Noboy puts Baby in the corner (Dirty Dancing (DVD))

Member Name: Maggie1981

Product:	Dirty Dancing (DVD)
Date:	09/08/09 (37 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Feel good film, fantastic soundtrack, choreography

Disadvantages: Some would say it was predictable

Dirty Dancing is one of the original chick flicks, considered by many females to be a classic. Launched in 1987 this film was a big box office hit and has continued to grow in popularity over the years. I personally have seen this film hundreds of times and never grow tired of it.

Set in the summer of 1963, it tells the tale of "Baby" Houseman (Jennifer Gray) and her family as they vacation at Kellermans resort. Initially we see "Baby" as an innocent young daddy's girl who is blindly optimistic and believes she can save the world. Upon arriving at the resort however, she meets Jonny Castle (Patrick Swayze), the bad boy dance instructor from the wrong side of town, and his dance partner Penny (Cynthia Rhodes) and soon her outlook on life begins to change.

Over the course of the film Baby begins to grow up and experiences a side of life she never knew existed, her sheltered and privleged life has meant that she's managed to stay fairly innocent. She stumbles across a party and is at first shocked be the "dirty dancing" she witnesses, however Jonny coerces her into trying it and soon she's got the bug herself. When they need someone to stand in for Penny, Baby offers to help out. Baby must therefore spend time with Jonny, learning the routines and predictably they develop feelings for one another, but as is the case in most romantic films, the course of true love never runs smooth!

Throughout this film we see the character Baby make the transition from a young innocent girl into a confident woman, who is prepared to wilfully disobey her father for the first time and hurt her family in order to fight for what she believes in. Grey puts in a fantastic performance and is very believable as an innocent young girl traqnsitioning into woman hood. Swayze for his part is also extremely good, although I think most people remember him more for those tight trousers he wears.

For me, although I love the story, the thing that makes the film is the music and the dance scenes. There is some fantastic choreography and most people will know a lot of the soundtrack. The story itself has been done to death and is a little predictable, good girl meets and falls for a bad boy and they have to get past numerous obstacles to prove their love. It is however a feel good film and despite it's predicability I can not criticise it. During my teenage years I watched this film every weekend, religiously, with my friends. I knew all the words and could say the dialogue along with the characters, I could sing every song and knew all the dance moves. I don't watch it quite so often these days but whenever I'm feeling a bit blue or hungover it's my first choice for a pick me up.

Summary: A feel good, rites of passage film