Be aggressive, be, be aggressive! If that cheer sends you straight back to the summer of 2000, you’re in luck.
Bring It On, the cheerleading comedy starring Kirsten Dunst and Gabrielle Union, is now streaming on Netflix. The film arrived Oct. 1 as part of a big batch of library additions that also includes The Devil Wears Prada, Love Actually and the entire Twilight saga. Netflix doesn’t always say how long licensed titles stick around, so it’s smart to queue it up sooner rather than later.
Dunst stars as Torrance Shipman, the newly crowned captain of San Diego’s Rancho Carne Toros. Torrance soon discovers that her squad’s championship routines were lifted from the East Compton Clovers, led by Union’s sharp-tongued captain, Isis.
What could have been a simple rivalry comedy became something smarter. Rather than turning either team into villains, the film makes Torrance own her squad’s mistake and build something original. The Clovers win nationals on their own merit, and the Toros settle for second. It was a surprisingly honest ending for a teen movie, and it’s a big reason the film still sparks conversation more than two decades later.
The cast also includes Eliza Dushku as Torrance’s tough-talking teammate Missy and Jesse Bradford as Missy’s misfit, punk-loving brother, Cliff. Director Peyton Reed went on to helm Marvel’s Ant-Man films.
Bring It On opened at No. 1 at the box office in August 2000 and launched a string of direct-to-video sequels. (*It even inspired a 2012 Broadway musical, with music co-written by Lin-Manuel Miranda years before Hamilton.)
Its stars kept climbing, too. Dunst went on to the Spider-Man trilogy and an Oscar nomination for The Power of the Dog. Union became a TV lead in Being Mary Jane and a successful producer.
So grab your pom-poms, or at least the remote, and spirit fingers your way to Netflix. Ready? Ok!