Hairspray - Big is Indeed Beautiful!
Hairspray A-
Starring Nikki Blonsky, John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, and Queen Latifah
Rated PG for language, some suggestive content and momentarily teen smoking
Appropriate for ages 10+
The Story: In this movie based on the Tony award-winning musical, young Tracy Turnblad (Blonsky) is a big girl with a big dream of becoming a dancer on the Corny Collins Show in 1960's Baltimore. Although she faces discrimination about her weight and her ideas on integration, she still fights for what she believes in.
The Good: Great performances abound in this ensemble pic. Almost every actor and actress puts on a nearly perfect performance and newcomer Nikki Blonsky should be the talk of the town come Oscar time. The music by Marc Shaiman (South Park:Bigger, Longer, and Uncut) is as beautiful as it is clever. Also, director Adam Shankman more than redeems himself after torturing us with Cheaper by the Dozen 2.
The Bad: Just as in the Broadway show and the movie that came before it, Traci's mother must be played by a man - but John Travolta? His performance is extremely tongue-in-cheek and while his dancing is fun, his accent is truly annoying. Also, while Pfeiffer is well cast, she overstays her welcome and gets in the way of the pacing towards the end of the pic.
I'm not sure how this film got a PG rating, but parents should watch out. This is a John Waters film and not a family flick. If you wouldn't show your kids Grease, then Hairspray should probably be avoided as well. The jokes and lyrics are very sexual and just because there isn't any bad language, the themes are very adult.
The Summary: Get ready for a heal-tapping good time that could be the guiltiest pleasure of the summer.
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