Perez's dancing is tense with energy and passion, an apt bit foreshadowing of the film to come. A lot of her moves are kicks and punches that go along with the song. It seems almost violent, a message director Spike Lee enforces by adorning Perez in boxer's clothing and gloves. Her lips are pursed. Her eyes are narrow. This is not fun dancing. There is an anger and a hint of sexuality that lives in Perez's dancing that somehow strikes the viewer as real despite the obviously fake backdrops of Bed-Stuy apartments and subway tracks.
The backdrops, despite their falseness, also smack of reality. They're not picturesque views of a metropolitan New York City. Laundry flies across rooftops. Unassuming brownstones and storefronts sit idly in the background without competing for attention with Perez. Graffiti stains the walls underneath a faux subway track. The red, white, and blue used by Lee to paint these backdrops ring of americana; if the scenes are American, it tells the viewer that the coming film is a statement about a certain part of American culture. The warm, sepia tones, as well as Perez's dancing, lets the view know that the next two hours are going to be hot an intense, thick with action and social commentary.
No comments:
Post a Comment