Dancing with the Stars Movie Week Performances - Tension to Tango

It's movie week on Dancing with the Stars and each of the competitors were given a movie to inspire their performances. The performance show was varied with the audience seeing everything from palpable tension between partners to a near-perfect performance. Tuesday night a pair will be eliminated and sent home. Who is going to be the sacrificial lamb this week? Will Kate Gosselin be spared once again at the cost of a more highly skilled competitor?

The first pair that took to the Dancing with the Stars stage were Niecy Nash and partner Louis Van Amstel performing a Jive. Last week the judges weren't impressed with the pair and judge Len Goodman labeled their dance boring. This week Nash and Van Amstel shimmied their way across the stage and the judges enjoyed the fact that Nash brought her personality back to the dance floor. Each of the judges criticized the dance for being too soft and lacking the precision required by the Jive. The duo earned a total score of 18 for their efforts.

After last weeks sizzling Rumba, duo Chad Ochocinco and partner Cheryl Burke appeared to be having tension-filled practices while working on their Quick Step. The pair appeared light on their feet during their performance but the judges weren't feeling the love this week. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba commented that they pair were lacking contact, unlike last week when there was and abundance of it. Whatever the cause of the tension was between Ochocinco and Burke, it appeared to carry over onto the Dancing with the Stars stage and into the pair's performance. Burke walked backstage ahead of Ochocinco and the pair were all business when questioned about the apparent tension. Perhaps the pair wanted to squash any rumors of a potential romance, although they may have gone too far by squashing some of the chemistry that was aiding their performances. The pair received a total score of 18.

Erin Andrews and partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy brought a little Pulp Fiction to the Dancing with the Stars stage with their Jive. The pair had the usual power struggles during their practices but their overall performance was lively. While the judges weren't bowled over, they seemed to enjoy the overall performance rewarding Andrews and Chmerkovskiy with a total of 22.

Jake Pavelka and Chelsie Hightower injected a little Risky Business into their Dancing with the Stars Cha Cha routine. The judges thought this was one of their best performances in spite of a few flaws. The judges were impressed with Jake's risk-taking maneuver of hitting the Dancing with the Stars stage in his underwear and shirt to resemble Tom Cruise from the movie. The pair received a total score of 23.

Pamela Anderson and Damian Whitewood returned to the Dancing with the Stars stage hoping to carry forward with the positive momentum they generated during their performance last week. The pair performed a Quick Step that followed a theme from the movie 9 to 5 and other than judge Len Goodman complaining about time wasted at the beginning of the performance, the routine was well received. Whether you like Pamela Anderson or not, she has good footwork and the live audience loves to watch her performances. Their routine earned them a total of 21 points with judge Len Goodman being booed by the audience for giving the pair a 6.

Next up on Dancing with the Stars we got to see Kate Gosselin go down in flames again. Kate and partner Tony Dovolani have been a disaster on the dance floor from the beginning of this competion. The audience voting at home saves them week after week in spite of the fact that they are by far the weakest pair competing. The judges didn't enjoy their Foxtrot inspired by the movie The Breakfast Club and hit them with a total score of 15. I will say that this wasn't the worst performance I have seen and although I think they should be sent packing, Kate has shown overall improvement. It just isn't enough.

Dancing with the Stars pair Nicole Scherzinger and Derek Hough brought a little Pretty Woman to the stage this week performing a Tango. When compared to the performances that came before them, this one was off the hook with the type of great energy and precision needed in a dance competition and it received a standing ovation from the audience. Judge Len Goodman called it the best dance the pair has performed in addition to it being the best dance of the season so far. Bruno said they were two players at the top of their game and Carrie Ann called them superstars. The judges rewarded the pair's efforts with a whopping 29 out of 30 points. It really was off the charts.

Last up on the Dancing with the Stars stage was the leading pair Evan Lysacek and partner Anna Trebunskaya performing a Rumba inspired by the movie Armageddon. These two have the added complication of having to deal with Evan's Stars On Ice schedule in addition to learning new dances and competing on DWTS. No rest for the weary, eh? This performance was superb and the judges loved it giving the pair a total score of 27.

The pair to beat this week was Nicole Scherzinger and Derek Hough. As usual, Tuesday night a pair will be eliminated from the competition and sent home. Who will be sacrificed this time around? It's rather difficult to speculate at this point-will the Dancing with the Stars audience carry Kate Gosselin another week? Tune in to Tuesday night's live results show to find out!

Source: ABC's Dancing with the Stars