultural-historical context of America, within the context of the history of slavery and race relations in this country. I'm black and I bring that worldview, that way of interpreting events around me, along for the ride whenever I see movies. Because television and movies are such powerful media, I'm especially sensitive to how black people and black culture are depicted on screen.

So I feel my teeth slowly grind at the implication of white people appropriating a culture then proving their authenticity in that appropriation by going up against the authors of that culture. But maybe this movie won't be doing that.

As far as spiritual connections, there is a natural connectedness between worship and dance, worship and spirit. The Trinity is a divine dance since each of the persons of the Trinity is always in movement together. God created us to participate in this dance, to move in our lives in movement with His rhythm. "Sin" is moving out of that rhythm and trying to find our own rhythm and music such that our lives become all about our individual dance. We need to learn to hear His dance and learn to move with Him. In so doing, we honor each other, create space for Him, and follow His lead.

So we'll see which aspect of the movie I'll be able to concentrate on: its cultural implications or its spiritual.