Sunday, April 5, 2009

Top 75 awesome things about Flashdance

Well, this entry doesn't have much to do with cooking, but I just had to write about Flashdance after seeing it for the first time today.

I actually own a copy of this movie. It's one of about 10 DVDs I own. Yep — Howards End and Flashdance are the bookends of my DVD collection. (My ex-boyfriend gave Flashdance to me when we were together, for reasons I won't go into here.)

This DVD has been sitting on the shelf for more than two years. Today was finally the day when I thought, "Yes. Today is Flashdance day."

As you might have guessed, I was bowled away by this film and its boatload of awesome '80s movie stereotypes. Here's what I love about this movie:
- The fact that the heroine is a hard-working, cheerful, charming, model-gorgeous welder and exotic dancer
- The fact that the male counterpart is a very attractive single man with no commitment issues
- The fact that the male counterpart drives a Porsche, lives in a gigantic mansion, and is rich
- The fact that the movie is loaded with legwarmers and leotards
- The fact that it involves multiple utterly awesome montage sequences
- The fact that the filmmaker was obsessed with Jennifer Beals' ass (her butt gets almost as much time on screen as her face)
- The fact that the run-down burger shack where our heroine dances apparently sets aside 95% of its annual operating budget to provide dancers with lavish sets, lighting, props and costumes for specific dances (note: YouTube clip involves strobe lights and mime make-up. See also: the first superbly awesome exotic club song and dance, and the later superbly awesome "Man Hunt" song and dance)
- The fact that the heroine has a heart of gold and high moral standards (for example, it's not appropriate for her to date a superior, or for her friends to work at a strip club)
- The fact that choreography for the final dance involves a clever blend of ballet, Jazzercise, club dancing, gymnastics, and hardcore breakdancing
- The fact that the heroine is not classroom trained in any of these dance forms, but nonetheless delivers a flawless performance
- The fact that everything works out perfectly in the end and that the movie ends with a freeze frame. Bonjour, perfection.

So, two thumbs up for Flashdance and everything about it. Why can't life be more like this movie?

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posted by romanlily at 3:09 PM

7 Comments:

  • Oh, YES. May I add the sequence where she removes her bra from under her sweatshirt while talking to him. Perfect! I keep it in mind, still waiting for just the right opportunity to invoke that gesture.

    By Blogger Amy B, at 7:17 PM  

  • I don't know much about this movie, weirdly, except that I believe a body double was used for the super dancey rock out parts. I am not sure why.

    I'm glad you enjoyed it. We all need Flashdances in our lives!

    By Blogger eliza, at 4:45 PM  

  • Watched Flashdance on my iPhone in Toronto. Really, really amazing.

    > The hunky male lead must be nearly double Jennifer Beals's age, as he had time to: A) grow up tough in the streets, B) Somehow work his way up in the "steel industry" to C) Become the owner of a steel plant or some major company and D) marry and then divorce a socialite.

    & the lobster scene is a classic.

    By Anonymous scotty, at 9:29 AM  

  • I think all you need to know about Flashdance is that Joe Eszterhas wrote it. Eszterhas, who went to school, as I did, at Ohio University and worked at the Ohio University Post, as I did, was fired from the Cleveland Plain Dealer after some of his journalism seemed a bit, uh, under-fact-checked. He went on to write Basic Instinct and Showgirls, which, when laid out with Flashdance and its predecessor, F.I.S.T., form an amazingly straight, shining path into his reality. What a feeling, indeed.

    By Blogger jcburns, at 12:30 PM  

  • Hey! That's not seventy five! ;-)

    Indeed, a fun flick. It, along with "Footloose", "Lost Boys", and "Purple Rain", provided the soundtrack for my formative years. (Which probably explains a few things. . . .)

    By Anonymous The Mad Parson, at 10:06 AM  

  • Todd, you'll be glad to know that this past week was the 25th anniversary of Purple Rain's original release date (yes, I am trying to make you feel old).

    I actually have never heard that soundtrack — just the bits and pieces that made it onto the radio in the 80s. This is one of the minor tragedies of growing up under really protective parents who didn't want their kids to be sullied by pop culture.

    By Blogger romanlily, at 8:42 PM  

  • IMHO Flashdance is the greatest movie ever made. It is really hard to pick a favorite scene, it starts with Alex petting a stray kitten and ends with her and Nick sharing a rose in freeze frame! To this day Diet Pepsi is my drink of choice!

    By Blogger Unknown, at 1:04 PM  

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