Why are 'they' trying to convince us that "Dirty Dancing" is some sort of 'classic'?

[JohnT]

Perhaps it's me, but doesn't there seem to be some bizarro campaign to turn this stupid film into some sort of defining "event" that we experienced back in 1987?

There's the special re-release occurring this year, for 2 days only (buy your tix now!!!). There was the 10th anniversary release back in 1997. There's the UK musical. There's the endless showings of the thing on cable. There's that time spent where Turner was billing the thing as a "New Classic". There's...

There's me going "WTF"?

Anybody want to take a shot at explaining this to me? Or am I the only one with this impression?

[WhyNot]

Um, because "they" want "our" "money".

Pretty simple, really.

(And that movie? Guilty pleasure. I might actually pay to see it in the theater again for nostalgia's sake, if it's playing by me. But I've never seen the stage shows or any of that. Did buy the soundracks on vinyl back in the day. One and two. But I was 12, so I believe some slack is on order to be cut.)

[cbawlmer]

If you were a girl aged 10-15 when it was first released, it was a pretty huge deal. The movie played at every slumber party for several years afterward, and everyone had the soundtrack. It's a guilty pleasure now, but many girls have fond memories of it.

[JohnT]

Obviously. whynot.

But why "Dirty Dancing"? Why not "Moonstruck" or "Fatal Attraction" or "The Untouchables"?

Is there some sort of big "Dirty Dancing" fanbase that I'm completely out of the loop on?

[WhyNot]

Is there some sort of big "Dirty Dancing" fanbase that I'm completely out of the loop on?
Yeah, I think I'm in the middle of it. As cbawlmer says, it was a 10-15 year old girl thing, so anyone who's in their thirties and early forties now - career women and housewives just beginning to feel "old" and wondering where their Johnny went, or why he never showed up. With, of course, disposable income to go along with that romantic ennui and self-loathing.

[Adoptamom_II]

Not only did I enjoy the original movie, but it has been a favorite of all five of my daughters. It still comes out on rainy Sunday afternoons, or for sleepovers, or anytime we want to admire Patrick Swayze's butt :p

[Anaamika]

I'll fess up. I loved this movie. Now I can't even watch it, it's so corny. But Patrick Swayze was my big crush as a kid.

[cbawlmer]

Yeah, I think I'm in the middle of it. As cbawlmer says, it was a 10-15 year old girl thing, so anyone who's in their thirties and early forties now - career women and housewives just beginning to feel "old" and wondering where their Johnny went, or why he never showed up. With, of course, disposable income to go along with that romantic ennui and self-loathing.

Nah, for me it's a mix of nostalgia, my enjoyment of the movie's heavy cheeze factor, and my love of movies where people learn to dance. As a kid, I never wanted Johnny, but I did want to dance and feel sexy and touch boys in a general sense.

The biggest thing that made a lot of girls love it back when the movie was new was that so many of our parents forbade us to see it. I mean, it had "dirty" right in the title!

[pinkfreud]

I'm a lot older than the target audience for Dirty Dancing, but I have quite a bit of nostalgia for it. Gee, I miss Jennifer Grey's real nose. She's almost unrecognizable now.

[Atrael]

Well, while I won't be lining up to see Dirty Dancing, if they re-released Footloose you can bet that I'd almost certainly go see that in a theater. That was a fun as hell movie *grin*....now to go practice my flying side kick.

[ShelliBean]

Because I lost my virginity after going to see this movie in the theater and by god everyone is going to celebrate the passing of my youth with me whether you like it or not!!

[cbawlmer]

Because I lost my virginity after going to see this movie in the theater and by god everyone is going to celebrate the passing of my youth with me whether you like it or not!!

OMG, my parents were right about this movie! :eek: :D

I know at least two guys who lost theirs after watching it with their girlfriends on video.

[gonzomax]

It was a crappy movie. Boring and predictable.

[Tuckerfan]

A friend of mine worked in a video store when it came out on VHS (Gee, remember those?) and he said people would get in fights over the damn thing.

[ArizonaTeach]

Because I lost my virginity after going to see this movie in the theater and by god everyone is going to celebrate the passing of my youth with me whether you like it or not!!Hell, for me it was Freejack with Mick Jagger and Emilio Estevez. And that ain't enough for me to declare that turd a classic.

[Einmon]

It was a crappy movie. Boring and predictable.Yeah, but she carried a watermelon!

(I'm sorry, but for us it's just one of those things where you turn to your friends and quote something from the movie. And crap or not, we'll be watching it at times, and I'm going to sing along with Mr. Kellerman, and I'm going to boo and hiss when I see the EVIL Shoemakers for the first time, and of course we're all yelling: "Nobody puts Baby in a corner!" - it's a bit like a performance of the Rocky Horror Picture Show)

[randwill]

I don't know why anybody would need to own this on DVD. It's on television all the time. It's a running joke in my family, when checking the TV listings, to notice what time "Dirty Dancing" is on today.

[KneadToKnow]

It's on television all the time.
Somebody on these boards once postulated that HBO stood for Hey, Beastmaster's On!

[Maastricht]

It was a crappy movie. Boring and predictable.Grouchy Smurf! (http://www.freeavatarsonline.com/avatars/cartoons/smurfs-grouchy-smurf-100x100.png)

[Stranger On A Train]

But why "Dirty Dancing"? Why not "Moonstruck" or "Fatal Attraction" or "The Untouchables"? Dude, use some basic deductive logic. What is in Dirty Dancing that is missing from these films? Yes, that's right: Patrick Swayze, the same man who made Road House, Next Of Kin, Black Dog, and Red Dawn instant classics.

And Moonstruck? Seriously? It lacks both real entertainment and kitsch value. And, of course, it doesn't have Patrick Swayze.

Well, while I won't be lining up to see Dirty Dancing, if they re-released Footloose you can bet that I'd almost certainly go see that in a theater. That was a fun as hell movie *grin*....now to go practice my flying side kick.Seek help. ;) Seriously, the Tractor Chicken Race scene just tops off almost two hours of bizarre rebellion against The System and no-so-subtle homoerotic interplay. You could really dispense with the girls in the film without losing anything.

Stranger

[Jeep's Phoenix]

Hmm. I prefer the instructional videos (http://seanbaby.com/stupid/dirty.htm) myself.

Warning: May contain strong language and male pantyline.

[DSYoungEsq]

The thing that was so stupid about the movie was that it theoretically was set in the way back years, but in those years, no one was dancing that way. I laughed through the whole thing. And Jennifer Grey wasn't worth getting excited about, and the dirtiness wasn't really so dirty.

Good music, though. :)

[Guinastasia]

It introduced me to the good actor that was Jerry Orbach. That's enough.

[Jodi]

I think it's a "slice of time" sort of thing. I was 18 the year it came out and it was the mushy-happy-feel-good-fall-in-love movie of the year -- at least for us girls. It's one of those feel-good movies that takes us back.



"Nobody puts Baby in a corner!" :)

[RickJay]

I don't know why anybody would need to own this on DVD. It's on television all the time. It's a running joke in my family, when checking the TV listings, to notice what time "Dirty Dancing" is on today.
It's not on as often as this movie is. (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=346608&highlight=Eastwick)

Interestingly, though, "Dirty Dancing" was cited in post #6 of that thread.

[Lucky 13]

It's a girl thing. I say this as a woman who was in high school when that movie came out, and spent most of junior year listening to her classmates fantasize about Patrick Swayze. Oh yeah, and there was no escaping the radio play of most of the songs on the soundtrack. It was always fun to sing along with "Love is Strange." BTW, Sylvia of Mickey and Sylvia is the mother of a member of the Sugar Hill Gang, of "Rapper's Delight" fame (she produced it.)

[flurb]

Didn't Conan O'Brien start a campaign back in the nineties to get Dirty Dancing re-released, and then when the studios did he admitted that he though it was a horrible movie?

[Intravenus De Milo]

Heh, my mom freakin' loves Dirty Dancing, just because she used to work in a luxurious mountain retreat hotel EXACTLY like the one in the movie (and in the same place where the movie was actually filmed, in western North Carolina). So she gets all nostalgic about how she and her Mayview Manor gal pals would all go have fun around town once they got off of work (I'm pretty sure they didn't bump-and-grind or listen to Eric Carmen records, though...). By the time I was in high school (late '90s), it was more of a "hey, this is good, for a movie that came out in the '80s" thing, since for the most part Patrick Swayze wasn't exactly considered the paragon of manliness by my generation.

Now, I think, it's more of a "hey, holy crap, this movie is 20 years old?!" thing. It's interesting, actually, because a number of major filmatic events of the past are having big anniversaries this year. Both Roots and Star Wars are turning 30, for example, and are correspondingly having nostalgia-fests.

[phungi]

Hey! NOBODY puts Dirty Dancing in a corner!

Sorry... had to do it.

The funny unknown fact about this movie is that it is a remake of Marjorie Morningstar (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051911/) in which young Jewess Natalie Wood (aka: "Morningstern") falls for goy dancer Gene Kelly at the Catskills vacation resort, and that version received a couple of Oscar nominations.

[Adoptamom_II]

I mentioned this once before, but it bears repeating: It's not particularly Patrick Swayze's good looks, it's his ASS that draws the gals of this family to the screen whenever Dirty Dancing is on. Lord have mercy!

why yes, I realize that's a completely sexist comment! Who gives a rats ASS

:D

[capybara]

(ok, token female, mid-30s, coming in to report that I always from instant #1 despised this film and Pat Swayze, for what it's worth, for whomever needs to keep faith in mankind. Instead I was, you'll be sadistically overjoyed to know, one of those Buckaroo Banzai, Adam Ant types. . .)

[Tuckerfan]

(ok, token female, mid-30s, coming in to report that I always from instant #1 despised this film and Pat Swayze, for what it's worth, for whomever needs to keep faith in mankind. Instead I was, you'll be sadistically overjoyed to know, one of those Buckaroo Banzai, Adam Ant types. . .)
Soooo, how YOU doin' ;)

[Einmon]

Heh, actually, capybara, I despised the movie and Patrick Swayze at the time, too, I was busy pinning up Harrison Ford posters. But I've come around. To the trashy qualities of the movie, at least, not necessarily Patrick Swayze (nor his ass for some reason). Though I liked him in Donnie Darko.

phungi: I'll have to check out Majorie Morningstar (sounds like a character from a Tolkien novel) - Gene Kelly and Natalie Wood, what's not to like!

[Shirley Ujest]

I had the time of my life.





















Nobody puts baby in the corner!

[Nava]

(ok, token female, mid-30s, coming in to report that I always from instant #1 despised this film and Pat Swayze, for what it's worth, for whomever needs to keep faith in mankind. Instead I was, you'll be sadistically overjoyed to know, one of those Buckaroo Banzai, Adam Ant types. . .)

Adam Ant is perfectly compatible with Patrick Swayze's ass (helluva nice back, too). The tape that's in my car's player right now is by Adam and the Ants.

Dirty Dancing is as mindless as Grease; that is, completely. I don't think I've ever watched a Swayze movie that would have been worth watching if he hadn't been in it (although the soundtracks tend to be good, at least in my "I don't assume I have good taste" book). But I don't watch them for the story, I watch them for the views. Pass that popcorn!

[DSYoungEsq]

The one, and only, Patrick Swayze movie worth watching was Ghost. It was nice to see he could rise to the challenge of that one.

[Atrael]

Seek help. ;) Seriously, the Tractor Chicken Race scene just tops off almost two hours of bizarre rebellion against The System and no-so-subtle homoerotic interplay. You could really dispense with the girls in the film without losing anything.

Stranger


Yeah, but I don't really care about the story...I like the music...heck, I watched The Phantom of the Opera last night again, and basically skipped to the musical numbers. Besides, this way I can keep up when my kids go through this angsty stage...I can just pull out these movies and commiserate with them.... :)

[PunditLisa]

I can see the appeal of it, though I, personally, never thought that Swayze was all that handsome. And he dances with that over-exaggerated movement that professional dancers have and it turns me off. I'll take Kevin Bacon's untrained dancing anytime.

I thought the music was fun, and the storyline was kind of sweet, but the dancing left me cold. A good tango is much, much sexier than dry humping someone. Let's go for subtlety here, people!

But, like I said, I can see the appeal. I can also see the appeal of "Grease" which also has its flaws.

[tremorviolet]

Somebody on these boards once postulated that HBO stood for Hey, Beastmaster's On!

No, it's always on TBS: The Beastmaster Station. ;)

[Kalhoun]

I didn't get this movie's appeal (aside from Swayze's butt). I loved Flashdance. Better dancing, better story.

[ralph124c]

Well, my ex was in love with patrick swayzee-what's his career like now? likewise, jennifer gray-is she still acting? The movie was made for teenage girls-that was the target audience, and it succeeded.

[ShelliBean]

Yes, that's right: Patrick Swayze, the same man who made Road House, Next Of Kin, Black Dog, and Red Dawn instant classics.



I can't believe I am going to admit this. I own Black Dog. Cause it's got Swayze, Meatloaf and Randy Travis.
Alcohol. Alcohol makes it better.

[Ike Witt]

Was Patrick Swayze ever able to contort his face into a second expression, ever?

[Evil Captor]

Well, speaking as a guy, the movie's not All That, but man, it has a great soundtrack. it was on recently (of course) and I was jukin' and jivin' all over the place.

[Zakalwe]

I can also see the appeal of "Grease" which also has its flaws.Yes, but what about the appeal of Grease 2? Lady Zakalwe has a fondness for it that almost made me reconsider my proposal.*

*Not really

The one, and only, Patrick Swayze movie worth watching was Ghost. It was nice to see he could rise to the challenge of that one.Pistols at dawn, sir! I submit that Point Break (http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0102685/) is far superior to Ghost. Plus it has Keanu!

[Ceejaytee]

Wow. I'm 42, and apparently completely missed the boat on this movie. I've never seen it and never had the desire too. Footloose, on the other hand--Well, Kevin Bacon's much better than Patrick Swayze at everything. And the soundtrack was soooo much better.

[Thudlow Boink]

Didn't Conan O'Brien start a campaign back in the nineties to get Dirty Dancing re-released, and then when the studios did he admitted that he though it was a horrible movie?Yes!The film was re-released in 1997 solely due to a petition led by late-night talk show host Conan O'Brien in which he asked viewers to send letters calling for the film's re-release. When exhibitors finally agreed, O'Brien joked that he actually didn't like the movie all that much.I remember seeing this, with Conan promoting Dirty Dancing as the Greatest Movie Ever—until it actually did get re-released, whereupon he admitted that the movie actually kinda sucks.

In other words, the OP's theory about "some bizarro campaign" is essentially correct.

[JohnT]

A-HA!!!!

I knew it!!!!!

So... it's all Conan's fault, eh? Probably his revenge for me asking "is he still on the air?" ;)

[cbawlmer]

No, no. It was Conan's fault 10 years ago. Unless he started up the campaign again and I somehow missed it.

A friend and I actually went to the rerelease in 1997. Later I bought a one of the rerelease posters ("Have the time of your life...again!") and it now hangs in my garage. It makes me smile every morning before I leave for work. Not because it's necessarily a good movie, but it's a fun movie.

[bovis-rex]

It introduced me to the good actor that was Jerry Orbach. That's enough.

I hear you on that. I was in the target audience (16 year old boy) but I'd also grown up with musicals, and thought it was mighty bizarre that Joel Grey's daughter AND Jerry Orbach were both in the same movie with the overacted guy from 'Red Dawn.' Still amuses me, really.

[Thudlow Boink]

I was in the target audience (16 year old boy)?

I've never seen the movie, but I was under the impression that it was a chick flick.

[JohnT]

Who do you think he was trying to score with?

At 16 "chick flick" = "date movie" = "target audience". ;)

[susan_foster]

I have to say, I want to smack whoever just released a cover of "She's Like the Wind". I'm not saying the original is good, but the cover is worse.

Susan

[August West]

The one, and only, Patrick Swayze movie worth watching was Ghost. It was nice to see he could rise to the challenge of that one.


You are OBVIOUSLY forgetting Red Dawn, the movie that made us hate commies. (More than usual I mean)

[OneCentStamp]

I have no use for the movie, but I would have bent Baby over a corner in a heartbeat.

[capybara]

Susan Foster-- Damn you. I have that song in my head now and it's up there in my list of 10-most-irritating-songs-ever.

[gigi]

Well, my ex was in love with patrick swayzee-what's his career like now? likewise, jennifer gray-is she still acting?He appeared, heavily plastic-surgeried, as a dance instructor in Dirty Dancing 2: Havana Nights which featured the lovely Diego Luna from Y Tu Mama Tambien. (What can I say, I have a friend who loves dance movies even more than I do.)

Jennifer Grey had a nose job which as mentioned, changed her appearance drastically (http://www.imdb.com/gallery/hh/0000426/iid_1265165.jpg.html?path=pgallery&path_key=Grey%2C%20Jennifer&seq=2). She has appeared in a couple of short-lived sit-coms.

[monstro]

If you were a girl aged 10-15 when it was first released, it was a pretty huge deal. The movie played at every slumber party for several years afterward, and everyone had the soundtrack. It's a guilty pleasure now, but many girls have fond memories of it.

I remember watching Dirty Dancing at a slumber party when I was ten-years-old. We also watched Mannequin and Three Men and a Baby.

We watched Mannequin twice. The scene where the mannequin falls on the guy will stay with me forever.

[mobo85]

I don't know why anybody would need to own this on DVD. It's on television all the time. It's a running joke in my family, when checking the TV listings, to notice what time "Dirty Dancing" is on today.

Is it mostly on WE? Because they have a series also called Dirty Dancing, a reality show based on the film.

No, it's always on TBS: The Beastmaster Station. ;)

I originally thought this Onion article was about Beastmaster (the movie, not the TV series inspired by it), but I'm linking to it anyway, because it's a good example of what The Onion does best: Kickboxer, Starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, To Continue In A Moment (http://www.theonion.com/content/node/30644)

I had the time of my life.

I've never felt that way before. I swear.

[WhyNot]

Jennifer Grey had a nose job which as mentioned, changed her appearance drastically (http://www.imdb.com/gallery/hh/0000426/iid_1265165.jpg.html?path=pgallery&path_key=Grey%2C%20Jennifer&seq=2). She has appeared in a couple of short-lived sit-coms.
Didn't she really, honestly go in for a genuine deviated septum and the jerk decided to "fix" her while she was under? I thought I remembered something about her suing him because once she woke up with a new nose, she couldn't get cast because no one recognized her any more. Or maybe I'm just making it all up, as I can't find any cites anymore (although there's mention everywhere that she's said it was "a mistake", it's unclear whether the mistake was hers in getting it or the doctor's in doing it.)

[OneCentStamp]

Jennifer Grey had a nose job which as mentioned, changed her appearance drastically (http://www.imdb.com/gallery/hh/0000426/iid_1265165.jpg.html?path=pgallery&path_key=Grey%2C%20Jennifer&seq=2).
Holy shit, they made her into Ellen Pompeo. :eek: :(

[Susie Derkins]

I can see the appeal of it, though I, personally, never thought that Swayze was all that handsome.

Right there with you on that one! (http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=97404411&blogID=168375455&Mytoken=A211651F-203D-4EC7-ACBD322AB4F3022763884043) (Old blog on the subject.)

I'm 34 and my friends and I adored this movie. I remember one girl from school throwing a co-ed birthday party and whispering to everyone she invited that it was going to be a "dirty dancing" party. As in, put down your melons, all invitees are gonna be grindin', no babies left in the corner. I was totally titillated until I saw the guys who showed up (but even they looked better than Patrick Swayze).