Dancing with the Stars recap: Movie Night
Dancing with the Stars recap: Movie Night
It’s Movie Night on Dancing with the Stars and that means the pros will count on their “stars” to go all in by really taking on the mindset of his or her character. It also means that our JV dancers will have to provide theatrical antics during almost every single dance, unless you can carry the show on your own.
Spoiler: Half can carry their choreography by themselves. The other half can not.
This particular night is also perfect timing for the Disney Channel to trot out its latest attempt to try and capture the High School Musical craze from 2006. It also has an entire generation of viewers scratching their heads asking, “Why are these kids dresses in such terrible clothes? And why are they excited about being rotten to the core?”
Dancing with the Stars did NOT do a good job explaining why oddly dressed kids have bombarded the ballroom. Descendants 2 (that’s right…it’s a sequel) is a Disney Channel TV movie depicting the lives of the children of Disney villains. That’s why they don’t have a problem poisoning apples. Don’t ask me why they mic’d the main characters up, only to make them lip sync the song.
Fun Fact: Their choreographer is Kenny Ortega. You may have heard of a few of his projects:
– “Xanadu” video — YES!
– “Let’s Get Physical” video — Let me hear your body rock!
– “Material Girl” video — That iconic pink dress with the dudes in tuxes…
– St. Elmo’s Fire — Awesome.
– Pretty In Pink — Ducky’s dance in the record store.
– Ferris Bueller’s Day Off — THE PARADE!
– Dirty Dancing — Classic.
– Shag — If you haven’t seen it, watch it.
– “If I Could Turn Back Time” video — Long live Cher.
– Newsies — SEIZE THE DAY!
– Hocus Pocus — Love.
– XIX Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony — God Bless America
– High School Musical 1, 2 and 3 — We’re all in this together, people.
– This is It — RIP Michael Jackson
– Descendants — I actually stumbled upon this over the weekend, ironically, and watched a few minutes of it. It’s not bad!
Mandy Moore opens the show with a Rockette-inspired number that includes dapper men, lovely women, and lots of ballroom dresses with feathers. In a rare decision, they also ask her to fill in for Julianne as a judge.
Can you imagine? A woman who has years and years and years of dance experience, including the Academy Award winning LaLa Land as a guest judge?
The producers are going to need someone who knows her stuff, because it is double elimination night. Plus, there’s a dance off. There’s so much to cover! Let’s get to it!
Bonner and Shara
Western Genre
Paso Doble
“Hoedown” by Aaron Copland
Bless it. Bless him. Bless her. Bless the set. Bless it all. Just…bless.
Poor Bonner is not a dancer in any sense of the world. You’d think this genre would have been right up his alley, but no. Once again, Sharna decides to ask every single JV dancer to channel their inner saloon girl and gruff cowboy in order to pull focus away from her actual cowboy who attacked each step with the stiffness of a decrepit grandpa. Yes, the paso is sharp, but it’s also equally fluid. Sharna pulls herself out of the limelight and lets Bonner dance with the superfluous JV dancers. It was a mistake. She should have danced with him more, with the hope that our eyes were drawn to her saloon girl outfit instead of Bonner’s robotic cowboy walk. He did have one redeeming moment: He jumped from the ground onto the table in one fail swoop. It was very Crossfit. Perhaps Sharna should choreograph a parkour routine for him? The judges were nice, giving him vague compliments like, “You’re so much farther along than before” and “You should be proud of where you are.” Huh? That means nothing.
Bruno’s Best Line: “You forgot to oil the joints.”
SCORE: 29
Nancy and Artem
Romance Genre
Tango
“Pretty Woman” by Roy Orbison
Artem made Nancy his very own Vivian, put her in a red dress, and pretended to woo her away from all the bell boys in a hotel lobby so he could take her to the opera. We should all be thankful he didn’t make her wear tall boots held together by a safety pin, while she danced around on the Boulevard, turning tricks, like the original pretty woman.
Once all of the musical theater was over and done with, they locked in hold and tango’d around the dance floor. It was a difficult routine and Nancy did a great job with her facial expressions. They was a definite story and you could tell they were both having fun. PS: Artem looked like 007 in his suit, which is unfortunate for Nick since I believe he was actually supposed to be 007 in his routine.
Bruno’s Best Line: “ It was a five star deluxe version of the tango. VIP all the way.”
SCORE: 36
Simone and Sasha
Silent Movie Genre
Charleston
“Charleston” by Bob Wilson
Dancing the Charleston is always difficult for everyone who tries. Unless you name is Simone Biles. This girl acted like she had been doing the Charleston her entire life. It was spunky, fun, full of personality and amazing tricks. I loved her fringe outfit and her super fun curly hair with the feather headband! It was a perfect routine for Sasha too. It was extremely difficult, but they executed it without flaw. They packed so much in a short amount of time. It might have been my favorite from the night! (Until Normani’s dance, of course.) I assume they didn’t get a perfect score, thanks to Mandy’s critique that it looks like Simone is on autopilot. It’s that smile of hers. So pretty, yet the exact same. Hey, at least she’s not having to hooch it up on the dance floor this week!
Bruno’s Best Line: “It had the fizz and sparkle of the 1920s!”
SCORE: 37
Nick and Peta
Action Movie Genre
Argentine Tango
“Dangerous” by David Guetta
The best part of Nick’s segment was his admission that he has a crush on Maks. It all went downhill after that. This should have been Nick’s genre because he’s good at being stoic and precise. But the steps were all over the place. And was it just me, or did Peta look bored? There was a weird bit about her stealing a jump drive and putting it in her ample bosom, yet Nick stole it from her pocket later and private eye’d out of there on a helicopter. But she still had it? I was confused. I also muttered, “Nononononono” the entire time, which is never a good sign. Like Bonner, the judges praised him for growing from week one, but his fate was pretty clear.
Bruno’s Best Line: “I think you’ve earned the license to thrill. You were focused and mature — but the steps were bad.”
SCORE: 34
Rashad and Emma
Horror Film Genre
Paso Doble
“O Furtuna” by Carl Orff
Rashad comes up with this super scary story about a serial killer. Emma does a remake of his story in the opening package with a bunch of JV dancers. I wonder how long it took them to film that when they could have been practicing? I also wondered where I could get a pair of Emma’s awesome boots.
The stage was very elaborate. Rashad comes out of a coffin and adopts this horrific wide-eyed stare that he totally janked from Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” Good for him, because it worked. The paso was pretty good. It was full of aggression, which you would expect from the horror genre. I was more interested in him dragging her by the hair and Emma stabbing Rashad at the Bruno’s Best Line: “That was a monster smash.”
SCORE: 37
Lindsay and David
Sci Fi Genre
Salsa
“Universal Mind Control” by Common
Here’s the deal: the dance was forgettable. It was an 80s robot theme with a jillion JV dancers helping the plot stumble along. Yes, Lindsay’s legs are amazing, but it was not my favorite. Sadly what EVERYONE is going to remember from this dance is the rehearsal footage. David catches Lindsay in an upside down move, a cartwheel if you please, and at the arch of said cartwheel, her booty is directly even with his mic. This is when the worst happens. She toots. Right into the mic. Both fall to the ground in a fit of giggles that last forever. It’s personal bonding at its finest. I was mortified. I still am mortified.
Bruno’s Best Line: “Dancing with the Star Lord — Guardians of the Salsa!!
SCORE: 32
Normani and Val
Argentine Tango
Foreign Film Genre
“Quizás, Quizás, Quizás” by Andrea Bocelli
A: Normani has short hair. It’s adorable and I hope it’s not a wig. B: Her back hurts, but instead of complaining, she tells herself, “I’m 20-years-old. Suck it up.” Gosh, I love this girl. I want her to win. Or Rashad.
Her outfit was black and red lace. Val looked, as Val always does, sultry and strong. He whips her around. She flings her legs here and there. There is a yearning and flirting that is appropriate for the genre. The song choice is DELIGHTFUL. It is something with which we are familiar, but in a different language. I agree with Carrie Ann. This team is strong and elegant at the same time. It’s exactly what you need in the ballroom.
Bruno’s Best Line: “You have won the Academy Award for Best Dance of the night.”
SCORE: 40
With a perfect score, Val and Normani win immunity for the night. The remaining six teams have to compete in a dance-off that sounds way more exciting than it actually is in real life.
Simone, as the next highest scorer, chooses Nancy as her competition. Nancy chooses the Cha-Cha as their dance. For the next ninety seconds, Simone and Sasha whip around their half of the dance floor, watching as the live score card moves back and forth behind them. Nancy and Artem do their best to make it an even fight, but Nancy’s “deer-in-the-headlights” look hinders them from pulling away with a win. The audience, and the judges, pick Simone as the winner.
Next up is Rashad. He doesn’t want to pick anyone, but decides to keep it in the sports family. He picks David and proceeds to wipe the floor with him during the jive. Rashad looks adorable in pink. And I can’t for the life of me understand how Lindsay can wear a barely there outfit, yet I never think she looks slutty in it. Odd. Cubs Nation comes through for David with a close vote, but in the end, the audience and the judges choose Rashad.
Finally Bonner and Nick compete against each other with a rumba. Bless it all to pieces. I didn’t know where to look. Both Peta and Sharna do a great job of gyrating and writing around their respective partners, but are unable to deter the viewer away from the blank looks and slack jaws open mouths. Somehow, Bonner and Sharna win. I believe Sharna has a bigger audience than we may assume she does.
Tom and Erin rush to announce who is safe. They call Simone and Rashad pretty quickly. Then they shock everyone by saying Bonner will be here another week. No one is more surprised than Sharna. Finally, David is deemed safe and everyone crowds Nancy and Nick to say their good-byes. Peta looked relieved. So does Nick’s finance Vanessa. Something tells me it’s not all rose petals and hot tubs over at their place.
What did you think? Who is going to win this thing? Will Bonner beat out David? Or does David have enough Cubs fans supporting him to stay another week? Also, is Lindsay crazy for allowing Dancing with the Stars to air her toot-to-the-face on national television? Or did she have a say? Sound off in the comments section!
I’ve been waiting all morning for this! First of all–GIRL! You mentioned Shag! I loved that movie and saw it in the theater when it came out. Wonderful music and dancing. Unlike some of the performances last night. I completely agree with you about Bonner. As these dances become more physically demanding, you can see just how his injuries have limited his movement.
As for Nick–I actually thought he did a pretty good job. But after he finished, I said to Kevin(my dog), “I think that concludes the contractual agreement between Vanessa and him.” So I’m sure we will be seeing the People announcement shortly that they will remain great friends but ask people to respect their privacy during this difficult time.
The rehearsal footage of David and Lindsay was adorable. I was mortified at first, but then I started laughing with them. I’m sure she was embarrassed and I’m sure HE was mortified, but the moment was absolutely priceless and they handled it beautifully. I’m sorry, but I’m still laughing at it and the balls it took for her to okay the use of the footage. It just proves what a great guy he really is.
Normani rocked it. Loved the dance and loved her look. I’m kind of over Simone at this point.
I wasn’t disappointed with the eliminations, but I really hope Bonner is next. I do not enjoy watching him at all.
Ha! Love that you’re watching with your dog Kevin. I am usually watching with my cat, Betsy. She loves DWTS (especially because it means lots of couch time to cuddle since it’s a long show).
Shag is MY JAM! I rarely find anyone who has even heard of it! Yay Kelli!
I’m 36 and it was my favorite movie as a youngster! Not many my age have even heard of it.
WHO IS VOTING FOR BONNER???? I really don’t get it. At all. Sharna is popular, but I find it hard to believe she has enough of a fan base of her own to save him and his total lack of personality every week. It baffles me!!
The pbr has a huge following and all those fans love bonner”s story. But I think they need to let him leave. Guy looks so uncomfortable every week
I’m surprised that Bonner is still here, but I gotta admit I am still enjoying watching his dances for some reason. I think he and Sharna make a great dance pair. (Not that I ever vote, but still . . .)
Good question, Alison. My guess would be cowboy/bull riding people and Sharna’s fans. She is likable. And I bet some people are ready for her to win!
I was sad to see Nancy go before Bonner and David. Artem has been giving her classic routines full of content and shes been doing really well.
I’m team Rashad for the win!
I agree, Laura. Artem has really impressed me this season. Hopefully he will get more talented “stars” in future seasons.
I am pretty sure that Simone is slated to win. They are promoting their next DWTS tour and if Simone is on the tour, she MUST win. In the same way that I knew that Laurie Hernandez was going to win after they announced that she was on the tour. Their precious tour is improved if the cast includes a winner, ya know. More and more, I think the outcomes are decided by producers. They might be influenced by who the votes indicate are the popular contestants, but producers are also influenced by more factors than just popularity.
If that is the case, you’d think they would have wanted to keep Heather around a little longer.
Simone does have the gymnast vote!
Don’t get me wrong; I love David (and Lindsay.) He’s funny, adorable and having a great time. He has, however, worn out his welcome. Unfortunately, he may outlast some who are left simply because of his fan base. Rashad mopped the floor with him last night in their head-to-head Jive yet Rashad only won the popular vote with 54%. It will be very interesting to see how things play out next Monday.
I had some trouble with Mandy Moore last night. She showed some pretty obvious favoritism and her scoring was definite out of whack at times.
I am thrilled with both the amount and level of content that Val put into their Argentine Tango. If they hadn’t revealed it in their pre-dance footage, you never would’ve known that Normani was and is hurt. She was above and beyond phenomenal to me. Period.
You said it, Shannon M. Normani is one to beat. With that said, I think Rashad and Simone have every chance to beat her!
Simone and Normani – O.M.G!!! All my money is in that Normani will win. Simone needs to quit with the pagent girl smile. That smile was perfect for her style of dance this week so that did work in her favor.
Does Sharna’s hair annoy anyone as much as it does me? I used to loathe Anna Trebunskaya (googled it then copy/pasted) hair…it’s like Red Dye 045 or something.
It’s been a rarity to find a classic Argentine tango. The pros always try to put it to the wrong music and the costumes are far from what they should be. Val NAILED it.
I just had to say that in Simone’s defense, she’s never had the option before now to have anything but a stoic look on her face while performing. She’s been trained not to show any facial expressions at all, including pain and I truly think that that painted on smile is all she knows. Just a thought from a former gymnast (who never trained even close to her level. LOL!)
Yes on Sharna’s hair!! I like it, but this week it was even more red than usual!! It must be newly dyed?? I especially noticed it in the opening Hollywood number: The whole ballroom was gold, including the girls dresses, almost all of the girls were blond, and then there was Sharna’s hair sticking out like a sore thumb.
Val DID nail it. I agree, Skylar.
Best quote from the show,…
Lindsay: “David dropped me on my butt and my butt was mad.”
Ha! Well put.
Ha! I missed that!
I HATE Sharna’s hair – enough with the clown color.
I also find myself turning into a Len and wish the pros would quit choreographing all that “mucking about” at the beginning of each number. Too many props. Too many distracting back-up dancers. Sometimes it seems that a good 1/4 to a 1/3 of the number is gone before the dancers actually get into the real dance. I think that’s why I loved Val’s Argentine tango this week. It was a “proper” ballroom dance!
Preach it, Ann. I’ve been saying that for years. If you notice, Julianne gets a little heated about that too. But her attitude is because “they didn’t have all this production when I was dancing…” She may be a little jealous.
I was very surprised to see Nancy go; she was graceful and a beautiful dancer in a very classic way. Although I think Nick did better then Bonner or David, I’m sure David’s fan base is huge and not sure why Bonner didn’t get the boot. He seems like he is going thru the motions with very little dancing and David even said he was ready to go! Val and Normani were untouchable! She should win or I would like to see Rashad.
Love Normani. But I would love to see Emma win a trophy. Val won last year. He does deserve it, but so does Rashad….
I would love to see Emma win, too, and Rashad may be just the ticket! Normani is excellent, but I think Rashad is great too, and he started out with no formal training or experience, so he has come further in developing his dancing skiils. I’m not that familiar with Fifth Harmony, but I have to assume that Normani dances as a part of her concerts. So I think she has plenty of dance experience. Why is it OK for her to be great and everyone votes for her, but they criticized Heather for her previous dance experience? OK, Normani’s main talent is singing (I’m assuming) but she also dances. Heather dances and acts. I just think people were too judgmental about Heather, and are too soft on Normani–double standard!
So GO RASHAD and Emma!
My favorite DWTS Argentine Tango to date had been Gilles Marini and Cheryl Burke in 2009….until now. Normani’s was divine! Thank you for posting the video!! However, and none of the judges pointed this out…her last move and mouthing of the words to the song were noticably off beat in the “No” of “No, no puede” I’m surprised no one marked her down a notch for that. It kind of bugged me, especially since she’s a singer. I suppose it could have been an issue with the live band playing it differently than the recording to which they practiced. If that’s the case, it’s too bad!
“And I can’t for the life of me understand how Lindsay can wear a barely there outfit, yet I never think she looks slutty in it.”
I know! I agree! How is that possible?!
I would have rather seen David go home than either Nick or Nancy…he seems kind of over it. And I have been a Cubs fan my whole life.
I thought Simone’s Charleston was super cute. In my opinion, best Charleston I’ve seen on the show. And, yes, it seemed like her beautiful yet expressionless smile worked better for this dance, or maybe there was actually just a little bit of true expression. She would win this if she could take her mask off. Otherwise I think it will go to Normani if that girl’s back holds up.
I disagreed that Vanessa looked relieved that Nick was finished and her contractually obligated time was up. I thought she looked disappointed which confused me because I thought he made it through (I missed that he was eliminated for some reason). It surprised me but I rationalized that she must be disappointed that he has to keep practicing and they can’t get on with their lives. But then I found out later that he was eliminated. Her look at that point made sense, disappointed that he lost. Anyway long story short to say I didn’t see what you saw on her face.
I hope they make it. I’m skeptical too, but hey, look at Jordan and Jojo so far.
By the way, both Sean and Chris made it 8 weeks vs Nick’s 7. I’m pretty sure Nick thought he was going to be hands down better than both of these guys combined. I actually went back and watched the same style dances that Nick did compared to Sean and Chris. Having done that, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed both of the other 2 bachelors. They were better than I remember them being, but maybe that’s just because I’m directly comparing them to Nick. I thought Nick was going to do better than he did. I wish he could have relaxed and had more fun with it.
Another note, remember on the bachelor he had a lot of “breaking the third wall” looks to camera? He did that on DWTS a lot too (if there were a third wall in DWTS). Weird.
Well said! And researched! I’m impressed.
It’s breaking the fourth wall. Not the third. LOL
Lol’. I missed that…going from memory from Lincee’s posts! Thank you for the correction! (What does it mean anyway??! )
I think Nick looks directly at the camera because it is his first love (not Andi, not Kaitlyn, and not Vanessa). I think his first love is seeking FAME so he wants to know where the camera is so he can be sure it is on him. I am happy he is gone from DWTS, and I hope we don’t see him pop up on yet another reality show trying to chase fame. I, for one, will NOT be watching if he does. (Couldn’t help but watch DWTS because I LOVE DANCING!!)
I think Lindsay’s figure type has a lot to do with her not looking sleazy. I’ve noticed that she is not as curvy as the others in that she doesn’t have an hourglass shape. Pretty straight up and down. A lot of her costumes are cut out at the sides to give the illusion of a defined waist. Makes her seem more girlish perhaps? In any case, she looks amazing.
Normani and Val’s tango was absolutely beautiful.
Rooting for Rashad. Sorry to see Nancy go. Can’t believe Bonner and The Cub are still hanging on.
Ok, I clearly do not see what the judges see in these dance off things. They always pick the couple that I think wasn’t as good, and then even the audience agrees? Strange.
I was about to type out a reply to an earlier poster about Lyndsey’s figure, then read yours and completely agree with you! Lyndsey looks strong and graceful but not at all sexy to me because of her lack of curves. I’m always telling my 18 year old daughter (who has a Beyonce body) that she can’t quite get away with (in the name of modesty) wearing what the beanpole girls wear–especially to church!
Good points both of you about Lindsay! She is so beautiful and looks very feminine, but that must be it, no curves. I was thinking maybe it was more in her girlish innocent expressions but I think you are both right. I will analyze next week!
That’s funny about your daughter, Crystal, Good points!
3resentful