Dirty Dancing (1987)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1987
	Director: Emile Ardolino
	Actors: Patrick Swayze (Point Break, Red Dawn), Jennifer Grey (Red Dawn), Jerry Orbach
	Country: USA
	Genre: Music, Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 22.01.2020, VOD, 40" TV screen.
Synopsis: Spending the summer at a mountain resort with her family, Frances "Baby" Houseman (Grey) falls in love with the camp's dance instructor, Johnny Castle (Swayze).
Review: Believe it or not, I had never seen this movie. I finally watched it in order to complete the first season of The Movies that made us and as I wrote in that review, it is not so surprising that this girly movie about dance didn't motivate me that much. But I have finally seen it and realized of course that it is much more than that. The dancing and the love story are in fact secondary, as the movie emphasizes in its conclusion it is more about this girl growing into adulthood and wanting to change the World, in contrast to the well-established generation of her parents. The movie is so well-shot and the story so well-told (in spite of the adversity like you learn in The Movies that made us), I am not surprised that it is timeless and keeps on influencing generations. It is all the more remarkable because the setting is very marked in time, when parents brought their young adult daughters to holiday resorts for them to find a husband. But it is quickly forgotten when the audience focuses on the timeless problems the young generation is facing: unemployment, clash of generations, discrimination, money, even abortion plays a big role in the movie which definitely removes it from being a Musical. Music is important but more because the songs are chosen to match the action and emotions of the characters. Everything flaws perfectly and I didn't find a moment to roll my eyes at the momentary stupidity of the screenplay like I do in most movies that I watch nowadays. I am very glad I finally watched this movie from the 80's which may be my favorite decade for Cinema (and Music?). It does have this quality from that period of time. I am tempted to watch the two other movies that complete the kind of trilogy of most-known "dance" movies: Flashdance and Footloose, but I fear they are more urban and have shallower meanings.
Rating: 8 /10