Guest Author - Valerie Valdez
The original film Footloose with Kevin Bacon and Lori Singer still resonates in the minds of many movie fans. Yet, this version should win over a new generation of film lovers eager for some mindless fun.
The premise is the same, after a fatal accident, the local minister, Rev. Shaw Moore (Dennis Quaid) and city council ban all things bad, music and booze. A spirited teenager, Arial, (Julianne Hough), the minister’s daughter attracts the attention of a local bad boy, Chuck Cranston (Patrick John Flueger).
Then Ren McCormack (Kenny Wormald) arrives in the small town with his rebellious soul and dancing shoes. Soon he is arrested for loud music, which leads him to stage a revolt of the town’s youths. They petition the council to restore dancing while Moore fights back.
Meanwhile, Cranston, who considers Ariel his girl, grows jealous of Ren’s attention towards her. This sets up the big showdown between Ren and Cranston, and Ren and Moore.
Director Craig Brewer, the talented Memphis director of “Hustle & Flow” and “Black Snake Moan“, knows how to give a Jack Daniels feel to the film, setting in the unnamed South. He also shot much of the film close to the original, in some cases shot for shot. But he also expands the story to bring out more the characters’ back-stories and adds a little humor.
The best casting is with Miles Teller as Willard, the local teenager who befriends Ren and makes the most of his on-screen dance routines moments. The gangly and always excellent Ray McKinnon, as Ren's uncle, adds a necessary homey and natural edge.
The performances, except for Teller, are a paler shade of the original actors with less chemistry. Wormald and Hough are attractive enough and good on the dance floor, but they come across more like teenagers in training than actual representations of youthful angst.
This “Footloose” has more of a “Friday Night Lights” feel than a musical. It is non-campy, emotionally engaging and respectful of the built-in drama that comes with being a teen. The main ingredient missing is the teenage angst to make the conflict and romance gel into a whole story. Still, for less than two-hours, just enjoy the innocent, hip-hop dancing of “Footloose.”
"Footloose," a Paramount Pictures release, is rated PG-13 for mild teen drug and alcohol use, sexual content, violence and language. Running time: 113 minutes.
http://www.footloosemovie.com/en_us/
