Footloose **** (1984, Kevin Bacon, John Lithgow, Lori Singer) – Classic Movie Review 1497

Director Herbert Ross’s 1984 musical-drama movie Footloose has proved an enduring classic. It stars the 26-year-old Kevin Bacon at his young peak in the Eighties in one of his most fondly remembered roles as Ren McCormack, an upbeat, rock-loving Chicago teen who moves to a small town in the American Mid-West Bible Belt.

There dancing and rock ‘n’ roll music have been banned by the local fire-and-brimstone book-burning minister, the Reverend Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), whose pretty and independent daughter Ariel (Lori Singer) Ren is dating. Ren is a rebel and now he’s got a cause, so he channels his rebellious spirit to shake up the populace and get everyone dancing.

Admittedly Footloose may be an often cheesy and corny, old-fashioned fairy-tale musical-drama, but it is still extremely enjoyable thanks to Bacon’s cocky and likeable cool charisma, a huge bunch of excellent Eighties vintage songs that made the charts, the snappy dancing, the lively character acting and director Ross’s smart professionalism.

Perhaps it seeks to emulate Fame, Grease or Saturday Night Fever, but it really belongs to an even earlier, even more innocent era of musicals, those of the Fifties or even further back in the Thirties.

There are three standout musical sequences: the opening credits with close-ups of feet tapping out the theme tune, Bacon’s vest-clad set-piece dance to the song Never in a flour mill, and the montage when Bacon teaches his gauche and tubby best buddy Willard Hewitt (Christopher Penn) how to dance.

The songs ‘Footloose’ and ‘Let’s Hear It for the Boy’ were both Oscar-nominated Best Original Song chart hits. The soundtrack includes five rock singles—Footloose and I’m Free, both by Kenny Loggins, Holding Out for a Hero by Bonnie Tyler, Girl Gets Around by Sammy Hagar, and Never by Australian rock band Moving Pictures; three singles—Let’s Hear It for the Boy by Deniece Williams, Somebody’s Eyes by Karla Bonoff, and Dancing in the Sheets by Shalamar; and the love theme Almost Paradise by Mike Reno and Ann Wilson. Some of the songs were composed by Eric Carmen and Jim Steinman. The soundtrack went on to sell more than nine million copies in the US.

Screen-writer Dean Pitchford wrote the screenplay and most of the lyrics, and also wrote the lyrics for the Oscar-winning song Fame. Dianne Wiest plays Vi, the Reverend’s devoted yet conflicted wife, and Sarah Jessica Parker (as Ariel’s friend Rusty) and John Laughlin also star.

It has a 15 certificate with some strong language, but there is also a cut PG version and the bland TV version further edits language and content.

The film is loosely based on events that took place in the small, rural religious community of Elmore City, Oklahoma.

Michael Cimino was hired to direct but, after four months’ work, he was fired by the studio who alleged he was making extravagant demands for the production, including an additional $250,000 salary. Paramount then hired Ross.

The producers wanted Tom Cruise or Rob Lowe to star, but Cruise was busy making All the Right Moves and injury prevented Lowe from taking the part. Bacon was cast on the strength of his performance in the movie Diner. That’s not him in his dance scene in the warehouse. Bacon said: ‘I had a stunt double, a dance double [Peter Tramm] and two gymnastics doubles.’

The film was made in Utah County. The high school and tractor scenes were filmed in and around Payson and Payson High School. The church scenes were filmed in American Fork, Utah. The steel mill was the Geneva Steel mill.

Roger Ebert got it wrong, calling it ‘a seriously confused movie that tries to do three things, and does all of them badly.’

It was remade in 2011, with Kenny Wormald, Julianne Hough and Dennis Quaid. A stage musical with many of the songs from the movie has been presented on London’s West End and on Broadway. It opened in New York on October 22 1998 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre and ran for 709 performances.

Kevin Norwood Bacon was born on 8 July 1958 in Philadelphia.

Kevin Bacon celebrated his 60th birthday on 8 July 2018.

© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 1497

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