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<TITLE>Stick It at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre</TITLE>
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<FONT FACE="Verdana"><B>This week at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre...<BR>
<BR>
</B><FONT COLOR="#800000"><H2>Stick It (PG-13)<BR>
</H2></FONT><B>Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday, June 29 & 30, July 1 & 2<BR>
7:00 PM<BR>
</B>$5/adult, $3/child under 13<BR>
KFS pass accepted for Sunday movies<BR>
<B>(See movie review below)<BR>
</B>* * *<BR>
<B><BR>
Next week at the Kenworthy-<BR>
<BR>
</B><FONT COLOR="#000080"><H2>Kinky Boots<BR>
</H2></FONT><B>Thursday - Sunday, July 6, 7, 8 & 9<BR>
</B>* * *<BR>
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<B>Also showing in July:<BR>
<BR>
Hoot (PG)<BR>
</B>Sponsored by Wells Fargo<BR>
Wednesday, July 12<BR>
1:00 PM<BR>
<BR>
<B>X-Men<BR>
</B>Thursday – Sunday, July 13 - 16 <BR>
<BR>
<B>Nanny McPhee (PG)<BR>
</B>Wednesday, July 19<BR>
1:00 PM<BR>
<BR>
<B>DaVinci Code<BR>
</B>Friday – Sunday, July 21 – 23<BR>
<BR>
<B>Ice Age 2 The Meltdown<BR>
</B>Sponsored by US Bank<BR>
Wednesday – Sunday, July 26 – 30<BR>
<BR>
<B>Goal: The Dream Begins<BR>
</B>Thursday – Sunday, August 3 - 6<BR>
<BR>
Regular movie prices: $5/adult, $3/child 12 or younger<BR>
Wednesday matinee prices: $4/adult, $1/child 12 or younger<BR>
KFS series pass prices: $30/10 films, $75/30 films. KFS pass good only for Sunday movies.<BR>
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For more information on movies, events, rental rates, and/or to download a schedule, visit our website at www.kenworthy.org<BR>
<B>* * *<BR>
This week’s movie review-<BR>
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</B><FONT COLOR="#800000"><H2>Stick It<BR>
</H2></FONT><BR>
Written and directed by Jessica Bendinger<BR>
Running time: 1 hour, 43 minutes<BR>
Rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). This film contains profanity, sexual innuendoes, and Jeff Bridges bouncing on a trampoline.<BR>
<BR>
<B><I><U>As reviewed by Nathan Lee writing for the New York Times<BR>
</U></I></B><BR>
A spry teenage comedy that gets everything right, "Stick It" takes the usual batch of underdogs, dirt bags, mean girls and bimbos and sends them somersaulting through happy clichés and unexpected invention. As is to be hoped from a chick flick set in the world of elite gymnastics, the sass crackles, the soundtrack pops (to hip-hop, punk and Perry Como) and there are plentiful scenes, cleverly shot, of teenagers in leotards triple flipping with aplomb.<BR>
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Jeff Bridges — bonus! — brings a center of gravity to these whirl-a-gig diversions as the affable Burt Vickerman, gymnastics guru semi-extraordinaire. Into his no-nonsense arms tumbles the resourceful and radiant Haley Graham (Missy Peregrym), an ex-champion turned slacker with a chip on her shoulder and a skeleton in her closet.<BR>
<BR>
"Stick It" is the not-quite-predictable story of Haley's return to competition and how she liberates her past, learns its lessons and is joined by her teammates in leveraging this knowledge against the Man (here represented by uptight parents and judges with grudges). It is a triumph for the writer and director Jessica Bendinger, who brings a sly eye and avid imagination to every scene, springing fresh rhythms and bold colors out of the formulaic material.<BR>
<BR>
Not to be a killjoy, but the best stuff here isn't the cartwheels scored to Talib Kweli, excellent as they are, nor the bitchy banter about how totally "leotarded" an outfit is. Culminating in a defiant act of subversion and solidarity, "Stick It" knows that some games are won by refusing to play. Forget girl-power bromides; here's a movie that lets young women reclaim their bodies (skilled, scrutinized, criticized and exploited) in order to embody genuine populism.<BR>
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It's a lot of fun to see a genre movie leap over expectations; it's downright dizzying to watch it bounce on an ethos of spandex-clad resistance.<BR>
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<B><I><U>As reviewed by Peter Hartlaub writing for the San Francisco Chronicle<BR>
</U></I></B><BR>
Jessica Bendinger wrote the cheerleading dark comedy "Bring It On," and for her directorial debut, she takes the exact same premise and applies it to competitive gymnastics. This tomboy-fish-out-of-water theme has also been covered in everything from "The Bad News Bears" to the second season of "The Facts of Life."<BR>
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So it's a credit to Bendinger's attention to the little details that make "Stick It" feel so unique and entertaining -- poking fun at elite-level child athletics while still respecting its young characters and their feelings. Much of the honest dialogue has the same feel as John Hughes' and Cameron Crowe's movies during their best years, while there's a half-serious hipness that recalls the first eight episodes of "The O.C."<BR>
<BR>
Jeff Bridges plays gymnastics coach Burt Vickerman just right, acting tough and unscrupulous while still being in on the joke. You get the impression that he watched tapes and hung out with a half-dozen real-life coaches to get the mannerisms right, even though this is mostly a comedy role.<BR>
<BR>
Once in the gym, the collection of "Mean Girls"-style leaders and followers are given plenty of great lines ("Who died and made you Nadia?"), while still revealing a few surprises within their stock characters. Even the nastiest girl in the gym, played by the lovely Vanessa Lengies, shows some vulnerability: She's been pushed so hard by her mother that the prospect of going to the prom is like you or me going to the moon.<BR>
<BR>
Peregrym, a relative newcomer, is the real find here -- playing straight woman to the obsessive gymnasts part of the time while showing flashes of sardonic humor when called upon. With no love interest (a bold choice by Bendinger that the studio must have hated), most of Haley's conflict is with Vickerman, which could have been really creepy if either actor faltered. She acts tough and wears every punk and heavy metal T-shirt from the Hot Topic catalog, but lets just enough sensitivity seep out of the tough shell to remain sympathetic.<BR>
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For anyone who might care, the gymnastics is excellent in the movie. Secondary gymnast characters are played by Nikki SooHoo and Maddy Curley, who have strong backgrounds in the sport. Bendinger didn't have much competition in her attempt to make the best gymnastics movie ever. ("American Anthem"? "Gymkata"?) But thanks in part to the stunt doubles for Peregrym and Lengies -- the ever-flexible Isabelle Severino and Annie Gagnon -- when it comes to athletes who look like they know what they're doing, "Stick It" is the "Hoosiers" of gymnastics.<BR>
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In writing these kinds of movies, Bendinger appears to have found her calling. Maybe the model-turned-screenwriter has only one good idea, but that's OK. J.D. Salinger wrote the same story over and over, and people are still sneaking onto his property.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<B><I><U>As reviewed by Sean Axmaker writing for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer<BR>
</U></I></B><BR>
As the past decades of Olympic competition will attest, gymnastics is dominated by an increasingly younger slate of girls pushing their growing bodies to the physical limits to meet the rigorous guidelines of judging criteria.<BR>
<BR>
The girls strike back with "Stick It," a sports empowerment fantasy of the best kind. This teen rebel drama has a cause: to take the sport back from the edicts of its at times arbitrary judges and redefine it as a form of self-expression and personal achievement.<BR>
<BR>
A fit and insolent Missy Peregrym plays former world-class-gymnast-turned-angry-young-woman Haley, who vents her aggressions through extreme sports and the attendant property damage of push-it-too-the-limit dares. Dad saves her from juvenile hall by enrolling her in a gymnastics academy run by maverick coach Burt Vickerman (Jeff Bridges) and lorded over by a bitchy rival (Vanessa Lengies) whose competitive streak is matched only by her ignorance.<BR>
<BR>
Vickerman's program has a reputation for injuring pupils, though we see no evidence to support the whispers, and it's hardly the boot camp the film makes it out to be. No matter. Vickerman's validation is an afterthought to Haley's story, a classic sport-rebel journey with a twist, a double flip and a perfect landing.<BR>
<BR>
Writer/director Jessica Bendinger (screenwriter of the cute and brash "Bring it On") breathes new life into old cliches. The former music video director celebrates the achievement of the athletes and the beauty of the movement with a fresh style and a dynamic look, and she energizes the drama with attitude, cheeky humor and youthful energy.<BR>
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More importantly, she delivers a message of solidarity, strength of character and standing up for yourself and your friends against calcified judges and competition-hungry parents, with a triumphant charge.<BR>
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<I>Film reviews researched and edited by Peter Haggart<BR>
</I><B>* * *<BR>
</B><BR>
<FONT COLOR="#800000"><FONT SIZE="5"><B>Take a seat!</B></FONT></FONT> We mean that literally. The Kenworthy is offering you the opportunity to purchase one of a limited number of theater chairs in the main auditorium. Your gift will entitle you to an engraved, brass name plate mounted on the back of the seat of your choice (based upon availability). One individual or business name per seat, please.<BR>
<BR>
This naming opportunity, back by popular demand, is available for a donation of $500 per chair. You may purchase a chair in two installments of $250 over two years, or in three installments of $200 over three years.<BR>
<BR>
Your gift will assist with the ongoing operation and renovation of the Kenworthy Theater and fulfillment of our mission to be Moscow's premiere, historic, downtown, community performing arts venue and cinematic art house.<BR>
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For information about the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre, call Julie Ketchum, Executive Director, at 208-882-4127.<BR>
<B>* * *<BR>
<BR>
<I>Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre<BR>
</I>508 S. Main Street, Moscow, Idaho<BR>
</B>208-882-4127<BR>
Sign up for this weekly email on events and movies at the Kenworthy by logging onto our website <BR>
<FONT COLOR="#0000FF"><U>http://www.kenworthy.org<BR>
<BR>
</U></FONT>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<BR>
PAMELA PALMER, <B>Volunteer<BR>
</B>Mailto:ppalmer@moscow.com<BR>
Film and Events Committee <BR>
Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre<BR>
<BR>
http://www.kenworthy.org<BR>
To speak with a KPAC staff member, <BR>
call (208) 882-4127<BR>
Mailto:kpac@moscow.com<BR>
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