Showing posts with label Julianne Hough. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Julianne Hough. Show all posts
Kick Off Your Expectations, Footloose Is Toe-Tapping Fun
Paramount Pictures
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We have radio stations devoted entirely to the 80s. We’ve been remaking some of the best and worst movies of the 80s. Would I call the Footloose I saw as I was transitioning to high school one of the best of the 80s, nahhh, but it was one of the more fun films of the decade.
The story is virtually identical to the original; but let’s recap…shall we?
Ren (Kenny Wormald) is the big city kid who has come into a small town to stay with relatives. Coming from the city, he’s not familiar with the restrictions that the law has in place here. No loud music, no alcohol parties and absolutely no dancing. Laws that were enacted after a tragic accident seem outdated and out of place to all the kids in town.
The Reverend (Dennis Quaid) is trying to guide folks to the Promised Land. Little does he know, his daughter Ariel (Julianne Hough) might well be the wildest child in the town. These laws were in place to protect kids like her and yet all she wants to do is cut loose.
Ren leads the charge to get the law changed to let these kids experience all the dancing can be. But the battle won’t be easy; there are those in this town that don’t want to relinquish control. Will there be “Dancing in the Sheets” or anywhere?
Let’s face it, seeing an updated version of Footloose sends one to the theater with a bit of trepidation. But this film was released in 1984, so teenagers that grew up with it are now in the 40’s. Tastes evolve, music evolves and this film evolves; just a little bit. Director Craig Brewer keeps on a fairly consistent track and we have the same characters in virtually the same situations. And that’s not all bad.
Wormald seems a little too nice in his portrayal as Ren. I had a hard time buying the big city attitude he was to have. Julianne Hough has a look that just screams like she could be that wild child and she’s obviously got the dancing down, as does Wormald.
The dialogue is cheesy and out there, but it was in the 80s as well. The soundtrack uses many of the same songs that were made famous by the first film, with new and clever arrangements where possible. And before you get worried, Kenny Loggins is used…plus some of the others, in their classic form.
Here’s the thing about Footloose. This is a fun film for today’s generation. The story that is told doesn’t completely update to today’s standards, but it will have today’s kids tapping their feet just as those in 1984 did. Sure many expected me to “cut loose” on this one with a scathing review. But I can’t. It was fun and will have a new generation “kicking off their Sunday shoes”.
B
Paramount Pictures
Director: Craig Brewer
Cast: Kenny Wormald, Julianne Hough, Dennis Quaid, Andie MacDowellRating: PG-13 for some teen drug and alcohol use, sexual content, violence and language..
Runtime: 1 hour 53 minutesSafe Haven Protects Sparks’ Turf
Nicholas Sparks is it when it comes to romance. Women swoon just knowing that a Sparks’ novel is coming to the big screen. And he has been known to deliver a story that puts couples together combining the beautiful and interesting people. Sitting down to Safe Haven, I knew I wasn’t really in my wheelhouse, but I thought I would give it a ride.
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Here’s this Sparks journey.
A young woman named Katie (Julianne Hough) has ran from a problem. After jumping on a bus headed south, she just looks to find a place where she can blend in and start again, but why?
Here journey brings her to Alex’s (Josh Duhamel) little shop on the coast in the Carolinas. It is there that Katie begins to start again. Far from the problems she left behind, Katie begins to learn how to live again. As she starts to accept Alex and his family, the realization that not all behavior is like what existed in her life in the North. But can she fully accept him?
With the help of a nice neighbor Jo (Colbie Smulders), she will get some encouragement and lessons on how to love again. Accepting the kindness of strangers and moving forward instead of looking back will become her goal. But can she really put the past behind her?
In typical Sparks’ film fashion, we are treated to two likable main characters portrayed by Duhamel and Hough. They are people that we want to see succeed, even if we don’t know the back story on Hough. Throw in Colbie Smulders and we’ve got a really attractive, talented cast.
The story is there, and I can imagine this being a fabulous book. Sparks tells a good tale that takes trouble and turns it to love. He takes the simple and makes it beautiful. But as can be the challenge with Sparks’ stories, the transition to the screen is not always easy. And that is the case with Safe Haven.
Where the film fails the audience is the clunky manner in which the Sparks story translates to the screen. Transitions felt disjointed and out of place. Leaps of faith that, I’m sure must have been explained better in the book, leave you wondering and wanting more. But despite these issues, Safe Haven is still a film that will resonate with its target audience.
Nicholas Sparks provides a respite for romance fans and they will be happy to know that their haven is safe in this film.
B-
Relativity MediaDirector: Lasse Hallstrom
Cast: Julianne Hough, Josh Duhamel, Colbie SmuldersRating: PG-13 for thematic material involving threatening behavior and violence and sexuality.
Runtime: 1 hours 55 minutes