cutting edge x4

This is the main reason I was thinking about the topic of remakes last week... A couple of weekends ago ABC Family (which apparently seems to be my new favorite channel) was playing a Cutting Edge marathon starting with the original 1992 version of Cutting Edge and leading to the premier of the brand new Cutting Edge 4: Fire & Ice or something like that. I don't actually remember what the sub-title for the movie was. In any case, as cheesy as every single movie was... I still enjoyed each one and watched them all in a two day span. So sad! Here's a rundown of the four...

Cutting Edge (The Original, 1992):
"Toe pick!" I've probably seen this movie a half dozen times at this point in my life. It's kinda funny seeing the mom from One Tree Hill so young. But in any case, I love this movie and obviously others did, too, because it warranted THREE movies 14, 16, and 18 years later. Story line: a spoiled female pairs figure skater (Moira Kelly) who had chased away all her "weak" partners and a promising male hockey player (D.B. Sweeney) who had his hockey career shortened by an eye injury pair up to go for Olympic gold.

Cutting Edge 2: Going for the Gold (2006):
The "Toe pick!" moments made it into all four movies, I think. And the skirt lift, booty showing skate away made it into most of the sequels as well. I really am not a big fan of Christy Carlson Romano -- somehow she always plays "perfect" characters. In this one she's the daughter of the pair from the first movie. (Additionally the timing doesn't make any sense at all because Christy plays an 18 year old or something and she's going for the 2006 Olympics and her parents won gold at the 1992 Olympics, so she couldn't be more than 14...) Anyway, SHE is a promising singles figure skater who gets injured in nationals and can no longer do triples. HE is an X-games rollerblader. They pair up to go for Olympic gold.

Cutting Edge 3: Chasing the Dream (2008):
And it gets worse... (Yet I still watched! And I've now seen this and Cutting Edge 2 TWICE!) Anyway, the switcharoo is that this time it's a guy who needs a female partner. HE (played by Matt Lanter, better known as Liam from the new 90210) is a friend of Christy Carlson Roman's character (who hooked up with her partner in the last movie but they broke up/got divorced) and a pairs figure skater with a perfect female partner who gets injured. With nationals around the corner he needs to find a partner. In comes the girl. SHE (Francia Raisa from The Secret Life of the American Teenager) is a latina who plays ice hockey with her sibling and friends. They pair up and go for whatever they were going for.

Cutting Edge 4: Fire & Ice (2010):
The latest installment. SHE is still the same girl from the last movie, but her former HE got his gold and decided he was done with his career. So they amicably broke up and now she needs a new partner. HE (played by Brendan Fehr, Michael from Roswell) is a hotheaded speed skater who got banned from the sport for punching out a teammate. He still wants an Olympic gold so he pairs up with her and later once being reinstated in speed skating has to choose between going for gold in speed skating or pairs figure skating. Hmm, wonder what he decided?

In any case, they definitely have done everything to keep the story a little different each time. And truthfully, these are movies just meant to be enjoyed. In any case, since the last three movies have come out two years apart, we'll just have to see what new twist they come up with for 2012...