Bring it on: In it to win it (3½ Stars)

This is the fourth film in the series of "Bring it on" cheerleading films. It was released straight to video, like the last two installments. So what's new? Does it have anything new to offer after the last three films?

This is a romantic comedy cheerleading drama based on "West Side Story" with elements of horror films and army boot camps. Try saying that in one breath!

As in all the other films, the story centers on competition between two rival cheerleading squads. There is no initial build up or introduction. The film begins with the two teams arriving at Camp Spirit-Thunder for the national championship. Unusually, the teams don't just arrive to compete, they have to spend time being trained by an independent squad of trainers who look and dress like soldiers. The two teams are the Sharks from the West Coast and the Jets from the East Coast. Carson, the captain of the Sharks, falls in love with one of the boys in the Jets. This leads to anger and opposition on both sides. Even though the conflict scenes are based closely on "West Side Story", the romance follows the rules of romantic comedies. This film's dance scenes are more athletic than the ones in the previous films. The routines seem to be up to the level of international gymnastics.

The film is good fun, and will certainly appeal to a certain type of American teenage girl, but it doesn't live up to the quality and excitement of the previous installment.