Breaking It Down:
Breakdancing in Cinema
believe it or not, most of these breakdancing-themed films are not comedies
Wild Style (1982): Follows a seminal New York graffiti artist and the burgeoning hip-hop culture (including break-dancing). FRESH CAMEO: Fab 5 Freddy
Flashdance (1983): A Pittsburgh welder and exotic dancer wants to get into ballet school. FRESH CAMEO: Crazy Legs
Breakin’ (1984): A struggling jazz dancer hooks up with two break-dancers and they become a street sensation. FRESH CAMEO: Jean-Claude Van Damme
Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984): The local rec center is threatened to be flattened, so the local break-dancers unite to stop it. FRESH CAMEO: Ice-T
Beat Street (1984): A hip-hop DJ from the Bronx dreams of playing the most swank Manhattan nightclub (The Roxy), and Rae Dawn Chong helps make it happen. FRESH CAMEO: Kool Moe Dee
The Freshest Kids: A History of the B-Boy (2002): A documentary chronicling everyone from Boogie Down Bronx to Fab 5 Freddy. FRESH CAMEO: Mos Def
You Got Served (2004): Two friends, who are part of an unstoppable dance crew, hope to open a record studio and must win the city’s dance competition to do so. FRESH CAMEO: Lil’ Kim
Step Up (2006): A troublemaker from the streets must do community service at an arts college. When a dancer catches him breakin’ on duty and they become partners. FRESH CAMEO: Heavy D
Kickin It Old Skool (2007): Jamie Kennedy is a break-dancer that hits his head during a competition in the 80s, goes into a coma, and wakes up now. FRESH CAMEO: David Hasselhoff & Emmanuel Lewis
Planet B-Boy (2007): This documentary tracks break-dancing as a global phenomena and focuses on the 2005 Battle of the Year. FRESH CAMEO: Ken Swift
Stomp the Yard (2007): A student at a traditionally all black school pledges at a fraternity and has a dance off with a rival fraternity. FRESH CAMEO: Ne-Yo & Chris Brown
Step Up 2: The Streets (2008): A girl is kicked out of her crew known for an illegal street battle, and then tries out for an elite arts school. FRESH CAMEO: Hi-Hat