Standing Ovation (film)

Summary

Standing Ovation is a 2010 American musical film written and directed by Stewart Raffill. Produced by Kenilworth Film Productions, Standing Ovation had a limited theatrical release on July 16, 2010.

Standing Ovation
Theatrical release poster
Directed byStewart Raffill
Written byStewart Raffill
Produced by
  • Diane Kirman
  • James Brolin
  • Suzanne Nunez
  • William Lewis
  • Mario Macaluso
  • Gary Tex Brockette
  • Al Sapienza
  • Art Smith Jr.
  • Jennifer Tini
  • Jim Walsh
Starring
  • Kayla Jackson
  • Alanna Palombo
  • Alexis Biesiada
  • Najee Wilson
  • Pilar Martin
  • Kayla Raparelli
  • Austin Powell
  • Erika Corvette
  • Sal Dupree
  • Joei DeCarlo
  • Michael Pericoloso
  • Dexter Darden
  • Susan Neustadter
CinematographyJon Darbonne
Edited byLaurie McDowell
Music byBenedikt Brydern
Production
company
Kenilworth Film Productions
Distributed byRocky Mountain Pictures
Release date
  • July 16, 2010 (2010-07-16)
Running time
106 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$5.6 million[citation needed]
Box office$550,418[1]

During the promotion of Standing Ovation, the cast performed at venues across the US while traveling in a tour bus.[2] Performances included a show before a crowd of 60,000 people at the Dallas Freedom Concert[3] and an appearance on the main stage at Knott’s Berry Farm in California.[4]

Standing Ovation premiered at Universal CityWalk which was attended by Barbra Streisand as well as James and Josh Brolin. After the film's opening, the cast of Standing Ovation performed a concert raising $60,000 for the children of the Ranfurly Home Orphanage in The Bahamas.[5][6] The film was panned by critics.

Plot edit

Standing Ovation tells the story of "The 5 Ovations": five middle school friends who form a singing group to compete in a national music video contest. And much like Dorothy and her music-laden trip down the yellow brick road, the 5 Ovations encounter their own share of ups and downs, and showing up in many of the roadblocks are arch rivals The Wiggies. The group is composed of five talented sisters who will do anything to sabotage the Ovations' chances of competing for the grand prize of one million dollars. Armed with nothing but talent, passion and street smarts the 5 Ovations find something more valuable at the end of their quest: that perseverance, family, and friendship—plus a healthy dose of laughter—are instrumental in fulfilling your dreams.

Cast edit

  • Kayla Jackson as Brittany O'Brien
  • Alanna Palombo as Alanna Wannabe
  • Pilar Martin as Blaze
  • Kayla Raparelli as Cameron
  • Najee Wilson as Maya
  • Alexis Biesiada as Tatiana
  • Joei DeCarlo as Joei Battaluci
  • Rocco Fiorentino
  • Bobby Harper as Mr. Wannabe
  • Austin Powell as Mark O'Brien
  • P. Brendan Mulvey as Gramps
  • William McKenna as Eric Bateman
  • Brooke Feldman as Duet Girl
  • Joann Reagan as Nursing Home Dance Captain
  • Mario Macaluso as Kenny Rich
  • Dexter Darden as MC John/"Diverse" Male Singing Group member
  • Sal Dupree as Mr. Wiggs
  • Jeana Zettler as Zoey Wiggs
  • London Clark as Ziggy Wiggs
  • Erika Corvette as Angel Wiggs
  • Devon Jordan as Twiggy Wiggs
  • Susie Newstadter as Ms. Wiggs
  • Ashley Cutrona as Zita Wiggs
  • Paula Tramutolo as Jasmine
  • Mikey P. as Charity Dance Group member/'Dancing Girl' Rapper
  • Brian Jenkins as Charity Dance Group member
  • Michael Henriquez as Charity Dance Group member
  • Kristen Ferry as Charity Dance Group member
  • Shawn Devries as charity dance group member
  • Lexi Lukaszewski as background dancer with stunning personality

Soundtrack edit

The Standing Ovation soundtrack was released by Kenliworth Films on May 25, 2010 on AmazonMP3.[7] On August 3, 2010, the album was released on iTunes[8][9] and split into two CDs, one which features The Wiggies, and the other, featuring The 5 Ovations.

The film features a cover of River Deep - Mountain High originally by Tina Turner and Phil Spector[10] as well as an original song titled Blush by Billboard hit songwriter and record producer Roy "Royalty" Hamilton III.

Award winning Composer/Producer, Edward B. Kessel, produced and wrote several of the songs on the Standing Ovation Soundtrack including Dancing Girls.

Track List[7]
  1. All I Wanna Do Is Sing - The 5 Ovations
  2. Scream - The 5 Ovations
  3. Blush - The Wiggies (produced by Roy "Royalty" Hamilton III)
  4. Thing 4 U - Diverse
  5. That Boy - The Wiggies
  6. Superstar - The Wiggies
  7. Crazy Feet - The 5 Ovations
  8. Soup to Nuts - Mr. Wiggs and The Wiggies
  9. The Runway (feat. Daade) - Dacav5 (produced by N Pa)
  10. The Music Is Dropping You (feat. Daade) - Dacav5 (produced by Daade)
  11. Dancing Girl - The Wiggies
  12. Shooting Star - The 5 Ovations
  13. Turn It Up - Mr. Wiggs
  14. Our Songs Begins Again - Jacklyne Tasca
  15. Standing Ovation - Austin Powell and Devon Jordan
  16. All I Wanna Do Is Sing (Single Mix) - Alexis Biesiada

Reception edit

Critical response edit

The film was panned by mainstream critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has 6% rating based on reviews from 17 critics.[11] On Metacritic it has a score of 22 based on 6 reviews, indicating "Generally unfavorable reviews".[12] Joe Leydon of Variety magazine called it “at once annoyingly hyper and underwhelmingly dull.”[13] Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle said "Standing Ovation is an innovative film in the sense that every minute or so it comes up with a different way of being annoying."[14] Gary Thompson of Philadelphia Daily News said "Standing Ovation will have its work cut out for it at the viciously competitive box office, but the film may serve as a springboard for the eager and able talent on display.”[15] The Last Airbender and Standing Ovation appear on the Worst of 2010 movie list by Ain’t It Cool News.[16] Chris Hewitt of the St. Paul Pioneer Press said that he “had never heard of the people in Standing Ovation and I hope to never hear of any of them again.”[17] On August 20, 2015, CraveOnline declared the film the 37th Worst Movie of the Decade (So Far).[18]

Standing Ovation received mixed reviews from family-centric critics. The Dove Foundation reviewed the film and gave it their Dove Seal of Approval for the family audience. Dove said “ This is a comical musical about a group of young singers and dancers as they try to make their dreams come true. It’s an upbeat film geared towards the tween set.”[19] Roger Moore in Paradise Post said “Director Stewart Raffill (The New Swiss Family Robinson) is an old pro who at least makes the laughs work.”[20] Scholastic News Magazine Kids Press Corps said “Standing Ovation is a rocking and colorful movie about musical competitions, friendship, loyalty, and dreams—BIG DREAMS!“[21]

Some critics praised the cast for their performances. Carrie Rickey of The Philadelphia Inquirer said "the cast is full of fresh-faced unknowns ready for their close-ups. Most likely to succeed is Kayla Jackson, an almond-eyed dreamer".[22] William Bibbiani of Geekscape says "Standing Ovation is a film that received a small theatrical run in the middle of the summer. You were probably too busy watching Inception to notice. The film was written and directed by Stewart Raffill, who also helmed the wonderful 1980s sci-fi action romp The Ice Pirates, and features a cast of dozens of youngsters competing in a music video contest..." "...in theaters around the country audiences are slowly beginning to discover Standing Ovation, one of the must-see movies of the year.”[23] Jack Fitcher of the Cape May County Herald said “The movie is rich in dance numbers set to music that will be loved by teens and pre-teens which is the target audience. Even though this reporter is about 30 years older than the targeted demographic, I got caught up in the plot and enjoyed seeing so much local talent on the screen.”[24]

Box office edit

The film was a box office bomb. The film had a limited release and earned a gross of $531,806 in the United States.[1]

Home media edit

The film was released on DVD format as of November 29, 2010. On November 15, 2011, a companion DVD Standing Ovation Dance Party: Keep Fit! was released.[citation needed]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Standing Ovation (2010)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  2. ^ "Standing Ovation Tour Bus Launches from Philadelphia!". standingovationmovie.com. 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2014-11-27.
  3. ^ "Standing Ovation @ the Dallas Celebrates Freedom Concert". standingovationmovie.com. 2010-07-02. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2014-11-27.
  4. ^ "STANDING OVATION @ KNOTT'S BERRY FARM IN BUENA PARK, CA". standingovationmovie.com. 2010-07-05. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2014-11-27.
  5. ^ "Standing Ovation Dance Party BAHAMAS featuring Dexter Darden in Turn It Up". standingovationmovie.com. 2011-01-07. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2014-11-27.
  6. ^ "PSA: Stand Up, Reach Out, Take Action". standingovationmovie.com. Retrieved 2014-11-27.
  7. ^ a b "Standing Ovation (Music From The Motion Picture): Various Artists: MP3 Downloads". Amazon. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  8. ^ "iTunes - Music - Standing Ovation (Music From The Motion Picture) by Various Artists". Itunes.apple.com. 2010-08-03. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  9. ^ "iTunes - Music - Standing Ovation (More Music From The Motion Picture) by Various Artists". Itunes.apple.com. 2010-08-03. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  10. ^ River Deep – Mountain High
  11. ^ "Standing Ovation (2010)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  12. ^ "Standing Ovation". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  13. ^ Leydon, Joe (2010-07-18). "Variety Reviews - Standing Ovation - Film Reviews - New U.S. Release - Review by Joe Leydon". Variety.com. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  14. ^ Mick LaSalle, Chronicle Movie Critic (2010-07-16). "Review: Amateurish 'Standing Ovation'". Sfgate.com. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  15. ^ "'Standing Ovation' is likely to launch acting careers". Philadelphia Daily News. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  16. ^ "Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news". Aintitcool.com. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  17. ^ "Chris Hewitt (St. Paul) Movie Reviews & Previews". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  18. ^ "The Big List: The 50 Worst Movies of the Decade (So Far)".
  19. ^ "DOVE ONLINE REVIEW". The Dove Foundation.
  20. ^ "Standing Ovation full of mixed messages". Paradise Post. 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  21. ^ Danielle Azzolina. "Stand Up for Standing Ovation Junior high musical hits the big screen!". Scholastic News Magazine. Scholastic Corporation. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  22. ^ "A 'nice' against 'mean' face-off". The Inquirer / philly.com. 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  23. ^ "Geekscape Reviews Standing Ovation!". 3 October 2010.
  24. ^ "Standing Ovation Premieres in Rio Grand Style". Cape May County Herald. [dead link]

External links edit