HIP HOP-ERATION (Bryn Evans). 93 minutes. Opens Friday (March 11). See listing. Rating: NN
Hip Hop-eration is for those wanting to see a little krump action from their grandparents. Bryn Evans’s documentary shadows a group of seniors aged 67 to 94 as they prepare for a tribute performance at the 2013 World Hip Hop Dance Championships in Las Vegas.
The novelty of older white folks bouncing to hip-hop is not lost on some of the younger dancers in the film, who point out that this demographic usually calls the cops on them. The film rides that novelty, because really that’s all it’s got.
These retirees from New Zealand’s Waiheke Island, dubbed the Hip Op-eration Crew, don’t seem very passionate about hip-hop. They admit they’re “not too keen on the music,” and it’s not like they’re tearing up the dance floor with their moves – a given considering their plastic hips and other disabilities. Their performances actually look a lot like kids doing the Skinnamarink, with a few arm waves thrown in.
They’re simply passing the time, and their much younger manager, Billie Jordan, has found a way to channel that energy into something marketable. Seniors doing yoga is so passé.
Clearly, it paid off. They landed the aforementioned performance in Vegas, a Guinness world record for oldest dance troupe and this documentary, a depressing reminder of how dull retirement can be.
