I am not quite sure what film the other reviewers have seen but I am guessing they are all friends and family....
From the start to the finish, this lackluster film cannot help but shove cliché after cliché into the patronized audiences, inevitably by the end, sleepy faces.
The premise, whilst being nothing new, is definitely not terrible. It would be wrong to suggest a typical underdog story has no potential. Afterall, 2009s Slumdog Millionaire proved that underdog stories still have so much to offer an audience. However, like all good underdog stories, Slumdog had heart which Finding Their Feet does not.
Through out the film it feels like writer/director Matt Daniels dipped into a hat to pluck out the most dull subplots and generic character types. The protagonist who has to find himself....the mentor figure in the form of a melodramatic dance teacher...the family member who doesn't believe in his relative and has a constant "I am going to hurt you" look on his face. Let us not forget the generic villain. One may wonder how Matt Daniels manages to add a villain to such a heartwarming concept as trying to win a dance competition. Never fear though, the protagonist (who is aged around 14 Years old) is being chased by thugs that he owes money. Simple!
Throw in some flashbacks, and generic indie music montages, and you have the perfect GCSE students guide on how to make your first movie. Sure, Mum and Dad would be proud of such an accomplishment, but it is hard to see who else would warm to such a fake attempt at pulling the heart strings.
Still, this is film, so at least the cinematography and choreography is nice...right? Shockingly under-lit sets, and cinematography that makes Coronation Street look like Avatar, add to the over all feeling of unintentional grunge; and not the positive "I must rise up out of this grunge" kind either. An overly long running time and flat acting serve to hammer in the last nail.
All in all, Finding Their Feet feels like Billy Elliot had a horrific accident and collided with every dance movie to be released since 2000.
I suggest Matt Daniels writes from the heart next time...and not from what he THINKS will sell....
3/10