This footage might have made for a semi-interesting 1 hour program on PBS, or a 20-minute segment on 60 minutes, but as a full length movie, I found it rather boring (even for a documentary).

I really enjoyed this movie. As a teacher looking for ways to get all sorts of adolescents to get involved in activities that are fun and build pride, commitment, hard work and mutual respect, this is an inspiring example.

This is not a very good film. In fact it is quite superficial and lacks any depth. The filmmakers wanted to make a candy-coated take on NY public schools and they did. HOWEVER, it is hard to dislike this film as the children are amazing. And they make the film worth seeing. I dont know if this director will make any more fillms, but if she does, she should have lots of cute kids in it.

An enjoyable film evincing that giving children (and adults for that matter) chances to express themselves creatively through art (be it music, dance, visual arts, writing) gives them incredible opportunities for self esteem and growth.

No special effects are needed, because this movie has real drama. People who are cynical about TV "reality" shows should appreciate a film about some very appealing real people working hard to excel at something that is actually worthwhile.

Sweet and nice, but structurally poor. About 1/3 of the way into the film, the film makers began to focus on just one team and the film became less interesting and less dramatic.

A tremendously heartwarming film.

Cute it may be, but there is much wrong with MHB. One major problem is encapsulated by the music (ripped straight out of the excellent Spellbound) that is used to tie together the very loosely organized sections: it's strictly whitebread-middleclass-PBS music that frames the kids' lives in whitebread-middleclass-PBS terms. Why couldn't the "sections" be framed by music that the people in the film might actually listen to? That's my beef with this movie -- it feeds its target audience (old people) their own expectations without challenging or surprising them.… Expand

A wonderful peek into the minds of children in todays world.

If you don't think that the arts are important, see "Kids". The same-sex rap sessions, both male and female, in "Mad Hot Ballroom", uncannily recalls the Larry Clarke film. Intentional or not, the filmmakers show how the arts may increase the odds of our youth being more well-rounded, especially in the inner-city. In "Kids", Telly (Leo Fitzpatrick) says, "Sex is my life." If the merengue becomes a kid's life, that's an improvement. "Mad Hot Ballroom" is impossible to dislike. Yes, the film drags, becomes repititious, and the amount of children we have to follow a little unwieldy, but when its finals time, you can feel the effervescence leaping off the skin of its participants and spectators, and it'll probably make you feel good.… Expand

My father loves football, baseball and all manner of sports where the winners are determined by a hard numerical score, but you can't pay him to watch diving, figure skating or any other sport where the criteria are fuzzy and open to interpretation. Therefore, it's easy to guess that my dad would watch 2002's superb, Oscar-nominated spelling bee documentary Spellbound (where you either spell the word correctly, or you don't) 18 times before watching Mad Hot Ballroom (how do you judge ballroom dancing without esthetics and opinions taking over?) even once. And truth be told, Spellbound (without whose success MHB probably wouldn't have gotten distribution by anybody like Paramount) is a better documentary than MHB: it focuses on a handful of young contestants, giving the viewer more of a chance to get to know them and pick a favorite, while MHB, dealing with several New York City public schools in competition, gives us a lot more kids to watch but fewer to really bond with(although precocious, bespectacled little Tara really stole my heart, and has an unforgettable line relating to the subjectivity of the judging). While the final outcome of Spellbound is impossible to determine, MHB is more selectively and manipulatively put together to nudge the audience toward a more predictable, and somehow less satisfying, result. However, just because The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy aren't in the same league as Casablanca as far as dramas of intrigue are concerned doesn't mean that they aren't well worth watching in and of themselves, and MHB cleanly falls into the category of a "What's not to like?" movie. The inner-city 11-year-olds are smart, funny and endearing; what Miami Herald critic Rene Rodriguez referred to as the "awww factor" is pleasingly high without slipping into schmaltz; the kids' comments on love, sex, careers, life and rhumbas are often simultaneously innocent and perceptive; and the competing teachers and principals are every bit as likable as the kids! Like last year's Best Documentary Oscar winner Born Into Brothels, MHB makes a strong case for the arts being a major influence in keeping kids at a crossroads away from drugs, crime and other dangers--a message I hope comes across loud and clear to "No Child Left Behind" proponents (although somehow I doubt that it will). If that's not enough, if you despise the noxious sports-as-life philosophy and T-shirt slogan "second place is the first loser" as much as I do, MHB provides the PERFECT comeback response!… Expand

If you know anything about or like kids, dance, New York or music, you will love this movie. You don't need a map and compass to figure out the kids' backgrounds, just watch and listen to them spea and move. It's all there. It's a brilliant movie.

I love this film! Saw it twice, dragged everyone I know to see it. I like arty movies, I like well-acted movies, I like movies that can make me cry or laugh or think. This one did all three, plus there were those tapping toes.