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Movies / On DVD / Drumline
Drumline

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Drumline (2002)

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Reviews Counted:81

Fresh:65

Rotten:16

Average Rating:6.7/10

Consensus: Essentially a sports movie with drums, the energetic Drumline somehow manages to make the familiar seem fresh.

Runtime: 2 hrs 7 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Charles Stone III's crowd-pleasing drama spotlights the previously unheralded world of university marching bands--more specifically, the cutthroat world that energizes Southern black campuses.... Charles Stone III's crowd-pleasing drama spotlights the previously unheralded world of university marching bands--more specifically, the cutthroat world that energizes Southern black campuses. Devon Miles (Nick Cannon) is a Harlem teenager who receives a full scholarship to attend Atlanta A&T University based on his excellent percussion talents. However, making the transition from hip-hop street drumming to the drumline of the school's legendary marching band is more challenging than Miles expected. For one, the band director, Dr. Lee (Orlando Jones), is determined to reclaim the national championship using old-school tactics, even though his traditional beliefs appear to be leaving A&T in the dust. And then there is Sean (Leonard Roberts), the current drum leader, who is threatened by Devon's skills and frustrated by his fierce individuality. These antagonistic forces, as well as the addition of a cheerleading love interest (Zoe Saldana), combine to test Devon's previously unshakeable confidence. As the season builds toward the BET Big Southern Classic and a showdown with rival Morris Brown University, Devon must swallow his pride and learn to be a team player if he wants his band to win the championship. DRUMLINE proves that any subject can make for an invigorating work of entertainment, if handled properly. [More]

Starring: Nick Cannon, Zoe Saldana, Orlando Jones, Leonard Roberts

Starring: Nick Cannon, Zoe Saldana, Orlando Jones, Leonard Roberts, GQ, Jason Weaver, Earl C. Poitier, J. Anthony Brown

Director: Charles Stone

Director: Charles Stone
Screenwriter: Tina Gordon Chism, Shawn Schepps
Producer: Wendy Finerman, Tim Bourne, Jody Gerson
Composer: John Powell
Studio: 20th Century Fox

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Drumline

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61 - 80 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

The fantastically edited scenes of battling bands in action are guaranteed to set your heart racing.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
12/13/02
Ken Fox
Ken Fox
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Drumline ably captures the complicated relationships in a marching band.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
12/13/02
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

While you might not be able to dance to it, Drumline has a good enough beat to propel it and make being in a marching band look cool.

Full Review Source: Screen It! | comment Comment
12/13/02
Jim Judy
Jim Judy
Screen It!

With its young cast and an appealing balance of uplifting attitude and irreverent humor, Drumline has the potential to be a sleeper hit.

Full Review Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | comment Comment
12/13/02
Jack Garner
Jack Garner
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Although it bangs a very cliched drum at times, this crowd-pleaser's fresh dialogue, energetic music, and good-natured spunk are often infectious.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
12/13/02
Tor Thorsen
Tor Thorsen
Reel.com

A sugar-coated Rocky whose valuable messages are forgotten 10 minutes after the last trombone honks.

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
12/13/02
Ian Grey
Ian Grey
Orlando Weekly

Cannon's confidence and laid-back good spirits are, with the drumming routines, among the film's saving graces.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
12/13/02
Jay Boyar
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel

Who knew marching band could be so dramatic?

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
12/13/02
Kim Morgan
Kim Morgan
Oregonian

As you watch the drummers pound out their polyrhythms and twirl their sticks, you may find it hard to stay in your seat.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
12/13/02
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Drumline is the real deal, a toe-tapping, feel-good sleeper with an unlikely setting -- a college marching band -- that feels fresh and rousing despite a formulaic script.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
12/13/02
Lou Lumenick
Lou Lumenick
New York Post

Director Charles Stone III applies more detail to the film's music than to the story line; what's best about Drumline is its energy.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
12/13/02
Nick Carter
Nick Carter
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

This entertaining and enthusiastically told tale shrewdly energizes its way-familiar plot line by setting it amid one of the greatest and least-known spectacles in American sports.

Full Review Source: NPR's Morning Edition | comment Comment
12/13/02
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan
NPR's Morning Edition

Director Charles Stone III fails to find a coherent grammar with which to shoot the band performances, leaving them flat and at a remove from the exuberant, pull-out-the-stops crowd pleasers they are presumably intended to be.

Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
12/13/02
Mark Olsen
Mark Olsen
L.A. Weekly

Drumline comes close to collapsing under the weight of drawn-out scenes and an earnest story that piles on minor themes and subplots, but the energy and visual kick of the band numbers saves the day.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
12/13/02
Jennie Punter
Jennie Punter
Globe and Mail

Sure, you can say this marches to a similar beat as Bring It On, but even if it is formulaic, Drumline is fun.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
12/13/02
E! Online

Drumline is a brassy formula film of a very high order, a movie that's both entertaining and inspirational.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
12/13/02
Terry Lawson
Terry Lawson
Detroit Free Press

It's pretty warm, fuzzy and entertaining, even if it isn't very good.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
12/13/02
Chris Vognar
Chris Vognar
Dallas Morning News

By the time its otherwise paint-by-numbers story reaches a finale, Drumline has made band seem cool -- no small feat in the wake of American Pie 2.

Full Review Source: Citysearch | comment Comment
12/13/02
Dan Fazio
Dan Fazio
Citysearch

Drumline is a movie that treats its characters and audience with respect; it can't be accused of being a dumbed-down teen comedy.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
12/13/02
Mark Caro
Mark Caro
Chicago Tribune

[Drumline] is entertaining for what it does, and admirable for what it doesn't do.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
12/13/02
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
61 - 80 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
all

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