Free Style (film)

Free Style is a 2008 coming-of-age film about an 18-year-old young man (Corbin Bleu), who is devoted to his family, and finds love and himself in his quest to win the Amateur National Motocross Championship. Free Style is directed by William Dear (Angels in the Outfield, Harry and the Hendersons).

Free Style
Promotional poster
Directed byWilliam Dear
Produced byRob Cowan
Michael Emanuel
David Reivers
Don Pemrick
Dean Fronk
Corbin Bleu
Written byJosh Leibner
Jeffrey Nicholson
StarringCorbin Bleu
Sandra Echeverría
Matt Bellefleur
Jesse Moss
Penelope Ann Miller
Madison Pettis
Music byStephen Endelman
Edited byEdgar Burcksen
Production
company
Rigel Entertainment
Canal Street Films
Up North Entertainment
Distributed bySamuel Goldwyn Films
Release date
  • December 24, 2008 (2008-12-24) (Mexico)
  • October 9, 2009 (2009-10-09) (Limited: United States)
Running time
94 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$10 million[1]
Box office$721,108[1]

Plot

Cale Bryant is an eighteen-year-old boy. He decides to delve deeper into his passion, debuting in the world of Motocross.

Now that he is an adult, he decides to choose his own future, for once, independently, to help him become a champion with the support of parents and his girlfriend.

After hard training, Cale, decided to enroll in the National Championship for amateur motocross, convinced that he can win.

Cast

Critical reception

Free Style garnered negative reviews from critics. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 33%, based on 18 reviews, with an average rating of 4/10.[2]

Mike Hale of The New York Times noted that the film initially sets itself up as being "jumpy, noisy, cheerful, a sort of "High School X-Games Musical." But said that despite the "shamelessly pandering finish", it comes across as a "surprisingly old-fashioned tale of small-town striving" with some "perfunctorily filmed" racing scenes.[3] S. Jhoanna Robledo of Common Sense Media said that despite Bleu's efforts with the movie's "heavier themes" and having "poignant" scenes with Pettis, she felt the plot was "better suited for an after-school special than a big-screen treatment."[4] Elizabeth Weitzman of the New York Daily News wrote that: "Though the film deserves credit for its depiction of economic hardship, almost everything else is handled clumsily. And why would a movie about motocross spend so little time on the track? Bleu remains one to watch, but only real fans will want to watch this."[5]

Roger Ebert wrote that: "There are some charming actors in this movie, all dressed up but with no place to go. "Free Style" is remorselessly formulaic, with every character and plot point playing its assigned role."[6] Kyle Smith of the New York Post criticized the film for its "[I]nsistent, numbing niceness combine[s] with sloppily edited motocross footage" and added that: "Bleu's cute-but-bland act flatlines in every scene of a movie with a script that is a perfect match for his abilities."[7] Scott Tobias of The A.V. Club gave the movie a "D" grade, criticizing Dear's filmmaking style, saying "his signature bland semi-competence is all over Free Style, which desperately needs some flash of style and forward momentum."[8] Entertainment Weekly writer Adam Markovitz gave the film a "D+" grade, criticizing Bleu's performance for being "bland and painfully earnest" and felt the formulaic plot "unfolds just the way you think it will…until the climax turns out to be even cheesier than you feared."[9]

References
  1. "Free Style Box Office Data". The Numbers. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
  2. "Free Style (2009)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on October 22, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  3. Hale, Mike (October 8, 2009). "Small-Town Striving". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  4. Robledo, S. Jhoanna. "Free Style Movie Review". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on October 8, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  5. Weitzman, Elizabeth; Neumaier, Joe (October 9, 2009). "Short film reviews: 'The Damned United,' 'St. Trinian's,' 'Good Hair,' 'Free Style' and more". New York Daily News. Mortimer Zuckerman. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  6. Ebert, Roger (October 7, 2009). "Charismatic stars work okay in the old come-from-behind formula". Chicago Sun-Times. Sun-Times Media Group. Archived from the original on September 25, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020 – via RogerEbert.com.
  7. Smith, Kyle (October 9, 2009). "Free Style". New York Post. News Corp. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  8. Tobias, Scott (October 8, 2009). "Free Style". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
  9. Markovitz, Adam (October 7, 2009). "Free Style". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
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