'FOUR WEEKS THAT CHANGED MY CARE-FREE LIFE FOREVER' DOUBLE BILL!
DIRTY DANCING: THE TELEVISION EVENT (2017, TUBI) 28 YEARS LATER (2025, AMC DOLBY CINEMA)
Morbid curiosity led me to watch the 2017 ABC made-for-TV movie adaptation of "Dirty Dancing," yet another remake of a Patrick Swayze classic ("Road House," "Point Break," "Red Dawn") that's pretty faithful to the original (same year/location/characters/songs). The version streaming on TUBI only has Spanish sound/subtitles. Fine with me because I'm bilingual (and it's a good Spanish dub to boot), but if you're an English-only viewer you're SOL. Shame because, to coin a phrase using F This Movie vernacular, "Dirty Dancing '17" is 'not AIDS' and actually 'it's fine.' It can't touch the 1987 version but in some key aspects it's an improvement. :-O
Abigail Breslin plays the Baby role and Colt Prattes (who?) is Johnny Castle. No surprise here, they're nowhere near as good as Jennifer Grey and Swayze in chemistry, dancing prowess or sexiness. The inferior cover versions of some key songs ('Hungry Eyes,' 'She's Like the Wind') don't help. Nicole Scherzinger makes a great substitute Penny, though. They're all OK but come across as celebrity Breslin in a "Dancing with the Stars" contest being choreographed by coaches Prattes and Scherzinger. :-P But since this movie filled a three-hour timeslot in May of '17 it runs 130 minutes, 35 minutes longer than the '87 original. Many supporting roles were expanded, particularly Baby's parents. Played by Bruce Greenwood (Pike in '09 "Star Trek") and Debra Messing (TV's "Will & Grace"), in this version Baby's parents have drifted apart and are nearing divorce. That weights heavy on Doctor Houseman's mind as Baby borrows money, has him help Penny after the botched @b0rtion and reveals she slept with Johnny. Jerry Orbach was great in the OG "DD," but Greenwood is excellent here and his dramatic scenes opposite Breslin and Messing are highlights. Hell, when Bruce and Debra take over the 'I've Had the Time of My Life' song during the dance at the end l stood up and cheered. :-D
"Dirty Dancing '17's" new ending embraces bittersweet realism and I like it, but can see even its few fans shutting it down and retreating to the safety of the OG's 'happily ever after' vibes. I wouldn't have watched this in a million years without the Junesploitation! push, but that's what June fishing is all about. 3.45 KATEY SEGAL-AS-VIVIAN PRESSMAN'S EX-HUBBY ROLEX WATCHES (out of five).
I never watch trailers/commercials for movies, so you can imagine my surprise finding out Danny Boyle's "28 Years Later" (sequel to the '02 first movie that ignores "28 Weeks Later") has a pacifist teenage humanist as its main protagonist. After an eventful rite of passage hunting for his first rage virus kill in the quarantined U.K. mainland alongside his proud father (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), 12 year-old Spike (Alfie Williams) realizes the adults in the isolated island community he's lived on his entire life don't care about the well-being of his mentally ill mother Isla (Jodie Comer in a thankless role) as much as he does. Proving that last year's "Civil War" wasn't a fluke, screenwriter Alex Garland dials up the nihilism and cynicism about humanity that fuels director Boyle's nasty action beats. Even with some CG digital tools and clever camera tricks (including a pseudo-"Matrix" 'arrow cam' effect for the best kills) this has to be the mainstream horror movie with the most male p@ni$es in full display... the reason Dolby Cinema was invented. :-P
"28YL" is at times deep and thoughtful (Ralph Fiennes crushes his small role), other times seems to be fishing for a franchise extension (the whole Jimmy opening/closing scenes, which feel straight out of "The Walking Dead") but it's never less than compelling. Even when it strikes out (Edvin Ryding's Erik, whose welcomed comic relief is undermined by his short fuse thinking and eventual symbolism) you want to see where Spike will end up 28 days later. 4 SHELL PETROL STATIONS MISSING AN 'S' (out of five).
'FOUR WEEKS THAT CHANGED MY CARE-FREE LIFE FOREVER' DOUBLE BILL!
ReplyDeleteDIRTY DANCING: THE TELEVISION EVENT (2017, TUBI)
28 YEARS LATER (2025, AMC DOLBY CINEMA)
Morbid curiosity led me to watch the 2017 ABC made-for-TV movie adaptation of "Dirty Dancing," yet another remake of a Patrick Swayze classic ("Road House," "Point Break," "Red Dawn") that's pretty faithful to the original (same year/location/characters/songs). The version streaming on TUBI only has Spanish sound/subtitles. Fine with me because I'm bilingual (and it's a good Spanish dub to boot), but if you're an English-only viewer you're SOL. Shame because, to coin a phrase using F This Movie vernacular, "Dirty Dancing '17" is 'not AIDS' and actually 'it's fine.' It can't touch the 1987 version but in some key aspects it's an improvement. :-O
Abigail Breslin plays the Baby role and Colt Prattes (who?) is Johnny Castle. No surprise here, they're nowhere near as good as Jennifer Grey and Swayze in chemistry, dancing prowess or sexiness. The inferior cover versions of some key songs ('Hungry Eyes,' 'She's Like the Wind') don't help. Nicole Scherzinger makes a great substitute Penny, though. They're all OK but come across as celebrity Breslin in a "Dancing with the Stars" contest being choreographed by coaches Prattes and Scherzinger. :-P But since this movie filled a three-hour timeslot in May of '17 it runs 130 minutes, 35 minutes longer than the '87 original. Many supporting roles were expanded, particularly Baby's parents. Played by Bruce Greenwood (Pike in '09 "Star Trek") and Debra Messing (TV's "Will & Grace"), in this version Baby's parents have drifted apart and are nearing divorce. That weights heavy on Doctor Houseman's mind as Baby borrows money, has him help Penny after the botched @b0rtion and reveals she slept with Johnny. Jerry Orbach was great in the OG "DD," but Greenwood is excellent here and his dramatic scenes opposite Breslin and Messing are highlights. Hell, when Bruce and Debra take over the 'I've Had the Time of My Life' song during the dance at the end l stood up and cheered. :-D
"Dirty Dancing '17's" new ending embraces bittersweet realism and I like it, but can see even its few fans shutting it down and retreating to the safety of the OG's 'happily ever after' vibes. I wouldn't have watched this in a million years without the Junesploitation! push, but that's what June fishing is all about. 3.45 KATEY SEGAL-AS-VIVIAN PRESSMAN'S EX-HUBBY ROLEX WATCHES (out of five).
I never watch trailers/commercials for movies, so you can imagine my surprise finding out Danny Boyle's "28 Years Later" (sequel to the '02 first movie that ignores "28 Weeks Later") has a pacifist teenage humanist as its main protagonist. After an eventful rite of passage hunting for his first rage virus kill in the quarantined U.K. mainland alongside his proud father (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), 12 year-old Spike (Alfie Williams) realizes the adults in the isolated island community he's lived on his entire life don't care about the well-being of his mentally ill mother Isla (Jodie Comer in a thankless role) as much as he does. Proving that last year's "Civil War" wasn't a fluke, screenwriter Alex Garland dials up the nihilism and cynicism about humanity that fuels director Boyle's nasty action beats. Even with some CG digital tools and clever camera tricks (including a pseudo-"Matrix" 'arrow cam' effect for the best kills) this has to be the mainstream horror movie with the most male p@ni$es in full display... the reason Dolby Cinema was invented. :-P
"28YL" is at times deep and thoughtful (Ralph Fiennes crushes his small role), other times seems to be fishing for a franchise extension (the whole Jimmy opening/closing scenes, which feel straight out of "The Walking Dead") but it's never less than compelling. Even when it strikes out (Edvin Ryding's Erik, whose welcomed comic relief is undermined by his short fuse thinking and eventual symbolism) you want to see where Spike will end up 28 days later. 4 SHELL PETROL STATIONS MISSING AN 'S' (out of five).