Dirty Dancing (20th Anniversary Edition) [Blu-ray]
Dirty Dancing (20th Anniversary Edition) [Blu-ray]
Lionsgate Dirty Dancing 20th Anniversary Edition (Blu-Ray)
It’s summer, 1963. Baby (Grey), 17 years old and innocent, is vacationing with her parents in theCatskills. While exploring the resort grounds late one evening, she is drawn to the staff quarters by stirring music. There she meets Johnny (Swayze), the hotel dance instructor, who is as experienced in life as Baby is naive. Mesmerized by the sexybeats and uninhibited movements of “Dirty Dancing,” Baby soon becomes Johnny’s prize pupil - in dance and in love.As with Grease (1978) and Footloose (1984) before it, Dirty Dancing was a cultural phenomenon that now plays more like camp. That very campiness, though, is part of its biggest charm. And if the dancing in the movie doesn’t seem particularly “dirty” by today’s standards–or 1987’s–it does take place in an era (the early ’60s) when it would have. Frances “Baby” Houseman (Jennifer Grey, daughter of ageless hoofer Joel Grey) has been vacationing in the Catskills with her family for many years. Uneventfully. One summer, she falls under the sway (as it were) of dance instructor Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze). Baby is a pampered pup, but Johnny is a man of the world. Baby’s father, Jake (Law and Order’s Jerry Orbach), can’t see the basic decency in greaser Johnny that she can. It should come as no surprise to find that Baby, who can be as immature as her name, learns more about love and life–and dancing–from free-spirited Johnny than traditionalist Jake.
Dirty Dancing spawned two successful soundtracks, a short-lived TV series, and a stage musical. It may be predictable, but Grey and Swayze have chemistry, charisma, and all the right moves. It’s a sometimes silly movie with occasionally mind-boggling dialogue–”No one puts Baby in a corner!”–that nonetheless carries an underlying message about tolerance and is filled with the kind of exuberant spirit that’s hard for even the most cynical to resist. Not that they’d ever admit it. –Kathleen C. Fennessy
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Dirty Dancing (20th Anniversary Edition)
It is very sexy and nice drama , I think. But I like very very much a Dirty Dancing ( Havana Night ) more.
1 Stars not what i ordered
i ordered the “dirty dancing” dvd, the description online said it was the fullscreen version. when it arrived it was the widescreen version. i do not care for movies in the widescreen. i have checked back since i got my order and it is still being advertised as the “fullscreen version. i love the movie and always have, that’s why i ordered it in dvd. i really think it should be advertised as it really is so other people don’t get the wrong product like i did
4 Stars Still having the time of my life
At the Oscars, they were predicting that musicals were going to have a resurgence. It seemed like time to revisit some of my old favorites and see if they were as good as I remembered them to be. In the case of “Dirty Dancing,” I’m happy to report the answer is yes.
The story’s been told before. A young girl, Baby Houseman (Jennifer Grey) goes to a summer resort and falls for Johnny Castle, the dance instructor (Patrick Swayze). There’s a complication, John’s partner Penny (Cynthia Rhodes) is pregnant by one of the college boys. Baby helps and ends up getting in trouble with her own dad, Dr. Jake Houseman. Johnny accepts responsibility, since the ‘cad dad’ won’t. Johnny’s from the bad side of town and the doctor just doesn’t want his little girl messing around with a tough guy like him, particularly one who got his dance partner pregnant.
The music’s fabulous, including numbers by The Righteous Brothers, Mickey and Sylvia, etc. The dancing is even better. This is Swayze at his best.
Well worth the time to watch and they’ve done a great job bringing this film to DVD, too.
Rebecca Kyle, March 2009
5 Stars This is one of the best movies from the late ’80s
It’s been close to twenty years since I watched this film. At first, it looks like an 80’s attempt at a date movie, but this one goes much further than that. It has a captivating plot, likable characters, and one of the greatest soundtracks of all time. Even though I’m not a fan of musicals or dancing, I still found myself enjoying this story. If you are a fan of Saturday Night Fever, you will most likely appreciate Dirty Dancing as well.
5 Stars DIRTY DANCING
ONE WORD GOES WITH THIS MOVIE AND THAT IS CLASSIC. IS THE BEST COMING OF AGE FILM.
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