Interview. Benson Lee.

"Planet B-Boy considers the international resurgence of breakdancing and closely follows five of the most prominent teams from Korea, Japan, France, and the US as they prepare for the annual Battle of the Year (aka the 'World Cup' of b-boying) at its home base in Braunschweig, Germany, which is attended by 10,000 spectators." Cathleen Rountree talks with director Benson Lee.

"Despite Lee's refusal to present the routines in their entirety, the climactic competition's dancing is nonetheless electrifyingly acrobatic and inventive," writes Nick Schager in Slant.

Updated through 3/24.

"The flashes of human interest are welcome, but what most sticks is Planet B-Boy's aesthetic, which feels jocked from the school of Michael Moore and runs counter to one b-boy's gripe about breakdancing being co-opted by mainstream America back in the day," writes Ed Gonzalez in the Voice.

IndieWIRE, too, talks with Lee.

Updates, 3/24: "Hip hop music may be dead at the hands of corporate thug rap, but the culture lives on, worldwide, says Planet B-Boy," writes Steven Boone at the House Next Door. "This is good TV, but it benefits from a big screen presentation, too, because, well, the bigger the windmill or head spin, the better."

"Nagging flaws keep this documentary from realizing its potential," writes Matt Zoller Seitz in the New York Times. "Still, from moment to moment, Planet B-Boy is fun, sometimes thrilling and packed with illuminating details and striking personalities - like the Korean dancer, nicknamed Laser, who we're told 'has spent three or five years solely spinning on his head.'"

"Mr Lee browses an international grab bag of B-boy groups en route to Battle of the Year 2005, loosely following the contest format popularized by the 2002 film Spellbound and reality shows," writes Nicolas Rapold in the New York Sun. "Helicoptering limbs and floor-flouting freezes are on invigorating display, but as for history or background, the film hustles past with the keep-it-moving bonhomie that is customary for filmmakers using this template."

Posted by dwhudson at March 20, 2008 4:06 PM