From co-writer/co-star/producer Hasan Minhaj (Patriot Act, The Daily Show), Best of the Best is a love letter to the Bollywood-inspired dance competitions Minhaj & co-writer Prashanth Venkataramanujam attended as young South Asian college students, something Minhaj called a “coming-of-age experience where not only their culture is celebrated, but a specific homage to Bollywood dance” when talking to Netflix about his inspiration for the backdrop of the film.
Directed by Lena Khan (Flora & Ulysses), the story centers around two best friends, Maya (Never Have I Ever star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) & Anjali (Priyanka Kedia), who have done everything together their whole lives – including an infamous failed dance routine in their high school talent show that made them go viral in the absolute worst way.
Hoping for a fresh start, the young duo set out to UCLA where they encounter the school’s nationally ranked Bollywood-fusion dance team, led by the strikingly handsome & massively talented Ronak (Ankur Rathee), who took them all the way to 2nd place in the Best of the Best competition last year.
After Maya finally convinces Anjali to try out and inevitably make the squad, the sister-like friends thought the hardest thing they would have to endure is the high level of competition and performing their best when the lights shine brightest; however, even their friendship – the most cherished and most stable thing in their lives – could start to fray in this new environment.
Much like the UCLA Bollywood dance troupe, Best of the Best would have to give it all they’ve got if they want to stand out in a crowded field. It feels like we get some kind of coming-of-age, competition-based movie (and possible franchise) every few years for a new set of teens & tweens to call their own. For my age level (elder millennial/Xennial), it’s films like Save the Last Dance or Bring It On. For the previous generation, it was Dirty Dancing. For the next generation, maybe it was Step Up (can you believe they made like 6 of those movies?!) or You Got Served. Then, a trio of Pitch Perfect movies got a cappella in on the act.
Best of the Best. (L to R) Priyanka Kedia as Anjali, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Maya in Best of the Best. Cr. Emily V. Aragones/Netflix
Now, in the last several years, Netflix wants in on the action. 2018’s Step Sisters – a woman has to teach sorority sisters to do step dancing in order to get into Harvard. 2020’s Work It – Sabrina Carpenter has to take a ragtag group of dancers to the top if she wants to go to the college of her dreams. 2020’s Feel the Beat – Sofia Carson plays a recently disgraced Broadway dancer that has to teach a young group of girls from her small hometown how to dance in order to win a competition and put her talents back in the spotlight. And these are just the ones I’ve covered or watched with my middle-school-aged daughter, not to mention the high volume of TV series that cover similar territory.
So, what does Best of the Best do that these films do not? Can it be the next breakout film for young audiences just wanting to find themselves through competitive artistic expression?
Well, if you want to know what the best of Best of the Best is (had to do it), you get it largely in the first 45 minutes of this almost 2 hour long film. The “drone strike” moment that shows Maya’s talents for attention-grabbing choreography, her tendency to be impulsive, her willingness to drag her best friend into those big swing efforts, & Anjali’s dedication and talent that help bring those swings to life. The incredibly impressive first routine from Ronak’s UCLA crew to the absolute banger Diplo track “Welcome to the Party” at the SASA mixer. The cultural expectations, standards, & jokes within them from the South Asian student body and their families that get peppered throughout the film to truly stamp the film as a unique touchstone for their community. The philosophy of Bollywood as “a celebration of being extra because being extra … is to be human” creating an effective baseline for the story’s more extravagant & emotional moments. And quite possibly the best scene in the movie with an outdoor dance battle at a frat party featuring a Weekend at Bernie’s vibe three-way move with a drunk frat guy getting played like a puppet. We were living quite well in the early going with humor, eye-popping choreo, & a more engaging level of fun.
While the film does maintain a certain level of charm after this period, the story seems to shift towards a more dramatic approach that brings waves of new conflict between Maya & Anjali with far less energy, verve, and excitement that defined the first half. Because of the constant ping-pong of tension, the film slows down, bloats the runtime, and ultimately lands in a very simplified place of miscommunication and acceptance for who they are as individuals as they grow into their early adulthood.
But what keeps us locked in even after the vitality dips is the casting, chemistry, & well defined roles of their co-leads Ramakrishnan and Kedia. Their characters’ long-standing friendship feels lived in with each of them operating in a different version of a shadow unintentionally cast by the other. Maya having to work harder to stand out more because of Anjali’s beauty & affable personality that blends well with most people; Anjali realizing that she is simply existing in Maya’s Type A, headstrong path and not living a life chosen for herself. This grounded clash of friendship dynamics gives the audience a way into this world, even if it can be hard to relate culturally if you weren’t raised in the traditions and demands of a South Asian immigrant family. Ramakrishnan carries her momentum from Never Have I Ever to give even more “lead energy” and physicality than we’ve seen in the past; while, Kedia’s classic, breezy beauty inside and out makes her such a logical choice for her role.
Best of the Best. (L to R) Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Maya, Ankur Rathee as Ronak in Best of the Best. Cr. Emily V. Aragones/Netflix
So, to answer the previous self-imposed questions “what does (this movie) do that these (other) films do not? And can it be the next breakout film for young audiences just wanting to find themselves through competitive artistic expression?”, Best of the Best takes its paces from its creators and their lead characters by simply putting their experiences & talents on display and making them relatable & entertaining enough to bring people to their story. You can tell the care & thought that went into the writing in order to put the joy & complications of the South Asian experience in the U.S. and abroad. While it may not be completely the “raucous comedy” their synopsis would like you to believe or on a level of some iconic competition-based films before them, Best of the Best could end up being the easy rewatch that a teenager still trying to figure out who they are can latch on to. I’ll let you know when I watch this one with my own daughter soon enough.
Watch Best of the Best If You Liked
- Work It
- Pitch Perfect
- Bring It On
- Never Have I Ever
- Feel The Beat
- Step Sisters
MVP of Best of the Best
Known for her breakout role in Never Have I Ever, Ramakrishnan has developed a reputation for balancing comedic timing & physicality with strong emotional range and an authenticity as a smart & sensitive woman in progress.
With Best of the Best, she is able to build on that with the increased demand on her body and soul with a character that has an incredible amount of talent in the dancing/choreography space but also struggles to find harmony between her ambitions, her core relationships, & her responsibilities to others as well as herself. Her way of embracing the flaws of her character makes her relatable to a wide audience regardless of subject matter or cultural background.
Netflix always finds a way to champion their breakout stars and reward them with opportunities to shine in other ways. Joey King, Lana Condor, & Millie Bobby Brown could be the blueprint for Ramakrishnan’s next level and this film could be the first of several big moves for her and the studio.
Verdict
The dancing, costumes, & off the charts choreography make Best of the Best stand out among the several Netflix versions of dance-based competition movies over the past several years and Never Have I Ever star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan confirms her big lead energy. However, with its bloated runtime and notable dramatic shift in the 2nd half, it may not have the goods to have a lasting impact like some of the iconic films of the genre that came before it.
