Moose is back! The long-limbed, curly haired sidekick (Adam Sevani) from Step Ups 2-4 makes a welcome return in Step Up All In, the franchise's fifth instalment. Now living in LA with Camille, he's got a grown-up job as an engineer, and bears more than a passing resemblance to Jimmy Fallon.
Oh, yes, and there's a whole storyline about Step Up 4's Sean (a handsome but dull Ryan Guzman) splitting from his dance crew, The Mob, then seeing a call-out for contestants for a TV dance talent show called The Vortex. The prize is a three-year gig in Las Vegas. He needs a new crew, stat. Moose hooks him up with a slew of familiar faces, including Andie (Briana Evigan) and half of the MSA crew from Step Up 2.
The usual boy-meets-girl, pair-falls-in-love, boy-annoys-girl storyline plays out, but we're here for the dance, and on that they deliver. Directed by Trish Sie (who directed OK Go's treadmill video), this is the purest film since the original, with minimal special effects meaning the stunning dances speak for themselves.
There are lots of eye-roll-worthy lines, predictable results and some costumes that might be Effie Trinket hand-me-downs, but really, the film is all about answering Moose's query: "Does everything have to end in a big, giant dance battle?" Yes, yes it does.