FlashdanceLots of movies pride themselves on having sophisticated and expensive special effects; Flashdance manages to accomplish one of movie history's most instantly recognizable and effective ones in the first few minutes with a bucket of water and a chair. In a way, that's kind of the gist of Flashdance and its message, that no matter your humble origins, its about how you apply yourself and your confidence and drive that gets you where you need to go; but you have to take the first step. And for the young dancer Alex (Jennifer Beals)--who can effortlessly dance her heart out--the fear of taking that plunge into her dreams is almost too much to bear.
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Flashdance is one of the most distinctly "Eighties" movies, itself a trendsetter for films and fashion to follow. After all, with a creative team including director Adrian Lyne, a screenplay co-written by Joe Eszterhas, and composer Giorgio Moroder, one could argue it was preordained. The movie carries a bit of a camp legacy; it even gets a nod in the British comedy, The Full Monty and spoofed in the underrated comedy, Elvira: Mistress of the Dark. Flashdance kicked off a "dance movie" craze in the early Eighties, with the likes of Footloose and Dirty Dancing to follow, as well as a surge of legwarmers as fashion accessories for young women. Extended dance sequences feature pop music played often for the entirety of the song, a stylistic choice which no doubt contributed to the wildly successful album sales. The expressive and high-energy dances are reminiscent of music videos; given the relatively recent advent of MTV, this proved to be a popular choice. So much of Flashdance seems to have been absorbed into pop culture that key moments and the accompanying music sticks in one's mind more than the plot, which is for the most part a vehicle for the numerous musical interludes. Alex has her day job as a welder, but by nights dances as an exotic dancer at a dive bar called Mawby's. When her day job boss, Nick (Michael Nouri) catches her fiery performance which even a bucket of cold water can't cool down, he is smitten, and probably violates some of his own company's HR regulations by following her around, trying to get a dinner date with his significantly younger employee. Alex is a part of a group of talented dancers at the bar, which for a dive, seems to possess a pretty sophisticated stage with dancers performing some highly creative stuff...probably too creative for their environs. Alex is rightly suspicious about taking up a dinner date with the guy who writes her checks, but his persistence pays off, and that's probably what attracts Alex to Nick. Alex herself is driven, dancing at breakneck speed and absorbing the dance all around her in the world with a tenacity like that of her pet pit bull, Grunt. In fact, in this "blue collar idyll" of Pittsburgh, dance seems to be everywhere; on the streets and in the gym, in the skating rink--even the cops directing traffic have a rhythm. Alex claims she has no formal dancing education, but feels the music within her and lets her body take control. Although she dreams of entering the ultra competitive arena of ballet, her greatest hurdle is overcoming her fear of rejection, something even her gusto cannot seem to surmount.
It seems surprising that Alex would have difficulty in applying to a school, when she seems to have no problem getting on stage in skin-tight outfits performing gyrations in front of men imbibing alcohol; but as she tells Nick, she loses herself in her dance, and looks forward to putting aside her fears as she dances. It's important to remember Alex is only eighteen--how she was employed as a welder at her age remains a mystery, but even this expectation and, yes, gender stereotype is lampshaded by the movie at the start, when we see the as of yet unidentified welder with the mask that reads "Alex" working, only to be revealed as the young girl we saw on the bike moments ago. As a young woman, she seeks counsel from not only her priest at confession, but a retired ballerina named Hanna, who encourages her to apply herself, and even takes her to the ballet to show her what to expect. Alex is an appealing protagonist; she possesses a kind of effortless seductiveness by way of her innocent candor. It's open to interpretation as to whether she has any idea how seductive she is being as she removes her bra from beneath her collarless sweatshirt when she invites Nick over to her warehouse apartment; there is, however, no question as to her intentions when they go out to a fancy restaurant, and Alex sucks away at her lobster, dressed in what could only be described as the unfinished idea of a tuxedo. As an aside, I knew a girl in college who looked almost just like Jennifer Beals circa 1983; not asking her out on a date ranks up there as one of life's greatest regrets. Alex and Nick have a few bumps in their relationship, almost uniformly involving misunderstandings. Nick tries to support her in her efforts to apply to the repertory school, only to find she revokes their relationship, believing her invitation to the audition is no longer exclusively a pure effort on her part. Alex blames Nick, and retreats inward, using her self-doubt as a justification not to try. It's a pretty terrifying thing to try to tackle that lofty concept of "your dream", especially when it involves facing a review committee that has all the initial warmth of a firing squad. Nick puts it best when he tells Alex that "when you give up your dream, you die". It's not always easy, but it's always right.
Recommended for: Fans of unabashedly Eighties flicks with a copious amount of dance numbers and pop songs. The fashion, synth score, and light-hearted plot make for a toe-tapping popcorn muncher and dance down memory lane.
It seems surprising that Alex would have difficulty in applying to a school, when she seems to have no problem getting on stage in skin-tight outfits performing gyrations in front of men imbibing alcohol; but as she tells Nick, she loses herself in her dance, and looks forward to putting aside her fears as she dances. It's important to remember Alex is only eighteen--how she was employed as a welder at her age remains a mystery, but even this expectation and, yes, gender stereotype is lampshaded by the movie at the start, when we see the as of yet unidentified welder with the mask that reads "Alex" working, only to be revealed as the young girl we saw on the bike moments ago. As a young woman, she seeks counsel from not only her priest at confession, but a retired ballerina named Hanna, who encourages her to apply herself, and even takes her to the ballet to show her what to expect. Alex is an appealing protagonist; she possesses a kind of effortless seductiveness by way of her innocent candor. It's open to interpretation as to whether she has any idea how seductive she is being as she removes her bra from beneath her collarless sweatshirt when she invites Nick over to her warehouse apartment; there is, however, no question as to her intentions when they go out to a fancy restaurant, and Alex sucks away at her lobster, dressed in what could only be described as the unfinished idea of a tuxedo. As an aside, I knew a girl in college who looked almost just like Jennifer Beals circa 1983; not asking her out on a date ranks up there as one of life's greatest regrets. Alex and Nick have a few bumps in their relationship, almost uniformly involving misunderstandings. Nick tries to support her in her efforts to apply to the repertory school, only to find she revokes their relationship, believing her invitation to the audition is no longer exclusively a pure effort on her part. Alex blames Nick, and retreats inward, using her self-doubt as a justification not to try. It's a pretty terrifying thing to try to tackle that lofty concept of "your dream", especially when it involves facing a review committee that has all the initial warmth of a firing squad. Nick puts it best when he tells Alex that "when you give up your dream, you die". It's not always easy, but it's always right.
Recommended for: Fans of unabashedly Eighties flicks with a copious amount of dance numbers and pop songs. The fashion, synth score, and light-hearted plot make for a toe-tapping popcorn muncher and dance down memory lane.