Rated PG for language, some suggestive content and momentary teen smoking.
117 Minutes
Directed By: Adam Shankman
Written By: Leslie Dixon
Based On The Play By: John Waters
Staring: John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Brittney Snow, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, Terry Parks, Jerry Stiller, and Nikki Blonsky
If we get any more white people in here, this is gonna be a suburb. -Motormouth Maybelle
Synopsis
Pleasantly plump teenager Tracy Turnblad teaches 1962 Baltimore a thing or two about integration after landing a spot on a local TV dance show.
Review
All hail the return of the musical! Except for myself, I think. Hairspray was a great interpretation of John Waters Broadway show, and fully encompassed the excitement, naivete, and passion of the young. The setting stages itself in sixties Baltimore with bigots, squares, and snobs trying to stifle the world of creativity, change, and integration.
John Travolta didn’t overdo the role of Edna Turnblad. The character is one of the more down to earth characters, unlike Queen Latifah’s electrifying depiction of Motormouth Maybelle. The rest of the cast was enigmatic, charming, and for some, deliciously venomous. Nikki Blonsky was charismatic, youthful and at times reminded me of a young Rikki Lake (that is a compliment). Her energy was the nucleus for the rest of the story, and her enthusiasm was palpable, though she often felt awkward in her setting. The language flying out of her mouth sounded like a drama student reading Shakespeare for the first couple times.
The choreography was without question phenomenal. It can be so difficult to translate that part of musicals into film, but Shankman was brilliantly successful in that feat. In fact, the choreography and music was what was the best part of Hairspray. The cast and story played a distant supporting role, to the power of the lyrics, the excitement of the music, and the entertainment of the dancing. The musicality and it’s flawlessinjection into the story made the musical as close to stage as it could get.
There were moments when Hairspray did feel like it dragged on for too long, but in general it kept it’s high octane excitement level going throughout. With some notable, and some very heartfelt and genuine performances, this is a funaddition to the film genre of musical. There certainly have been many better, but I’ve seen a considerable amount far worse. Besides being entertaining, there are is a lot of positivity and important messages delivered in this movie. It couldn’t hurt anyone to take a peek. The Verdict? I may not want to own this one, butadmittedly I enjoyed it.
Popularity: 1% [?]
