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Jig (2011)

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Edgy MD Feb 24 2014 12:29 PM

Documentary about the competitive field of Irish stepdancing visits several countries to follow many competitors (including some with few cultural ties to Ireland) as they prepare for that year's world finals in Glascow.

Edgy MD Mar 03 2014 02:20 PM Re: Jig (2011)

Heartbreaking to see a joyous art form reduced at it's pinnacle and supposedly highest expression to a joyless competition that leads to heartbreak for all but the very few. Also the trashy make-up-and-spray-tan culture that has sprung up around it can't not lead to Toddlers and Tiaras or Strictly Ballroom moments of how-did-it-come-to-this? head shaking. I did not know this, but somehow along the way, since (1) a commonly accepted defining trait of the idealized Irish lass is ringlets, and since (2) ringlet curls aren't so common as all that, and (3) keeping a girl with straight hair in curls is a pain in the ass and possibly damaging, literally every last one of the female competitors wear ridiculous wigs, no matter how lovely their natural locks are. The girl on the left above, for instance, seems like sweet and level-headed girl from Derry, Northern Ireland, but her costume makes her look like Marie Antoinette in drag. The one on the right, a New Yorker, seems to be in transition. She clearly started this dancing thing on a lark, but somewhere along the way, it changed to the most important thing, and then to the only thing, for her and her mother, who you can see transitioning from a decent person to a tiger mother/helicopter mother hybrid. Clearly, the child's future psyche is on the line at this tournament. The film, for better or for worse, isn't trying to necessarily lead you to the horrified conclusion I came to, but I might like a little history. When did the "Worlds" start becoming so global? When did the wigs first appear? When did they become de riguer? How much did participation spike after Riverdance? How much are the coaches getting paid and the families getting soaked? Are there any positive outcomes outside of a slot in a touring company of Riverdance or Lord of the Dance? I mean, how big is the professional world?

metirish Mar 03 2014 05:53 PM Re: Jig (2011)

Going to watch later.....

Edgy MD Mar 04 2014 06:32 AM Re: Jig (2011)

One subplot along the way is a group of young adults women from Russia competing as an ensemble. It's not stated but you get the idea that they fell into stepdancing because they couldn't cut it or didn't have/couldn't achieve the body type to make it as Russian ballerinas. Their coach files in from Ireland every few weeks and he's young and funny and enthusiastic, but what he keeps trying to get across to them is that they're solid mechanically, but their dancing is so utterly joyless. He tries all the teasing and charm he has, but you get the idea they can't project anything but how miserable it is to be a young woman in Russia these days.

metirish Mar 04 2014 07:37 PM Re: Jig (2011)

Half way through, enjoying it more than I thought...makes sense that the Russians are joyless, it's what we believe about them.....but great to see them at it.....I like the young kid from Birmingham ....I grew up in Tipperary where Irish dancing was huge, I never remember all this awful makeup etc. How about the family that relocated to Birmingham from California? dad gave up mutli million dollar homes and a medical practice to move to one of the most depressed cities in England.

metirish Mar 04 2014 08:10 PM Re: Jig (2011)

Hard not to feel for the Sri Lankan kid from Holland, when he says it is all he has and it keeps him out of trouble....shit is real.

metirish Mar 04 2014 08:25 PM Re: Jig (2011)

California Joe had that cool about him didn't he?, he knew he was great, his coach knew it and he killed his set.....you could tell watching that he was brilliant. Loved seeing Birmingham John come though, nice moment.

metirish Mar 04 2014 08:35 PM Re: Jig (2011)

Christ, the tension at the end between NY and Derry was intense ..... Have to say I enjoyed this immensely, never mind the awful makeup the kids and people involved more than made up for it.

Edgy MD Mar 05 2014 05:53 AM Re: Jig (2011)

Yeah, that Sri Lankan Dutch kid was a trip. He seems to place his whole self worth on winning the Worlds, or at least elevating his finish significantly from last year. He's convinced it's all he has, while he in fact has this wonderful skill, a great family who perhaps saved him from a far tougher life in an orphanage, and every girl in his dance studio is breathless when he walks by.

sharpie Mar 06 2014 07:41 AM Re: Jig (2011)

Watched it last night. Liked it well enough though it is of a piece with similar docs such as "Spellbound." One problem I had was that I am so unfamiliar with Irish dancing that I couldn't really tell who was better than who (except that California kid had obvious skillz). Interesting look at a subculture I had no idea existed.