Footloose
Starring: Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer, John Lithgow, Christopher Penn
Directed by: Herbert Ross
Rating: PG
Genre: Musical, Drama
Box Office: $80,035,402
1984
Times Seen:
Tim: 3
Summary: City-kid Ren MacCormick (Kevin Bacon) moves with his family into the country, to a town where religion runs everyone's lives, and dancing is illegal, because rock and roll corrupts teenagers. Now, Ren must go against the whole town, but most especially a conservative preacher (John Lithgow) in an effort to put on a senior prom, and win the heart of the preacher's daughter (Lori Singer).
Review:
Tim: Footloose is the classic story of teenage rebellion, coming-of-age movie. Most young people like myself will probably remember growing up with this movie in the 80's. It embodies a whole sense of being out on your own, questioning everything you were taught since birth.
This is probably one of the most important movies in a lot of peoples' lives. I mean, watching Kevin Bacon pull off some incredible dance moves just makes you want to get out there and join him. This movie showed that men can dance AND be cool. The film itself is beautifully done, telling a simple story that applied to the lives of millions of people (not that dancing is illegal everywhere, but the rebellion theme, etc.).
Footloose is the film that rocketed Kevin Bacon to stardom, and for good reason- he is absolutely excellent in it. He plays the smart, tough, chip-on-my-shoulder role perfectly. I doubt any other actor could have given such a perfect performance. It's like Bacon was born for this role. He also got support from a great supporting cast. Christopher Penn is great as Willard, Lori Singer gives a complex and wonderful performance. Perhaps the best supporting role is that of John Lithgow. His character plays a central role to the movie. Without his strong performance, the film would have suffered greatly. He plays the antagonist to Bacon's protagonist character. They perfectly embody exact opposites, yet as the film goes on, you see the slighest similarities start to develop.
Footloose is a classic tale that has proven for years that it is one of our best films. If you haven't seen it yet, then I pity you. Definitely go out and watch it. If nothing else, it has one of the best movie soundtracks of all time- and who can help but dancing when you hear the great "Footloose" song?
Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8
If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Turning Point, Dirty Dancing, Flashdance, Saturday Night Fever