Review of Hairspray (1988) by Matthew D — 24 Apr 2012

A popular dance show is all the rage in 1960?s Baltimore. Tracy Turnblad (Ricki Lake) is it?s biggest fan. When she gets on the show she realizes the hypocrisy of the show and how segregated Baltimore really is. She stands up for what she believes and the result is music to your ears.

I?ll have to admit this movie is nothing like I expected. I just wanted to be pleasantly entertained for one hour and thirty two minutes and instead I was given a lesson in integration and the prejudices that existed in the time period.

I am not sure whether or not this is a middle scholl movie or a high school flick so I?ll make it my segway piece to the high school movies starting next week. What I am sure of is the awaesome cast in this movie. From the aforementioned Ricki Lake to Sunny Bono and Jerry Stiller this movie has a cast to die for. The spotlight award however goes to duel performer Divine. He plays Tracy?s mother in drag as well as the prejudiced station and director named Arvin Hodepile.

This movie was remade in 2007. This outing was nominated for seven smaller awards including Best Director, and Best Female Lead and Supporting Male for Ricki Lake and Divine perceptively. While this movie was not the greatest thing since sliced bread it was pretty entertaining for a lonely Sunday morning. I enjoyed it from start to finish.

Decided for yourself whether or not this movie is a hit or not. Go out and rent it today. I cannot guarantee you?ll love it but I will bet you?ll remember it for a while from now.

Grade B+.