Dirty Dancing (1987)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Emile Ardolino

Writer:

Eleanor Bergstein (written by)

Release Date:

21 August 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Have The Time Of Your Life

Plot:

Spending the summer in a holiday camp with her family, Frances ('Baby') falls in love with the camp's dancing teacher.

Plot Keywords:

Dance | Love | Abortion | Doctor | Resort

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 9 wins & 5 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sun. Nov. 8

1:00 PM

ABCF

Cast

Jennifer Grey	...	Frances 'Baby' Houseman
Patrick Swayze	...	Johnny Castle
Jerry Orbach	...	Dr. Jake Houseman
Cynthia Rhodes	...	Penny Johnson
Jack Weston	...	Max Kellerman
Jane Brucker	...	Lisa Houseman
Kelly Bishop	...	Marjorie Houseman
Lonny Price	...	Neil Kellerman
Max Cantor	...	Robbie Gould
Charles 'Honi' Coles	...	Tito Suarez (as Charles Honi Coles)
Neal Jones	...	Billy Kostecki
'Cousin Brucie' Morrow	...	Magician
Wayne Knight	...	Stan
Paula Trueman	...	Mrs. Schumacher
Alvin Myerovich	...	Mr. Schumacher

Runtime:

USA:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS (re-release) | Dolby Digital (re-release) | Dolby (original release) | SDDS (re-release)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Ireland:12A | Belgium:KT (original rating) | South Korea:15 | UK:15 (original rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-10 | France:U | Norway:12 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:7 | UK:12A (re-rating) (2004) | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:12 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Canada:14A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Appalachian region, Virginia, USA

Company:

Great American Films Limited Partnership

Trivia:

The book that Robbie tries to lend to Baby as an explanation for his refusal to help Penny is The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. Rand was the creator of a philosophy called Objectivism, which holds (among other beliefs) that it is more important for a person to be concerned with his or her own well-being rather than to try to help others. Some of her adherents (including, apparently, Robbie) interpret her books as justification for selfish and self-serving behavior and the disavowal of responsibility to others.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: In the last scene when Johnny and Baby start the dance, everyone in the audience is seated in a chair. However at the end of the scene there are no chairs on the floor. However, you see some of the male dancers stop dancing and begin moving all the chairs for everyone to join in dancing.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Radio disc jockey: [on radio] Hi, everybody, this is your Cousin Brucie. Whoa! Our summer romances are in full bloom, and everybody, but everybody's in love. So cousins, here's a great song from The Four Seasons.
Baby: [voiceover] That was the summer of 1963 - when everybody called me Baby, and it didn't occur to me to mind. That was before President Kennedy was shot, before the Beatles came, when I couldn't wait to join the Peace Corps, and I thought I'd never find a guy as great as my dad. That was the summer we went to Kellerman's.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007)

Soundtrack:

Stay

A wonderful, moving, touching and poignant classic

I viewed this movie for the first time last night and I enjoyed every aspect of it –the dancing, the acting, the dialogue, the plot, the script and the whole atmosphere that this movie created. I would highly recommend it.

Jennifer Grey gives an absolutely wonderful and first class performance in her role as Frances (Baby) Houseman. She has a natural ability and flair for dancing and she is beautiful and enchanting on the dance floor. But what is wonderful about Baby is that she has such a wonderful depth and dimension to her character. This is not simply a movie about dancing but the scriptwriters have also given us a chance to see Baby deal with the various emotions and feelings that she is experiencing throughout the movie and to allow us an insight into how her interaction with others at the camp changes her life. Grey portrays her character with such realism and poignancy that you end up feeling deeply for Baby as she experiences all she does in this movie.

Patrick Swayze is magnificent in his role as Johnny and truly succeeds in making his character come alive. He gives his character a comprehensive personality, strong appeal and great depth. The chemistry between Swayze and Grey is enchanting and powerful and contributes significantly to the great success of this movie

Cynthia Rhodes is great in her role of Penny and her portrayal of the ordeal that she experiences is truly powerful and contributes a frightening dimension to the film. The other members of the supporting cast –Jerry Orbach and the late Mark Cantor deserve a special mention here-also give wonderful and imaginative performances that gives this movie an additional dimension of high quality acting and believability that is wonderful to experience. The dancing is magnificent and first class on the part of all involved.

The script and interaction between all the major characters is intriguing and engages the viewer in a powerful fashion. The plot, although exceedingly predictable, is given more than enough life and vitality to make this movie successful.

Furthermore the wonderful selection of music contained in this movie creates a truly magical atmosphere and very nostalgic environment that enhances the quality and success of all the various scenes.

`Dirty Dancing' is a truly powerful, magnificent and very appealing movie that leaves you deeply touched and with a wonderful feeling in your heart and soul and an inspiration to dance. I highly recommend it