Footloose
Review by Tyson Legg
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Footloose
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And so the remake train rolls on. Footloose, directed by Craig
Brewer (who has shown his skills directing music on film previously in
the excellent "Hustle and Flow") is a remake of the classic Kevin Bacon
film from 1984, but without the fun and energy that made the original
so enjoyable to watch.
The film stars Kenny Wormald as Ren, a
teenage boy with a little too much attitude who moves to the small town
of Beaumont after the death of his mother.
Very quickly he
runs into trouble with the locals for his "Yankee sarcasm" and
inability to listen to music at a reasonable level, all of which draws
the attention of the Preacher's daughter, Ariel (Julianne Hough).
While
generally being a pain in the ass and trying to get into Ariel's pants,
Ren takes it upon himself to try and lift the small town’s ban on
public dancing, enforced since the death of 5 local kids who crashed
their car into a semi-trailer after a night having a boogie.
This of course puts him on a collision course with the Preacher (Dennis Quaid), who's own son was one of the victims.
If
this sounds ridiculous to you, it's because it is. But while the
original seemed plausible due to its fanciful take on the material, and
the fact that we believed anything could happen in the 80s, this
version suffers greatly from its insistence that we take it seriously,
leading to unintentionally hilarious scenes of teenagers spreading
their angst all over the place just because they want to "dance their
ass off".
Unfortunately, Wormald is no Kevin Bacon.
Part
of what makes the original so memorable was Bacon's ability to be
charming while being a bit of a smart ass, which Wormald cannot grasp.
Having said that, he is an excellent dancer, and when he gets to let
"loose" and show we he can do he almost wins the audience over.
Scenes
that require him to stretch his range above "being a tough kid" feel
forced and uncomfortable, and he struggles to build chemistry with any
of his co-stars.
Hough and her ridiculously blue eyes fare
slightly better as Ariel, but only due to small number of scenes where
she gives depth to her "bad girl with a heart of gold" character. One
confrontation between herself and Quaid late in the film is quite
moving and shows glimpses of talent we can hope to see more of in the
future. Even though Quaid clearly needed a paycheck, he doesn't
embarrass himself too much here, giving the Preacher character a warmth
and rationality that was missing in the original.
Sadly the
same can’t be said for Andie MacDowell, who makes so little impact as
the Preacher's wife that you wish the producers had hired an unknown
and saved themselves some money.
But all is not lost!
Miles
Teller as the lovable best friend Willard goes a long way to keep the
viewer interested through his goofy red-neck charm and outstanding
comic timing, and this remake does feature some memorable scenes
(although to be fair they are mostly lifted almost entirely from the
original) such as Ren’s "angry dance" in an abandoned factory and the
learning to dance montage, which even goes as far as to use the same
song from the original 80s sequence.
The film looks fantastic,
and Brewer clearly loves his sweaty, southern imagery (as he
demonstrated in Black Snake Moan). He even injects some darker moments
into this film, which sadly only hint at a better, more exploratory
film that has remained unmade.
Instead, some great lines
and character interactions that could really spark in a more realistic
environment feel out of place and wholly unnecessary here, as does the
use of swearing (especially when a film is clearly pitched to a younger
audience, as this one is).
Still, I'd much prefer teenagers of
today see this then the likes of Twilight or another Bieber Fever
concert special. The music is great, although some of the updated
cover versions of tunes from the 80s soundtrack miss the mark, the
dance sequences are expertly choreographed and performed with
incredible energy and the film has its heart in the right place even if
is bashes us over the head with its themes of free creative expression
and "being yourself".
Tweens could do worse I suppose... 2.5 out
of 5
Footloose
Australian release: 6th October,
2011
Official
Site: Footloose
Cast: Kenny Wormald, Julianne Hough, Dennis Quaid
Director: Craig Brewer
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