My favorite fact about Hairspray : it is tradition to give the role of Tracy Turnblad to an unknown actress, and it's been that way since the first Broadway production!! And then we were blessed with Nikki Blonsky. 🥰
Yeah, iirc the only reason he doesn't sing in HSM1 is that the songs were already written, and they were written for a different voice type to Zac's natural range. They were looking for an actor with a specific voice type, but loved Zac in the role enough that they cast him anyway and just used Drew for the singing role. In HSM2 and 3 they were able to write the songs specifically for Zac's voice so he was able to sing his own parts.
Actually he isn’t singing in hsm1 because his voice started changing(puberty) right when they were starting to record and since that was happening he obviously couldn’t sing. So they had Drew Seely do it.
Yeah so as others have already mentioned. Zac didn’t sing in HSM1, but he really did work hard and fought to sing in HSM2 and HSM3 and it worked. So yes HE IS SINGING in this movie musical as well as in THE GREATEST SHOWMAN too.
And I think he could sing while HSM1 was filming, but all the songs were written in a different pitch or something so they thought Drew Seeley sounded better than Zac.
@@hali_55 Yes, this! It's not that Zac couldn't sing, but it was the fact he was out-of-range. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, he does sing in HSM1 as well, but his singing was somehow blended with Drew Seeley's singing to make it seem more natural...hope I'm not making that last part up 😅
Corny Collins was easily my favorite part of this movie. He was such a great guy, he gave Tracy a shot when nobody else would and he was the first person to suggest integrating the kids together. He just wanted to rock out and have fun.
If you haven't heard Queen Latifah sing before, that means you haven't seen Chicago (2002), which she was AMAZING in (and is a great musical in general)
@@angelalurtz3638I did honestly didn't even know she had a music career until this film then looked it up because i wanted to know i was shocked. I just for she was an incredible actress.
"I Know Where I've Been" is probably, objectively, the best song in the movie, but my favorite is "You Can't Stop the Beat". It's just so fun and catchy. I loved how long it took you to realize it was John Travolta. Shows that both he and the makeup department were on point. He did such a(honestly, surprisingly) good job playing Edna!
I've heard that they wanted an Edna who was completely different from Miss Divine's portrayal in the original. The story in this version is much bigger.
I love how Mrs Turnblad is defensive when she first walks into Maybelle's house and then she sees the food and she's like 'Well, anyone who eats is fine by me.' This is one of my favourite movies of all time.
I love how stacked the cast is! Michelle Pfeiffer, Queen Latifah, John Travolta, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden and Allison Janney! Love them all!
Travolta is so good in this movie!! fun fact, John Waters (who wrote this) wrote the role of Tracy's mom specifically for timeless drag queen Divine, whom he considered his muse
There were changes made to this from the original broadway play and I think they were good choices. There were several songs cut- Mamma I'm a Big Girl Now and Cooties which just kind of made it feel juvenile. Another choice that was such a good change was who sang "Lady's Choice". It was orginally Corny Collins, which just felt kind of predatory so I'm glad that Link was the person who sang the song this time. There were some other songs cut, but these changes are the ones that I think were best.
I think in the original Tracy won, but in this they had Inez win which I feel makes the message that more valuable instead of it being a white savior moment.
I saw this movie in theaters with my family. I walked out feeling so good. I had the cd, I knew all the words, auditioned for show choir with Big, Blonde and Beautiful, and performed You can’t stop the beat with that same choir. I LOVE this movie. My favorite songs from it are without love and run and tell that. 😊
Christopher Walken started his career as a musical theater dancer on Broadway. He's sung in several performances, as well as danced probably most famously in Fatboy Slim's music video for Weapon of Choice, but his big tap number in Pennies from Heaven is unbelievable.
Tracy's mom has always been in drag since Divine played her in the first Hairspray. They have kept up the tradition ever since. John Waters, the writer was the flasher in Good Morning Baltimore.
This is one of my go-to movies when I need a pick me up. The songs are so happy! And Zac did do his singing in this one. He fought for the right to sing in High School Musical 2 and after that it’s all him. I think he’s great. I love all the songs, but I think my favourites are Big, Blonde and Beautiful, Ladies’ Choice and You Can’t Stop The Beat.
When you said you were going to eat a tuna melt I HOLLERED 🤣 My favorite song of this movie is "Without Love" I love all of them but that's my favorite. If you want to hear Queen La sing some more you HAVE to watch Chicago.
The mom has traditionally been played by a man. Original movie, drag queen Divine played the mom. On Broadway Harvey Fierstein originated the role and returned to the role for Hairspray live on NBC. Very good reaction.
One of my favorite musicals. Yes, I did know it was John Travolta, they advertised it a lot when the movie first came out so we knew it at that time. I honestly don’t know if I could pick a favorite song from this one. I do really love Welcome to the 60’s because you see a shy overweight mom with no confidence get build back up by her daughter and I’ve been that mom. I’m glad you loved it, it was a fun ride! Zack Enron is actually a really good singer, as others have mentioned you need to see the Greatest Showman!
I Know Where I've Been is my favorite song. No matter how many times I listen to it, I get cold chills. I don't think Queen Latifa gets enough credit for her singing voice. I love her raps, but I love her singing more. Just beautiful.
My favorite song in this movie...tough choice. "Run and Tell That" and "Big Blonde and Beautiful" are neck and neck. But "You Can't Stop the Beat" is incredible too...AGH!
(Fun fact) the actor who played Tracy turnblad Nikki blonski this was her first movie because the director could not find any over weight teenage actors to star Tracy and the director saw a video of Nikki’s audition and casted her. Also before nikki got casted as Tracy she was working at a cold stone ice cream shop at great neck N.Y.
So a LOT of the promo was surrounding John Travolta, actually! He was on Oprah and they made it a huge deal that it was his return to singing. Zac, Amanda, Queen Latifah and Christopher really helped as the cast!
Big blonde and beautiful is my favorite. First time I ever really looked at my body and didn’t immediately hate myself because I wasn’t societies ideal weight. Was the anthem on my journey to love myself, no matter my size. Now, whenever I think about starving myself or beating myself up because of my weight, I put this song on and listen until I feel better.
You need to watch Chicago for some more singing by Queen Latifah (alongside Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta Jones and more). You should also watch Matilda the Musical just because it's great. It's based on the stage show and the book NOT on the 90s movie. Hence why it's English. The music is great. The musical has been running for over a decade in the West End
Fun Fact: Jerry Stiller, the owner of the dress shop, played Wilbur Turnblad in the original 1988 movie. The mom was played by Divine, probably the most famous drag queen until RuPaul came along. The part of the mother has always been played by a man in drag in all other versions as a tribute to Divine who passed away in 1988, one month after the original movie was released.
4:20 he sang in this and he sang in all HSM sequels. People over exaggerate drew seely (however you spell it) singing in the first one. He got a lot better afterwards
Queen Latifah is also wonderful in the musical Chicago (2002). Zach Efron does sing in everything other than the first HS Musical. He is so good in The Greatest Showman (2017).
Zac Efron didnt sing in High school Musical 1, but in 2 and 3 he did sing, he also sang in Hairspray! HSM 1 was the only movie he never sang in fyi! love the reaction
I loved seeing this reaction. If you want to see another example of Queen Latifah’s singing, I suggest you watch Chicago from 2003. She has a small part but she sings this song and it’s incredible.
This movie deals with very serious subjects in a hilarious way and it's brilliant! ❤ ️ I knew who the mom was immediately though, lol. The moment you realized it cracked me up! 😂👍
I love the song at 14:38. The part where his little sister comes in is so good! But I do love all the songs. 'I can hear the bells' cracks me up. The song between Wilbur and his wife, so cute. There isn't any song I would skip.
It only wasn't Zac's voice in the first one. Because they created the songs for a tenor and Zac was a baritone. But he begged for them to change the songs range in the last 2 so that he could sing. And he sang in this as well. And he also sang in the greatest showman.
My favorite songs in this movie are "ladies choice", new girl in town", run and tell that" , I know where I've been", without love & you can't stop the beat.
Queen Latifah also sings in the movie musical Chicago. I read Zac Efron wasn't told why they didn't let him sing in the first HSM, but he said Drew Seeley's a very talented singer (and Seeley co-wrote "Getcha Head in the Game"), and he considered himself just a lucky guy who can carry a tune. So maybe the producers thought his voice wasn't quite strong enough at that time. And it sounds like he worked hard and fought to sing in the sequels because it was important to him. There was also a live TV version of Hairspray and the cast for that is pretty spectacular, too. Kristin Chenowith was Mrs. Von Tussle, Martin Short was the Dad, Jennifer Hudson was Maybelle, and Ariana Grande was Penny.
my favorite song in the whole musical is queen latifah's solo number! it's so powerful and gorgeous, but it's also not limited to a soprano vocal range, which is really exciting for someone who hasn't been able to reach soprano notes since puberty lmao
I remember being a pretentious 'I don't like mainstream stuff' kid in high school, so I actively hated on Zac Efron for a long time, until I saw this movie and realized I had judged him prematurely. Dude's a legit actor and musician, and he absolutely kills this role.
Biggest star? John Travolta. And yes, I got chills when Queen Latifah sang "I Know Where I've Been". I have this entire movie memorized. I knew right away it was John but I think because someone told me about his role in this which was why I watched it in the first place. Great reaction!!
If you ever want to see Queen Latifah sing in another movie, I recommend Chicago. John Travolta was amazing as Edna. In the original non musical film Hairspray, actor/singer/drag performer Divine played Edna and played her like a woman. In the stage musical adaptation, the actors playing Edna camp it up and you never forget its a drag performance. Then the movie comes along and John Travolta plays it so straight, so sincerely, that your heart feels for this woman. When Tracy’s mom is feeling bad, you feel it. When she feels joy, you feel it. And it is so easy to forget she is John Travolta in drag and padding. I hope he got nominated for this performance.
I think my favorite song might be the one that reactors never mention/see/hear: "Come So Far" is the song that plays over the credits at the end. Honestly though, it's always been hard to pick one.
Love this movie and your reaction to it!!! I knew it was a John from the start, but I love Grease and would recognize him anywhere. I can’t wait to watch more musicals with you!!!
Ok so I love Michelle Pfeiffer (the evil mother). So many great movies What Lies Beneath, Stardust, Batman Returns (she is the only true Catwoman in my mind) But my favorite is this 80s fantasy period piece called Ladyhawk. Can never get enough of her in that movie
Zac Efron did sing in high school musical, his only lipsync was in the first movie then his voice came in HSM 2 and 3 and it is him singing in hairspray!
I watched your channel for the first time when you reacted to Hamilton and became an immediate subscriber. Now you're watching Hairspray! Yes, I saw this in theaters when it first came out and I did know back then who played "the mother!" My favorite song is the song that Queen Latifah sings during the march. I am probably one of the oldest viewers of your channel and I unfortunately remember when television and life for that matter were segregated. I lived in New England but the suburbs where I grew up were "quite white." Born in 1955, I was in 3rd grade when President Kennedy was assassinated and I remember the times portrayed in this movie. Many things have changed, some for the better and some haven't changed at all. When I watched you watching Hamilton and this movie, I was laughing, smiling and enjoying myself so much that it made my heart happy. Keep up the good work on your channel. Oh, and if you want to see Queen Latifah in her first movie musical watch "Chicago". She plays the warden in the women's prison. She has a great song. When you watched Hamilton you said you were also a dancer. Chicago has some fabulous dance numbers The Cell Block Tango is my favorite. Enjoy! Now I have to watch the rest of Hairspray! 😆
If you’re a Queen Latifah fan she also played in Joyful Noise, it’s a musical and from what I remember she isn’t the main character but we hear her sing a couple of times
Great reaction as always! Love your energy and take on things. You MUST watch Grease! Classic highschool musical with a freat cast! Cant wait till you can get to it! Keep rocking!
This is a movie that is an absolute go-to for me when I want to watch something and don't know what. Queen Latifah IS in fact a G.O.A.T., and is incredible here. Many have mentioned "Chicago" (an absolute MUST SEE), but for even more singimg I suggest a very underseen movie "Living Out Loud". She plays a jazz chanteuse, and delivers 3 classics. Also check her out in "Bessie", where she portrays "Empress of the Blues", Bessie Smith. Looking forward to more of your reviews!
"I Know Where I've Been" is my favorite song. Queen Latifa has a couple albums where she is singing rather than rapping. They are wonderful albums and I wish she would do more! She is so beautiful, talented, funny, and wonderful. She and Dolly Parton were in another musical movie "Joyful Noise." A FUN movie. This is a great show. The role John Travolta played is always played by a man. It's a running gag in the history of the show. There was no bad song in this show. Every one of them is a winner. You're right too, we are all part of one single human race. We are all family. We also are all brown. Melanin is the protein that gives humanity its one and only skin color: Brown. Melanin is only brown. There is no white, black, yellow, or red melanin. Not in humanity. We are all one color. Brown! Some people have a lot of melanin. But blown plus brown plus brown makes brown, not black! Very little melanin does not make white, it makes very light brown. We are all brown and that's a scientific fact. So people dividing because of skin color is pure anti-scientific ignorance as well as bigoted. It makes no sense whatever! When we focus more on our likenesses then we can appreciate and celebrate and learn from each other about our differences. However, when we focus on our differences, we don't appreciate our likenesses, instead we become divided and there are powers in our world that want us divided. It's logically contrary to what should be. The point: let's focus on our single humanity, our single human family and thereby appreciating our uniquenesses and differences. But in the end we are all THE SAME. Refuse to be divided especially on the scienceFICTION of different skin colors and different races.
Funny story: when I was in high school I was a part of the drama department, and at the end of the school year we would have something called the drama awards. It was basically an award show and it had everything from awards to performances. My group was on of the performances and we were doing you can’t stop the beat from hairspray. The plan was to have the song from hairspray live play but they played the song from the original hairspray instead (for those who don’t know they are basically two different songs). Oh my god, when I tell you I’m still traumatized to this day, and this happened during my junior year of high school and I will be starting college this month. I get flashbacks of me just standing on the stage in front of a bunch of people not sure what to do. Luckily this didn’t give me stage fright or performance anxiety. Because the next year my group was chosen again to perform, we did we both reached for the gin from Chicago, it was amazing)
UA-cam recommended this video to me and I was not disappointed. Subscribed. (Also love that you didn't catch it was John Travolta at first). I saw it in theaters and I still love it to this day.
the ladies choice and the last number are the CLEAR winners but i feel like every song in this musical is great. its almost like chicago where there is no bad song lol
You should watch Chicago. Queen Latifah got her Oscar nomination for that film. Outstanding performance and one of the most iconic musical performances
Oh man, Queen Latifah is simply amazing. I was in high school when she started. I was never into rap but there’s something about her that you can’t help but like. Sorry, to my point, have you seen her in a movie called Last Holiday? LL is in it too but not much screen time. Anyway, she’s simply amazing in this movie. I don’t know a ton about her but in my head, her character in that movie is how I imagine she really is. You really should see it, it’s got a great message too.
His vocals just were not ready for HSM1 he recorded but they didn't use it. But he worked hard and after that always did his own vocals. He killed it in the greatest showman
When the movie came out it was advertised everywhere about him playing the mom. My friends and I dressed up and went to see the movie. The movie theatre had a grand 50s party after the movie.
Run and tell that, the new girl in town (sung by the Lil shop of horrors trio) and I know where I’ve been are my favourite songs in the movie. They just have so much energy ❤
I Know Where I've Been makes me cry every time I hear it. This movie is iconic. It has flaws for sure but the songs and the energy are just so good and positive.
Christopher Walken has sung in a few movies. The most recent one was probably the 2016 Jungle Book. He was the voice of King Louie and sang over the closing credits. He was also a trained dancer before he was an actor.
I once played this movie for a friend's birthday party at my apartment; although my friend was late middle-aged, I'm betting he looked just like Seaweed in high school. Imagine a sixty-something Seaweed enjoying tons of pizza and birthday cake with ice cream. This movie is like some of the old Hollywood musicals in the thirties and forties, albeit with an integrated cast. The big finale song, "You Can't Stop the Beat," is one of those gloriously baroque happy-ending numbers, like "Oklahoma," or "That's Entertainment." It's almost a parody of a happy-ending song since the movie itself is a parody of the times, though none the less heartfelt.
I adore Queen Latifah. She came out when I was in high school, everyone loved her music. Then she started acting and has turned into a great actress. My favorite of hers is a cheesy romcom with LL Cool J, it’s called Last Holiday. She simply shines in this one and L isn’t in it that much.
John Travolta was amazing in this movie! Loved him in Grease, and I loved him in this movie. As well as the rest of the cast. Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes, Queen Latifah, James Marsden, Nikki Blonsky (Tracy), Christopher Walken, Michelle Pfeiffer (Velma Van Tussle), and Brittany Snow - all just freaking amazing! I guarantee you'll love The Greatest Showman and Grease - can't wait to see your reactions!
You should watch the new edition movie. The actor that plays Seaweed in hairspray is in it, and so many other amazing actors if you haven’t watched it yet
I LOVE Queen Latifah. She has such soul in her voice. Out of the songs in the movie, my top 5 are: Run & Tell That Big, Blonde & Beautiful Without Love I Know Where I've Been and You Can't Stop The Beat
People led you wrong. Zac WAS singing, but his voice was blended with Drew Seeley's because the part was written for a tenor and Zac is a baritone. Zac was not attached to the role yet when the part was written so when he signed on, they made some adjustments.
This is honestly one of my favourite movies and musicals, seeing it live is amazing. My favourite song is I know where I've been, as a gay woman it really speaks to me on a personal level, I love that it speaks to all minorities
I love you too and I’m so proud of you! 🫶🏽 so happy you finally have watched this gem.
My favorite fact about Hairspray : it is tradition to give the role of Tracy Turnblad to an unknown actress, and it's been that way since the first Broadway production!!
And then we were blessed with Nikki Blonsky. 🥰
shes racist though which is actually insane
Actor/singer Drew Seeley was the only time he dubbed Zac's voice. Zac actually does his own singing in HSM 2 &3.
And in Hairspray, Zac sud his own singing
Yeah, iirc the only reason he doesn't sing in HSM1 is that the songs were already written, and they were written for a different voice type to Zac's natural range. They were looking for an actor with a specific voice type, but loved Zac in the role enough that they cast him anyway and just used Drew for the singing role. In HSM2 and 3 they were able to write the songs specifically for Zac's voice so he was able to sing his own parts.
Actually he isn’t singing in hsm1 because his voice started changing(puberty) right when they were starting to record and since that was happening he obviously couldn’t sing. So they had Drew Seely do it.
I came here to say this lol. I was like “who discredited this man? 😭”
@@Darkfae98I had to defend the man lol😂
Yeah so as others have already mentioned. Zac didn’t sing in HSM1, but he really did work hard and fought to sing in HSM2 and HSM3 and it worked. So yes HE IS SINGING in this movie musical as well as in THE GREATEST SHOWMAN too.
luv the greatest showman
And I think he could sing while HSM1 was filming, but all the songs were written in a different pitch or something so they thought Drew Seeley sounded better than Zac.
Can’t wait to do the greatest showman !! 🔥
@@mrflickswatchesYou're going to really love that movie!!! It's really amazing, i loved it very much! 😊
@@hali_55 Yes, this! It's not that Zac couldn't sing, but it was the fact he was out-of-range. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, he does sing in HSM1 as well, but his singing was somehow blended with Drew Seeley's singing to make it seem more natural...hope I'm not making that last part up 😅
Corny Collins was easily my favorite part of this movie. He was such a great guy, he gave Tracy a shot when nobody else would and he was the first person to suggest integrating the kids together. He just wanted to rock out and have fun.
If you haven't heard Queen Latifah sing before, that means you haven't seen Chicago (2002), which she was AMAZING in (and is a great musical in general)
And apparently somehow missed her entire musical career before she ever started movies 😅
@@angelalurtz3638I did honestly didn't even know she had a music career until this film then looked it up because i wanted to know i was shocked. I just for she was an incredible actress.
I was coming to mention Chicago! I think he would love it!
@@angelalurtz3638I think it's just because he said he hadn't heard her sing, only rap. We're aware of her music career.
YES
You can't tell me John Travolta wasn't having the time of his damn life in this movie. You can feel it in every single scene that he's having a blast!
Run and Tell That is 100% my favourite song. His voice is just perfection. 😍
💯 🙌🏾
"I Know Where I've Been" is probably, objectively, the best song in the movie, but my favorite is "You Can't Stop the Beat". It's just so fun and catchy.
I loved how long it took you to realize it was John Travolta. Shows that both he and the makeup department were on point. He did such a(honestly, surprisingly) good job playing Edna!
Absolutely!
I've heard that they wanted an Edna who was completely different from Miss Divine's portrayal in the original. The story in this version is much bigger.
"And Penny, Get home before your mother shoots you!" Is the most out of pocket line I've heard in a while😂😂😂
I love how Mrs Turnblad is defensive when she first walks into Maybelle's house and then she sees the food and she's like 'Well, anyone who eats is fine by me.' This is one of my favourite movies of all time.
I love how stacked the cast is! Michelle Pfeiffer, Queen Latifah, John Travolta, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden and Allison Janney! Love them all!
Travolta is so good in this movie!! fun fact, John Waters (who wrote this) wrote the role of Tracy's mom specifically for timeless drag queen Divine, whom he considered his muse
Hairspray is my comfort movie and I will ALWAYS listen to the soundtrack when it pops up
A lot of dope songs on here! Watching grease soon ! I’ll probably be jamming to that the whole time too !
There were changes made to this from the original broadway play and I think they were good choices. There were several songs cut- Mamma I'm a Big Girl Now and Cooties which just kind of made it feel juvenile. Another choice that was such a good change was who sang "Lady's Choice". It was orginally Corny Collins, which just felt kind of predatory so I'm glad that Link was the person who sang the song this time. There were some other songs cut, but these changes are the ones that I think were best.
Wait, that was a Corny song? Yeesh. Yeah, that's a bit much for film now XD
I think in the original Tracy won, but in this they had Inez win which I feel makes the message that more valuable instead of it being a white savior moment.
@@riann7707 It also explored Seaweed's character more and gave more screentime and personality to the non-white cast.
Cooties and Mama I'm a big girl now play out over the end credits.
I saw this movie in theaters with my family. I walked out feeling so good. I had the cd, I knew all the words, auditioned for show choir with Big, Blonde and Beautiful, and performed You can’t stop the beat with that same choir. I LOVE this movie. My favorite songs from it are without love and run and tell that. 😊
Even though it dealt with hard situations.. I still left my seat feeling good about watching it ! Movie was amazing!
Christopher Walken started his career as a musical theater dancer on Broadway. He's sung in several performances, as well as danced probably most famously in Fatboy Slim's music video for Weapon of Choice, but his big tap number in Pennies from Heaven is unbelievable.
i swear he played captain hook in a peter pan musical, very silly but i loved it
23:30 yes actually, this was Nikki Blonski’s (Tracy Turnblad) first acting role!
Tracy's mom has always been in drag since Divine played her in the first Hairspray. They have kept up the tradition ever since. John Waters, the writer was the flasher in Good Morning Baltimore.
This is one of my go-to movies when I need a pick me up. The songs are so happy! And Zac did do his singing in this one. He fought for the right to sing in High School Musical 2 and after that it’s all him. I think he’s great. I love all the songs, but I think my favourites are Big, Blonde and Beautiful, Ladies’ Choice and You Can’t Stop The Beat.
When you said you were going to eat a tuna melt I HOLLERED 🤣
My favorite song of this movie is "Without Love" I love all of them but that's my favorite. If you want to hear Queen La sing some more you HAVE to watch Chicago.
That what i thought!
The dancers go so hard in the choreography in this movie. Compared to other dance films this one is up there in exertion levels!
The mom has traditionally been played by a man. Original movie, drag queen Divine played the mom. On Broadway Harvey Fierstein originated the role and returned to the role for Hairspray live on NBC. Very good reaction.
One of my favorite musicals. Yes, I did know it was John Travolta, they advertised it a lot when the movie first came out so we knew it at that time. I honestly don’t know if I could pick a favorite song from this one. I do really love Welcome to the 60’s because you see a shy overweight mom with no confidence get build back up by her daughter and I’ve been that mom. I’m glad you loved it, it was a fun ride! Zack Enron is actually a really good singer, as others have mentioned you need to see the Greatest Showman!
I Know Where I've Been is my favorite song. No matter how many times I listen to it, I get cold chills. I don't think Queen Latifa gets enough credit for her singing voice. I love her raps, but I love her singing more. Just beautiful.
There is nothing that goes harder than that finale, and it's even more impressive on stage.
My favorite song in this movie...tough choice. "Run and Tell That" and "Big Blonde and Beautiful" are neck and neck. But "You Can't Stop the Beat" is incredible too...AGH!
24:08 BIG FACTS
(Fun fact) the actor who played Tracy turnblad Nikki blonski this was her first movie because the director could not find any over weight teenage actors to star Tracy and the director saw a video of Nikki’s audition and casted her. Also before nikki got casted as Tracy she was working at a cold stone ice cream shop at great neck N.Y.
So a LOT of the promo was surrounding John Travolta, actually! He was on Oprah and they made it a huge deal that it was his return to singing. Zac, Amanda, Queen Latifah and Christopher really helped as the cast!
Big blonde and beautiful is my favorite. First time I ever really looked at my body and didn’t immediately hate myself because I wasn’t societies ideal weight. Was the anthem on my journey to love myself, no matter my size. Now, whenever I think about starving myself or beating myself up because of my weight, I put this song on and listen until I feel better.
You need to watch Chicago for some more singing by Queen Latifah (alongside Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta Jones and more).
You should also watch Matilda the Musical just because it's great. It's based on the stage show and the book NOT on the 90s movie. Hence why it's English. The music is great. The musical has been running for over a decade in the West End
Fun Fact: Jerry Stiller, the owner of the dress shop, played Wilbur Turnblad in the original 1988 movie. The mom was played by Divine, probably the most famous drag queen until RuPaul came along. The part of the mother has always been played by a man in drag in all other versions as a tribute to Divine who passed away in 1988, one month after the original movie was released.
Took you wayyyy too long to realize that was John Travolta lol
Whenever i miss Amanda’s acting i watch Hairspray, Easy A, Shes the Man, Big fat liar and What A Girl Wants 😌 I MISS AMANDAS ACTING SM
I like that when they had down time. John Travolta sang songs from Grease. This movie and cast are just on point!
4:20 he sang in this and he sang in all HSM sequels. People over exaggerate drew seely (however you spell it) singing in the first one. He got a lot better afterwards
Man I'm on such a hairspray kick suddenly. I'm so glad to see that people are STILL discovering and enjoying it
Queen Latifah is also wonderful in the musical Chicago (2002). Zach Efron does sing in everything other than the first HS Musical. He is so good in The Greatest Showman (2017).
Zac Efron didnt sing in High school Musical 1, but in 2 and 3 he did sing, he also sang in Hairspray! HSM 1 was the only movie he never sang in fyi! love the reaction
I loved seeing this reaction. If you want to see another example of Queen Latifah’s singing, I suggest you watch Chicago from 2003. She has a small part but she sings this song and it’s incredible.
This movie deals with very serious subjects in a hilarious way and it's brilliant! ❤ ️ I knew who the mom was immediately though, lol. The moment you realized it cracked me up! 😂👍
I love the song at 14:38. The part where his little sister comes in is so good!
But I do love all the songs. 'I can hear the bells' cracks me up. The song between Wilbur and his wife, so cute. There isn't any song I would skip.
It only wasn't Zac's voice in the first one. Because they created the songs for a tenor and Zac was a baritone. But he begged for them to change the songs range in the last 2 so that he could sing. And he sang in this as well. And he also sang in the greatest showman.
My favorite songs in this movie are "ladies choice", new girl in town", run and tell that" , I know where I've been", without love & you can't stop the beat.
Queen Latifah also sings in the movie musical Chicago.
I read Zac Efron wasn't told why they didn't let him sing in the first HSM, but he said Drew Seeley's a very talented singer (and Seeley co-wrote "Getcha Head in the Game"), and he considered himself just a lucky guy who can carry a tune. So maybe the producers thought his voice wasn't quite strong enough at that time. And it sounds like he worked hard and fought to sing in the sequels because it was important to him.
There was also a live TV version of Hairspray and the cast for that is pretty spectacular, too. Kristin Chenowith was Mrs. Von Tussle, Martin Short was the Dad, Jennifer Hudson was Maybelle, and Ariana Grande was Penny.
my favorite song in the whole musical is queen latifah's solo number! it's so powerful and gorgeous, but it's also not limited to a soprano vocal range, which is really exciting for someone who hasn't been able to reach soprano notes since puberty lmao
I remember being a pretentious 'I don't like mainstream stuff' kid in high school, so I actively hated on Zac Efron for a long time, until I saw this movie and realized I had judged him prematurely. Dude's a legit actor and musician, and he absolutely kills this role.
Biggest star? John Travolta. And yes, I got chills when Queen Latifah sang "I Know Where I've Been". I have this entire movie memorized. I knew right away it was John but I think because someone told me about his role in this which was why I watched it in the first place. Great reaction!!
The girl that sang "good morning baltimore" (the song in the beginning) this was her first movie she did
If you ever want to see Queen Latifah sing in another movie, I recommend Chicago.
John Travolta was amazing as Edna. In the original non musical film Hairspray, actor/singer/drag performer Divine played Edna and played her like a woman. In the stage musical adaptation, the actors playing Edna camp it up and you never forget its a drag performance. Then the movie comes along and John Travolta plays it so straight, so sincerely, that your heart feels for this woman. When Tracy’s mom is feeling bad, you feel it. When she feels joy, you feel it. And it is so easy to forget she is John Travolta in drag and padding. I hope he got nominated for this performance.
I think my favorite song might be the one that reactors never mention/see/hear: "Come So Far" is the song that plays over the credits at the end. Honestly though, it's always been hard to pick one.
Love this movie and your reaction to it!!! I knew it was a John from the start, but I love Grease and would recognize him anywhere. I can’t wait to watch more musicals with you!!!
"Bianca knows that" 🤔🤨🤐😂😉🤣
Ok so I love Michelle Pfeiffer (the evil mother). So many great movies What Lies Beneath, Stardust, Batman Returns (she is the only true Catwoman in my mind) But my favorite is this 80s fantasy period piece called Ladyhawk. Can never get enough of her in that movie
This is one of my favorite movie musicals! It has such a great mix of comedy, drama, amazing songs, and a good message! I love it!
Hairspray is one of the best cast musicals out there!! The movie was fire too!!
Zac Efron did sing in high school musical, his only lipsync was in the first movie then his voice came in HSM 2 and 3 and it is him singing in hairspray!
Favorite song is prob “I can hear the bells”, “Ladies Choice”, “Without love” or “You cant stop the beat” ofc
“Chicago” (2002) is another great movie musical with Renée Zellweger and Richard Gere
I watched your channel for the first time when you reacted to Hamilton and became an immediate subscriber. Now you're watching Hairspray! Yes, I saw this in theaters when it first came out and I did know back then who played "the mother!" My favorite song is the song that Queen Latifah sings during the march. I am probably one of the oldest viewers of your channel and I unfortunately remember when television and life for that matter were segregated. I lived in New England but the suburbs where I grew up were "quite white." Born in 1955, I was in 3rd grade when President Kennedy was assassinated and I remember the times portrayed in this movie. Many things have changed, some for the better and some haven't changed at all. When I watched you watching Hamilton and this movie, I was laughing, smiling and enjoying myself so much that it made my heart happy. Keep up the good work on your channel. Oh, and if you want to see Queen Latifah in her first movie musical watch "Chicago". She plays the warden in the women's prison. She has a great song. When you watched Hamilton you said you were also a dancer. Chicago has some fabulous dance numbers The Cell Block Tango is my favorite. Enjoy! Now I have to watch the rest of Hairspray! 😆
If you’re a Queen Latifah fan she also played in Joyful Noise, it’s a musical and from what I remember she isn’t the main character but we hear her sing a couple of times
Great reaction as always! Love your energy and take on things. You MUST watch Grease! Classic highschool musical with a freat cast! Cant wait till you can get to it! Keep rocking!
This is a movie that is an absolute go-to for me when I want to watch something and don't know what. Queen Latifah IS in fact a G.O.A.T., and is incredible here.
Many have mentioned "Chicago" (an absolute MUST SEE), but for even more singimg I suggest a very underseen movie "Living Out Loud". She plays a jazz chanteuse, and delivers 3 classics. Also check her out in "Bessie", where she portrays "Empress of the Blues", Bessie Smith.
Looking forward to more of your reviews!
"I Know Where I've Been" is my favorite song. Queen Latifa has a couple albums where she is singing rather than rapping. They are wonderful albums and I wish she would do more! She is so beautiful, talented, funny, and wonderful. She and Dolly Parton were in another musical movie "Joyful Noise." A FUN movie. This is a great show. The role John Travolta played is always played by a man. It's a running gag in the history of the show. There was no bad song in this show. Every one of them is a winner. You're right too, we are all part of one single human race. We are all family. We also are all brown. Melanin is the protein that gives humanity its one and only skin color: Brown. Melanin is only brown. There is no white, black, yellow, or red melanin. Not in humanity. We are all one color. Brown! Some people have a lot of melanin. But blown plus brown plus brown makes brown, not black! Very little melanin does not make white, it makes very light brown. We are all brown and that's a scientific fact. So people dividing because of skin color is pure anti-scientific ignorance as well as bigoted. It makes no sense whatever! When we focus more on our likenesses then we can appreciate and celebrate and learn from each other about our differences. However, when we focus on our differences, we don't appreciate our likenesses, instead we become divided and there are powers in our world that want us divided. It's logically contrary to what should be. The point: let's focus on our single humanity, our single human family and thereby appreciating our uniquenesses and differences. But in the end we are all THE SAME. Refuse to be divided especially on the scienceFICTION of different skin colors and different races.
Funny story: when I was in high school I was a part of the drama department, and at the end of the school year we would have something called the drama awards. It was basically an award show and it had everything from awards to performances. My group was on of the performances and we were doing you can’t stop the beat from hairspray. The plan was to have the song from hairspray live play but they played the song from the original hairspray instead (for those who don’t know they are basically two different songs). Oh my god, when I tell you I’m still traumatized to this day, and this happened during my junior year of high school and I will be starting college this month. I get flashbacks of me just standing on the stage in front of a bunch of people not sure what to do. Luckily this didn’t give me stage fright or performance anxiety. Because the next year my group was chosen again to perform, we did we both reached for the gin from Chicago, it was amazing)
The whole soundtrack is so good for this movie!! I Can Hear the Bells, Run & Tell That, Without Love, Welcome to the 60's....🥰🤩
UA-cam recommended this video to me and I was not disappointed. Subscribed. (Also love that you didn't catch it was John Travolta at first). I saw it in theaters and I still love it to this day.
I have the soundtrack saved as a playlist and listen often... love it!!!
I’m really glad you reacted to In The Heights! I don’t have the funds to do your Patreon, but I’m happy you enjoyed it!
Glad you reacted to this movie, all time favorite ones to chill, and my favorite song is "New Girl In Town"
the ladies choice and the last number are the CLEAR winners but i feel like every song in this musical is great. its almost like chicago where there is no bad song lol
Love this one and the original. I randomly saw this in theaters and loved it right away. The music is so good. 💖
You hit those notes so cleanly hahaha, and I just started the reaction
💪🏽💪🏽
You should watch Chicago. Queen Latifah got her Oscar nomination for that film. Outstanding performance and one of the most iconic musical performances
'I know where I've been' is absolutely the BEST song on this soundtrack and I tear up every single time I hear it.
If you want to see more Queen Latifah singing you need to see Chicago!
It’s also just an incredible movie
Run and Tell That is my all time favorite song from this show
Grease and Hairspray... two musicals I played in repeat when I was a kid
Oh man, Queen Latifah is simply amazing. I was in high school when she started. I was never into rap but there’s something about her that you can’t help but like. Sorry, to my point, have you seen her in a movie called Last Holiday? LL is in it too but not much screen time. Anyway, she’s simply amazing in this movie. I don’t know a ton about her but in my head, her character in that movie is how I imagine she really is. You really should see it, it’s got a great message too.
You’ll love the movie “Chicago” with Queen Latifa as the warden, Mama Morton!
His vocals just were not ready for HSM1 he recorded but they didn't use it. But he worked hard and after that always did his own vocals. He killed it in the greatest showman
When the movie came out it was advertised everywhere about him playing the mom. My friends and I dressed up and went to see the movie. The movie theatre had a grand 50s party after the movie.
Run and tell that, the new girl in town (sung by the Lil shop of horrors trio) and I know where I’ve been are my favourite songs in the movie. They just have so much energy ❤
I Know Where I've Been makes me cry every time I hear it. This movie is iconic. It has flaws for sure but the songs and the energy are just so good and positive.
I absolutely love this movie from start to finish, and I love your reaction to this, and every comment you said was with positivity
Christopher Walken has sung in a few movies. The most recent one was probably the 2016 Jungle Book. He was the voice of King Louie and sang over the closing credits. He was also a trained dancer before he was an actor.
I once played this movie for a friend's birthday party at my apartment; although my friend was late middle-aged, I'm betting he looked just like Seaweed in high school. Imagine a sixty-something Seaweed enjoying tons of pizza and birthday cake with ice cream. This movie is like some of the old Hollywood musicals in the thirties and forties, albeit with an integrated cast. The big finale song, "You Can't Stop the Beat," is one of those gloriously baroque happy-ending numbers, like "Oklahoma," or "That's Entertainment." It's almost a parody of a happy-ending song since the movie itself is a parody of the times, though none the less heartfelt.
I adore Queen Latifah. She came out when I was in high school, everyone loved her music. Then she started acting and has turned into a great actress. My favorite of hers is a cheesy romcom with LL Cool J, it’s called Last Holiday. She simply shines in this one and L isn’t in it that much.
John Travolta was amazing in this movie! Loved him in Grease, and I loved him in this movie. As well as the rest of the cast. Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes, Queen Latifah, James Marsden, Nikki Blonsky (Tracy), Christopher Walken, Michelle Pfeiffer (Velma Van Tussle), and Brittany Snow - all just freaking amazing! I guarantee you'll love The Greatest Showman and Grease - can't wait to see your reactions!
Apparently the dancers who did that final dance called it "You Can't Stop to Breathe". That dance was non-stop.
You should watch the new edition movie. The actor that plays Seaweed in hairspray is in it, and so many other amazing actors if you haven’t watched it yet
That song with queen l is my favorite. I love how soulful her voice is. And the song makes me cry
I saw the Broadway show Hairspray in Dec 2007. George Wendt (Norm) from Cheers tv show played the same role as John Travolta.
I LOVE Queen Latifah. She has such soul in her voice.
Out of the songs in the movie, my top 5 are:
Run & Tell That
Big, Blonde & Beautiful
Without Love
I Know Where I've Been
and
You Can't Stop The Beat
People led you wrong. Zac WAS singing, but his voice was blended with Drew Seeley's because the part was written for a tenor and Zac is a baritone. Zac was not attached to the role yet when the part was written so when he signed on, they made some adjustments.
This is honestly one of my favourite movies and musicals, seeing it live is amazing. My favourite song is I know where I've been, as a gay woman it really speaks to me on a personal level, I love that it speaks to all minorities
In the live version of this movie, Ariana Grande plays Penny. And Jennifer Hudson plays Motormouth Maybelle
Thank you, thank you, thank you for being exactly who you are. I am so happy that I discovered your channel. ❤
Thank you 🙏🏼 appreciate that a lot !
The song from the march is honestly the most moving so I'd say it's my favorite