This movie takes place in a resort in the Catskills which were basically Jewish summer vacation spots for people who wanted to get away from the heat in the cities (No A/C n those days) with fun for the whole family. Also called the Borscht Belt. They were a big deal all the way into the 1980's or 90's. Now they are basically extinct. A ton of comedians got their start as kids in these resorts including Mel Brooks, Danny Kaye, Woody Allen, Jerry Seinfeld, Sid Caesar and Joan Rivers. There is a whole story arc in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel that takes place in one these resorts.
Exactly. It was known colloquially as the ‘Borscht Belt,’ by the entertainers that travelled around & performed at those places. African Americans had a similar group of resorts & vacation areas, often called the ‘Chitlin Circuit’ by the musicians & comedians who primarily worked those clubs & resorts. Many famous performers got their starts playing one or both of those areas.
Baby's father is Jerry Ohrbach, the great musical comedy actor. Lennie Briscoe in Law & Order, the origjnal El Gallo in The Fantasticks, off-off-Broadway;, the young guy in Promises, Promises, a long and stellar career.
As for the botched abortion, you have to remember this takes place in 1963 when abortion was illegal. back table procedures in basements with coat hangers and knives that left women dead or permanently damaged were not uncommon.
Women still die from "safe" and LEGAL abortions. All the time (see, for example, Kermit Gosnell). If abortion became illegal, abortions would be done with medical equipment, not clothes hangers. We must not legalize procedures that kill the innocent just to make the killing process less hazardous. The central horror of illegal abortion remains the central horror of legal abortion.
There are legitimate times when abortion is the least objectionable answer, such as what I'll call here "forced pregnancy" and if the fetus is not viable. The lives of the mothers also matter
My ex-military dad cried when she nailed the lift at the end. I remember looking at him and giggling and he said "aw shut up and watch the damn movie!"
So a lot of the tension early in the film is because Baby, from Johnny and Penny's points of view, is a little rich girl on summer vacation trying to play nice with the help. "Aren't I such a nice person? I was kind to the help. You know it's important to treat the lower classes well." Penny snapping at Baby over the compliment was her pointing at the silver spoon in Baby's mouth and that the world never handed her anything, that she had to work for everything she has. Johnny's saying "It takes a lot of courage to ask Daddy for money" is lashing out because he's likely been stressing for days about how to help Penny, where he can pick up the extra money, when Baby just walks in like it's nothing because issues like "money" are a little people problem. It's only when Baby showed she's willing to put in the hard work that they started to accept her.
Don't forget, Baby is suppose to be a teenager still, so the other reason Johnny and Penny dismiss her is that she really is still a kid. The movie does a poor job of selling that she is only suppose to be 15-16 years old. There are a number of hints throughout the movie, but they are very subtle.
@@johnhenkel1828 I still remember my grandmother being absolutely furious after watching this movie, because she thought Johnny was a creep and too old for Baby. I didn't get it at the time but tbh now I do. There is a whole other imbalance of power here due to class divides however - probably an interesting subject for a critique.
@@johnhenkel1828 No, she has to be at least 17, probably 18, because toward the beginning of the movie Baby's dad says, "Baby starts Mount Holyoke in the fall." and that's a four year college. So, she's graduated high school, meaning she can't be less than 17. I would guess Johnny is supposed to be about 24/25. (Even if Patrick Swayze was actually 35!) He was still older than her, obviously, but she's legal, and times were different. He doesn't hold any particular power over her, in fact it's the other way around, since she's the one with the money and status. So, I never found anything inherently gross about their relationship.
As a daddy's girl, that scene where Baby is crying to her dad and the dynamic of their relationship is changing because she's growing up BREAKS ME. Him being so stoic but then crying as she leaves 😢 the pain of having your daddy be disappointed in you and also of that first time you're disappointed in *him*... Just ouch, my heart 💔, every time
Baby's father definitely doted on her, more than her sister, and that, plus the fact that Lisa is shallow while Baby is intelligent and going to college (Mount Holyoke) explains the animosity between the two sisters. The only scene I couldn't get is why her father tells her to wipe the makeup off her face when Lisa wears enough to scrape it off with a spatula. The break in their relationship was because he felt he couldn't trust her anymore, rather than that she was "growing up." Parents always think their kids (especially daughters) are still their li'l precious pumpkins. It takes a jolt to break them of that mindset.
When I asked my grandma why it was called Dirty Dancing she pointed out that his knees got dirty after his knee spin in the final dance. It took me several years before I realized she lied to me lol.
I was 13 when this movie came out. It was EVERYTHING to me and girls my age. We had BOTH soundtracks. Recreated the routines. Dressed like Baby. And we knew the names of all the dancers. This was before social media. This was EVERYTHING.
I didn't think Ashleigh was so jaded... She sees cheese, I see innocence being ground away and lovely sexuality and devotion being uncovered. Part of the charm of the Jennifer Gray character is that she is an innocent idealist and so much of the movie's script.and photography and "cheese" is to get that across.
The movie has a large helping of 80s cheese...which is what makes it so great. It is designed to make people feel good, and it achieved that. It's not The Godfather lol.
Right, and not being able to do the lift was never his issue, it was hers. The person being lifted needs to have the core strength and coordination to hold their body in the right position, otherwise they are just dead weight that no one can lift. it was about her trusting him completely to hold her up, not about his strength.
“Is there anything Patrick Swayze can’t do?” He can also bust heads, like in “Road House”! And he can rob banks and do extreme sports like in “Break Point” with Keanu Reeves chasing him.
When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, East Berliners rushed to the movie theaters to see "western films" - and what was playing? DIRTY DANCING! It was so exciting for East Berlin viewers that cinemas stayed open 24 hours a day to play the movie over and over to packed theaters. It's still extremely popular and nostalgic in Berlin, as is the song "The Time of my Life".
Netflix’s The Movies That Made Us had a really good episode about the making of this movie that basically implied that it was inspired by one of the writer’s summers growing up, and how she fought to keep the abortion scene included in the movie. Also explained how this movie is what launched the success of Time of My Life.
The lift represents more than just a lift. Like : trusting each-other, accepting each-other fully and baby going with what she truly believes in as an adult.The don't put baby in a corner can also represent baby moving on in life to being her own person and Johnny supporting that/being part of that. Sooo many metaphors in this film.Remembering the time when this is supposed to take place...The social constructs,expectations, and also " a woman's place" in society just to name a few.
"Nobody's puts Baby in a corner" I believe is metaphorical. Yeah, she's in a literal corner, but I think he's referring to her father kinda backing her into a corner of being the ideal daughter HE wants her to be, instead of being the person SHE wants to be. Remember, he says "a corner", and not "the corner"... Also, the lift thing wasn't something that was easily done. Lifting someone in water is different than lifting someone on dry land, which is why they struggled before and after the lake, along with her fear. They practiced in the water due to safety, as well as making it easier to practice the actual lift with the shifting weight, and even then, they struggled because of the keeping balance after she's been lifted. So the only time we actually see them hit the lift properly was at the end, due to her practicing, but also to display her newfound confidence, as opposed to her first attempt at doing it in a room full of people...
This movie is about classism, not about the dancing. It pushed a lot of boundaries for its day, especially with the subversion of stereotypes (the objectification of the man by rich women rather than the objectification of any of the women, trust me for the 80s this was DIFFERENT), the focus being on Baby's relationship with her father rather than any badly conceived romantic conflict. And lastly, Baby was probably the first woman I saw on screen who came fully formed - she knew who she was (the story wasn't about her "finding herself" or anything) and she made active choices that were vital to moving the plot along rather than having things just "happen" to her. Also there was no cattiness between her and any of the other women in the movie, especially Penny. This was all very refreshing for the 80s. Fun fact - the actor/dancer who played Penny is also in Flashdance.
Nicely stated! Also this is a quintessential coming of age story, but told from the pov of a young woman. She loses her innocence many times over and in complex ways. I also remember Penny in Flashdance, as well as from the ultimate cheesy 80s dance movie, Stayin` Alive!
It was 1987 not 1957. I was alive in the 80's and it wasn't THAT unique. The 80's was a time of smashing boundries, pushing the envelope and challenging past ideas. Perhaps you're confusing the era the movie is set in with the era it came out in? Haha
Not only was Jerry Orbach on Law & Order, but he also voiced Lumiere in "Beauty and the Beast"! 🕯🕯🕯🕯 EDIT: OK, someone beat me to it. But my enthusiasm stands 🤪
I can’t help but to feel disappointed in Ashleighs reaction tbh. All the missed points where she was either talking, drinking, fixing her hair or thinking about something funny to say. It really irritated me because she couldn’t get the right “feel” for the movie like she would’ve if she paid attention to it.
Don't forget, dancing dirty was not a thing people did on tv or in movies in the 80s. Go back and watch any episode of Dance Party USA, Soul Train, etc and you will not see people dancing anywhere close to this. It's what drove teens and young adults to the movie theater to see this and why it was so popular and still is in a nostalgic sense for people who were coming of age in the 80s. People were doing it, but not on TV/films. Plot is so so, but we watch it for the romance and the dancing. AND, it really drove some of the styles when this movie came out. Keds sales exploded, permed hair, Patrick's mini mullet, cut-off rolled denim shorts (Baby), and jean shorts with prints (Lisa), all became hugely popular at this time. So it's nostalgic for everything we were doing in the 80s.
The reason "I've Had The Time Of My Life" is associated with this movie is because it was written for this movie. It even won the Oscar for Best Original Song.
Unpopular opinion, but this song only works in combination with the movie for me. When I first heard it on the radio I hadn't watched the movie yet and it didn't do anything for me! It starts with the Chorus and doesn't really get a great exceleration or showdown from there but only kinda drips along at the same pace. I was born in '78 so I still remember feeling the excitement of discovering a great new song and frantically trying to catch most of it on tape. And this song just wasn't ot for me, sorry. It did work great with the visuals of the movie though!
The moment where Baby is dressing her father down when he sitting on the porch, and he doesn’t say anything back to her… Jerry Orbach‘s facial acting should have one an Oscar.
Baby’s mom is also known as Emily Gilmore (Gilmore Girls) and was the original Sheila in A Chorus Line (which for me makes her comment at the end on Baby’s dancing “She gets that from me” all the better :-)
@@bridiemcloughlin8326 Yes, I think she won the Tony for her role in "A Chorus Line" in 1976. There's a clip on YT showing her accepting the award and saying a few words in thanks.
The scene where Patrick and Jennifer were practicing and she gets ticklish and he gets frustrated was real. He got very annoyed with her in that moment.
Many people didn't notice when Mrs. Shumacher dropped her purse, before talking about taking dance lessons from George Burns, there were multiple men's wallets that fell out and Baby just picked them up and put them back in her purse.
This movie (like many 80's classics) has a strong subtext about class, counterculture and civil rights. It's a crowd pleaser allright, but back then many writers were 20 in the 60's (and teens in the late 50s, like the lady who wrote this movie) and that whole journey shows in their work. There's a good episode about this movie in "The Movies that Made us" on Netflix that you all might enjoy. Also, The Time of my life is actually the only modern song of the soundtrack and while it wasn't strictly composed for the movie, it became the movie theme and got released in it's soundtrack... so it won the oscarf or best original song.
One of the best performances by Patrick Swayze is in a movie called "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" I highly recommend you watch it if you have not seen it.
Yes, they've done the lift in rehearsal, but there's a big difference between rehearsing and performing. There's a leap of faith and confidence that is difficult to accomplish. I used to play the piano for myself wonderfully, but I would suffer incredible anxiety when I had to play the piano in front of an audience. That's why the lift scene is so cathartic. Baby showed everyone what she knew in her heart. And that takes incredible confidence and fortitude.
Yes, in high school band I played clarinet and a pianist, a saxophonist, a trumpeter and myself learned “Easy” by the Commodores by ear. The band director offered to let us play it at the Spring concert, but we chickened out.
exactly. Doing something, especially as physical and scary as being lifted over someone's head and remaining graceful and pointed, can throw one way off balance when you know someone is watching. Huge difference. I'm a dancer and before I had stage confidence, there were many things I could do in rehearsal that did not happen in performance.
That's one thing, I would add to this - the lift in the water is physically easier (the water makes you "lighter") and safer (landing in water vs. landing on a dance floor... not the same thing).
The importance of the last dance lift was that Baby was no longer scared of fully trusting another man, that was not her father. And it was LIVE in front of an audience. Up to then, it had only been done alone in rehearsals, which were also mirroring her private relationship with Johnny.
I'm just glad you watched it, but tell your mom I'm on her team lol. I saw DD for the first time when I was 9 or 10, so it can do no wrong in my eyes. Also bless my mom who let me get a "How To Dirty Dance" book, which I took to the school playground. I swear, it only showed feet placement for the Cha Cha and the Merengue and stuff 🤣
Dirty Dancing is one of the few movies depicting how unfairly the working class are treated. Also, it shows the dangerous harm of illegal abortions for women who desperately need it.
I think the "nobody puts baby in a corner" is like she shouldn't be hidden away, she's an amazing person, very passionate, caring & talented & she should be encouraged not held back. She should be up on that stage & as soon as her Parents see her dancing they get it. Swayze's character starts off thinking she's a spoilt rich girl but she shows genuine care & heart for people & stands up for herself so he comes to love that.
It definitely 100% has dual meaning. Nuance is often lost with Ashleigh. She's a great fun reactor overall, but sometimes she completely misses the boat ⛵. Like in Titanic: "Why don't they just sink the boat already" ...so we can get this stupid movie over with.
I think the lift is a metaphor for baby's willingness to be open about her relationship with Johnny. Movies have a lot of symbolism in them. If you notice, Johnny does that beconing finger gesture at every key point in Baby's character ark. The first staff party she went to, the dance on the log, and the final dance. These kinds of details are easy to miss, but they're not accidental.
I think it was more because she began to trust herself. All through the movie she was a people pleaser, shy and unsure of what to do or seeking approval for her decisions. By the end, she overcame her inhibition and gained the confidence to believe in herself and her choices, cost what they may.
It's not implied that the movie is millenial, Ashleigh is a millenial and she reacts to movies that came before her time and that 'oldies' like us are recommending to her 😉
Saw this movie for probably the 50th time a couple years ago at a winery with my wife. "Sipping Under the Stars". They had a projector and a screen out on the lawn. About 200 people laying out on blankets and just drinking wine under clear sky watching Dirty Dancing... Was a good time.
That is one of my favorite movies of his, and both Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo make good buddies. Snipes character, Noxeema Jackson, gives the best explanation of the difference between cross dressers, transgender women, and drag queens I ever heard. Yes, it is played for laughs but knowing people who are in each category, it hits the mark.
My 1 year old nephew loves thr ending scene of this movie (it's the only part he's seen) and always makes me play it for him. He dances along to the music, and even knows when it's time to run to me so I can lift him in the air. ❤️
I totally agree, I saw a triple feature of Flashdance, Footloose, and Dirty Dancing in about 1990 and they really were a great group of films to put together...everyone was boogieing during the intermissions, lol!
the thing with Baby is that she is a bit naive and so she really did think that by admitting that she was with Johnny that night would have saved him, not realizing that by admitting to it she would also have been costing him his job. you have to remember the time period (the early 60s) and understand that for someone like her in a family like hers, she would have been treated with kid gloves and been pretty sheltered. hence, the makeup comment as well from her dad (even though she had already graduated high school, makeup was still considered something she shouldn't wear because they still considered her the "baby" of the family).
Fun fact: the lake that is part of this resort a number of years after filming this movie began to shrink. Eventually it completely emptied and researchers found a hidden cave and the water escaped through there.. the lake fills up sometimes but then drains completely and there is no schedule to it.. Anyway.. after the lake drained for the first time the centerblocks used for Patrick Swazy to stand on where exposed and i believe they are still there to this day.. Edit: they also found 2 human skeletal remains.. 😬😳
First off, this is my favourite movie and it is becoming a theme that you do not enjoy my favourite movies, and it is devastating hahahah The tension between Baby and Penny in the beginning wasn't over a boy, it was over classism. Baby just told Penny she envied her.. right after Penny told her that her mother kicked her out when she was 16 and she had no choice but to take up dancing. I love that the main tension in the film is that very classism theme! Also, LOVE the fact that this is a trojan horse movie for the importance of legal/safe abortions. PS. If you want to see some Swayze butt, check out Road House!
I must have watched this 300 times since I was a kid. One day I was sick off work and sat and watched it, got to the end, rewound the tape and watched it again... I did that all day. No joke. I know every line, every song, it never gets old. I just don't even know what it is about it but it's magic.
Watched this at every sleepover when I was a kid because everybody loved it from the parents too the kids❤ Patrick can do anything he can kick some rear ends "RoadHouse" anyone❤
I think you would appreciate the movie more if you watch Netflix's "The MOVIES that made us" episode of Dirty Dancing. It goes into how the writer made this movie based on her past experience, the fight to get the music for the movie and keep the abortion scene; it goes into details of the dislike between Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey (Baby), and the many takes Swayze did on a bad knee to do that jump off stage to get the 'right' jump.
That behind the scene netflix episode forever ruined this movie for me. Knowing the two leads hated each other, and the scene where she is ticklish when rehearsing- where you can see the real annoyance on swayze's face... totally ruined it for me on rewatch.
@@Elisheval ....they didn't hate each other. They did on a prior movie then had a heart to heart and came to a better place. I'm sure they still irritated each other sometimes, as expected. The scene in the movie where Johnny and Baby mouth sing and crawl to each other was also borne out of Patrick and Jennifer having fun with each other. That's definitely not a relationship someone can label flatly as "hate". Sounds like a typical complex dynamic
@@Elisheval They first hated each other on the set of Red Dawn. There is a funny interview were Swayze talked about not getting along on Red Dawn and he never thought they would work together again.
You should check out Road House another Patrick Swayze must see. It is a typical cheesy 80s action movie, but Swayze has so much charisma. Sam Elliott is also in it.
Dang it! I was so hoping you would like this movie. I feel like you missed so many "moments" that captured the times and important character developments. Dirty Dancing was set in 1963. I think they did a good job capturing that time period. Kellerman's was located in the Catskills of New York where back then a lot of families escaped city life and went for summer vacation to resorts (much like a cabin vacation in The Smokey's except they had activities and all inclusive services). Regarding Penny's "health" that was unfortunately done quite often because it was illegal to perform that procedure back then. Baby went to Penny first to establish that her character was a "helper" and would come to the rescue of complete strangers because that is who she is as a person. The dance skills in this movie were stellar and not easily done. The lift was only done a couple times in the water before the last one. The level of balance that took was very impressive. A story was told just with the use of camera and the actors bodies. Sad you didn't love it, but you win some you lose some.
Wait, are you saying she doesn’t like dirty dancing? I don’t know if I can watch til the end….I’m still getting over My Cousin Vinny only being a 4, lol.
@@kathrynsmith831 Sometimes I feel like reviewers miss things because they are constantly talking. I get the 80s cheese….yes, but this movie dealt with the guy from the wrong side of the tracks and the hypocrisy of her liberal fathers expectations, abortion, coming of age, and was a sleeper hit that no one expected. I will agree JG wasn’t the strongest of actresses, but the moments where he goes to lift her strap in the lake, kisses her nose, doesn’t go with the cougar….show he actually does care about Baby. And the point of the cheesy line….is Baby has many wonderful attributes, and she shouldn’t be a wallflower blending into the background…..but she’s talking literally about people sitting in corners. I get it…..we have the benefit of seeing most of these movies many times. And I find a lot of her comments funny. And my gripe isn’t with just her….in many reaction videos I keep thinking….you missed a great line because you’re talking! Lol.
I was 9 years old when this movie came out and I remember everyone talking about it but my parents wouldn't let me go see in the theater because of the name lol. Well, when it came out on VHS my grandma bought it and we watched it on pretty much a constant loop that summer. Ha, hooray for grandmas! I have such fond memories of that summer! My cousins and I perfected a rendition of the final dance, lift and all. Maybe I'm nostalgic but the movie stills holds up for me and I'm so happy every single time I watch it. Thanks for letting us experience it for the first time again with you, Ashleigh. What a gift.
This movie is filled with Broadway talents... - Jerry Orbach (the dad), besides 'Law & Order' was the voice of Lumiere in the animated classic 'Beauty and the Beast' singing "Be Our Guest". He also won a Tony Award for the musical 'Promises, Promises' and created the role of Billy Flynn in the 1970s original production of 'Chicago'. - Kelly Bishop (the mom) was on 'Gilmore Girls' and also won a Tony Award playing Sheila in the original landmark musical 'A Chorus Line'. Not only did she originate her role, the character she played was based on her experiences as a Broadway dancer. - Jennifer Grey (Baby) was Jeannie Bueller in 'Ferris Bueller', and she is the daughter of Joel Grey, the Tony and Oscar winning actor best known for creating the role of The Emcee in 'Cabaret', playing the role first on Broadway, then reprising the role for the film. And as we all know you love the MCU...Jennifer is the real life wife of Agent Coulson (aka Clark Gregg). - Neil, the insufferable ass was played by Lonny Price who is a Broadway actor and director. He made a film as well, a documentary about the first Broadway show he ever did. The show was called 'Merrily We Roll Along' and was written by the late Stephen Sondheim. The show was a flop but had a few now famous names making their professional debuts...like Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) and Giancarlo Esposito ('Breaking Bad' and 'The Mandalorian'). The film about the orignal production of 'Merrily We Roll Along' is called 'The Best Worst Thing That Could Ever Have Happened' and is on Netflix.
for the absolutely best patrick swayze movie you HAVE to watch "to wong foo"! you would love it and not only for patrick, but because it is just the funniest and sweetest movie ever
@12:19 Baby's laughter was 100% legit and Patrick Swayze's frustration was 100%. In reality these two didn't get a long during filming. But would make up as friends and vow to never work together again.
@@davesteller6301 If I remember correctly in an interview one of them did it sounded like there was some bad history from when they worked together previously. They hashed it out one day and the rest of filming went well.
@@davesteller6301 According to the Netflix documentary about this movie ("The Movies That Made Us"), the bad blood between them originated during the making of Red Dawn. Patrick Swayze had done something that really upset her, and she vowed never to work with him again (nobody disclosed what the "something" was). The producers of Dirty Dancing were aware of this, and basically ordered Swayze to fix their relationship before production started, which he did. The whole documentary was actually really interesting.
It’s such a great movie. The soundtrack, that beautiful finale. And, although the line is cheesy - I don’t think he means literally in the corner. I think he is saying that she is special and doesn’t deserve to be hidden. Nobody makes her feel small. It’s so good.
"You showed you could do the lift before, but you chickened out" But that's the point, that she didn't chicken out. That she had the confidence now. It was a triumph of the mental rather than the physical. So yes it's still an achievement, from the very fact that you note that she always chickened out before. And no Baby did not realize that he would still get fired, because she was very naive about the way the world really works.
Now you need to watch Too Wong Foo, Thank You for Everything! Julie Numar. Patrick Swayze in DRAG along with 2 other amazing male actors in Drag and it was one of my favourites to watch with my mom as a kid 💕
"We almost saw Patrick Swayze's PP" - so does that mean "Road House" is on the viewing agenda? That movie has something for everyone. Bar fights - monster trucks - romance - a whole lot of PS (wink wink)
@@misterprickly She got her nose job in the early 90s, after this movie. She blamed that for the sharp decline in her career. She was not as recognizable afterward. It might also have been the fact that they weren't making enough roles for women in their 30s in the 1990s, so by sexist Hollywood standards at the time, she was getting old. Geena Davis, who has a similar look, a similar style, is also enormously talented and is just a few years older also saw a sharp decline in her career during the 1990s.
I think this is definitely a generational thing. Being 15 and going to see this in the 80’s, all of it was a little taboo and a whole lot of like you were seeing something you shouldn’t but liking it.
Ashleigh: spicy dance moves, they's a getting pregnant Blake: breaking news from Tennessee, cute young couple is busy doing spicy adult things after watching Dirty Dancing. Neighbors report repeated noise disturbances with one quoting "get a room, you two". When reached for comment, the couples landlord Beans the Cat commented "i haven't been fed in literally forever"
The fact that this movie's plot hinged on an abortion is still revolutionary. It lost sponsorship during marketing when they learned that it was impossible to edit it out, and it affected how teen movies were pitched and produced afterwards.
They were already having abortions on sitcoms in the 70s and making jokes about it. Maude, for example. But sure, still WILDLY revolutionary for a movie. Maybe someday they'll have a movie about a woman who has a job!
This is the second reviewer I've seen who refers to the "time" this movie came out and, as the others have said, it was not revolutionary. I was young and a little naive and innocent at the time and that was not what gave me pause because it was talked about and represented extensively for at least a decade before. The dancing, however, I did a double take.
Y'all seriously get a clue.....it WAS huge to have an illegal abortion and the dangerous consequences of it, not only portrayed, but the impetus for the whole movies plot. Social commentaries of this sort were too often cut and left on the editing floor because production companies and supporters would lose their international sponsorship. The writer was paid by their sponsor to cut the abortion out, but she was like....no, eff you, and made due without their sponsorship. That was possible in those days when writers and producers had more control over the final product. Nowadays, it's big money sponsors that ultimately control the final product. Movies are mega sensored today. So YES, this was a big deal 🙄🙄
I first saw this when I was 16 or 17, and I thought it was just okay. A couple of months ago, I went to a thrift store and they had the DVD- unopened- for $2.52. I had been wanting to give it a second chance, so that night I watched it, and I loved every minute of it. Yes, I'm a 23-year-old male and Dirty Dancing is one of my favorite movies. I watched Good Will Hunting the same day, and I loved this more, even though they both made my favorite movies list. So there. :)
OK so this movie along with Steel Magnolias were my mom's two favorite movies of all time. She knew they were cheesy and we ALWAYS made fun of it like you did in this review. Yet because of how close we were as a family around the time it came out on video it ended up being a weekly thing for us. Even if all we did was have it on in the background while we hung out and talked about our weeks. It was my moms favorite soundtrack and even now whenever I hear the closing song I tear up. My mom was an amazing person. She wasn't perfect by any means but she did her best to give us the best life she could. If there was anyone nobody backed into a corner it was her. I miss you, mom. So much. Thanks for another wonderful review, Ashleigh. If I ever get a chance to buy you & your hubby a drink the cold mint juleps are on me.
People equate “time of my life” to this movie because it sprang directly from it and won awards that year. “She’s like the wind” the song that plays when Swayze is fired and leaves was written and sung by the man himself.
If you like "regular" dancing, there's another movie that's worth a watch. The Australian film "Strictly Ballroom" is absolutely great.. even features a rendition of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" that I dare say is on par, maybe even a little better than the original.. and it's actually sung by the lead actress!
This is my “if you could only watch 1 film for the rest of your life” pick. It may not technically be the best, but it’s a film I never get tired of. It always puts me in a good mood. Also, you gotta do Footloose, flashdance and Fame too.
I think the dance at the end was to show the growth on their relationship - their dancing was more intimate because of their relationship and the lift was possible because she now trusted him fully.
I worked at a summer resort when I was in my teens in the Muskoka region of Ontario (Canada) - “cottage country”. Way back early in the previous century before air travel became so accessible to fly to Florida, the Caribbean, Europe, California, etc. Resorts in the countryside near large population areas were where people (with some money) could escape to in the summer. Sprawling between hills and forests, near a lake or river, with tennis or golf or other leisure activities, and social programs for dances, games and events, resorts like this were the place to be and relax. You’d reach them in the early days by train and boat and spend months there perhaps. Later, when the road system grew and car travel became the norm, more people would drive there and spend a week or more there. Eventually though, air travel to much more exotic and exciting locations won the competition for vacation dollars. Starting in the last half of the previous century and on these resorts have been disappearing. The end of an era. This movie was set in either the late fifties or early sixties at the end of the golden age for these “backyard” (my term) resorts.
My older sister got to name me. She loooooved this movie and wanted to name me Baby so bad. I should note she was only 4. Lol. My mom said she couldn’t name me Baby so she wanted to name me Frances and my mom (thankfully but no offense if your name is Frances) said no. So they agreed on Jennifer for Jennifer Grey. My sister passed away unexpectedly last year. This movie will permanently be held close to my heart. Thank you for watching it and giving it a chance. ❤️
I was a kid when this came out, and I refused to watch Dirty Dancing because it's "a girl film", and girls films were BAD. 'course, a few decades later and it turned out that I *am* the target audience, and I know Girl Films can be good! Also, Dress go spinny!
A girl's film? This has been one of my go to films just based on the well written story, the music, and the overall direction of this film. Plus, it's Swayze. And both one puts Baby in the corner.
@@3Kings_Industries I thought that, at the time, because I was so deep in the closet that a tall pale woman tried to get me into her sled by offering me Turkish Delight, but that stuff is rank so I ran away and then just got SUPER into Transformers instead. Dirty Dancing is a really *really* good film and I adore it, but little-me's brain just hated the possibility that people might find out my "secret".
Patrick Swayze hated the line, “Nobody puts baby in a corner,” and refused to say it for several takes. Finally, he agreed to do it only once, and it turned out to be the most famous line in the movie.
@@tophers3756 The whole movie is cheap, cheesy, and stupid. But plenty of stupid things have become pop-culture icons. There's no accounting for taste.
Omg this was my mom's favorite movie . she passed away in November i cant tell you how many times we watched this and did our nails and drank hot chocolate i miss you so much mom you were only 56 me dad and luke miss you every day 🦋
Even though the movie was made in the 80s, it was set in late 1950s/early 1960s, before abortion was legalized, hence the subject matter. But even so, the makers faced some issues with having abortion being part of the main story line. The last 50 years have seen some amazing changes, not the least of which is peoples' points of view about these subject matters. To put it in perspective, women couldn't have credit cards in their own names just 10 years or so before this movie was made. #wevecomealongwaybaby
I've watched this movie hundreds of times, but I only just caught on to that in the last one... I was born a few years after RvW, so illegal abortion has never been a thing... But the line "It's not for anything illegal, is it Baby?" and how she stammers, "No, Daddy!" made me realize, that yes, at the time the movie was set, it very much WAS illegal, and very dangerous.
When this film opened in 1987, not many people heard of it. In a year where the top films of that year were Fatal Attraction, Wall Street, and Beverly Hills Cop II, this film worked its way into becoming a phenomenal success. When it went to home video, it was still running in theaters. And I have a vivid memory of going to my local video store the week that Dirty Dancing was out on VHS, and seeing a group of teenage girls watching the film on the in-store TV’s, and hearing them swoon when Johnny comes back and finds Baby and says “Nobody puts Baby in the corner.” I could see what they were seeing in the movie. This is a timeless classic. I hope that even though you felt it was cheesy in certain spots, it was still a good enough movie to see; maybe watch it again with your husband. (P.S. Ashleigh, if you’re still “crazy for Swayze”, then I recommend you look at three other films he did in between Dirty Dancing & Ghost. - Roadhouse (1989) - Next of Kin (1989) - Point Break (1991) Hope you’ll see them soon.)
Ghost came out in 1990, a year before Point Break. It was also another sleeper hit like Dirty Dancing. Also Red Dawn...which Swayze (and Jennifer Grey) did before Dirty Dancing. Some people are Dirty Dancing people, other people are Red Dawn people (and yes, some people are both). I have a sneaking suspicion that Ashley is a Red Dawn person...
It feels like you’re getting stuck in the mindset of this movie being “about dancing” which makes the deeper scenes confusing as to why they are in “a movie like this” whereas this movie ISNT a “dance movie”, the movie IS the deeper stuff. The dancing is just the maggufin used to hang it all together. To differentiate the rich from the poor, to frame the dynamic between the blue collar and white, the old and the young etc in this pivotal time of change in society that was the early 60s as the rigid, unyielding morales of the 50s gave way to growth and freedom of spirit. It’s the time that spirit transitioned from fighting authority to becoming normalised across that decade and into the 70s. Seems to me that for whatever reason, maybe your mums build up and other peoples comments, you went into this one with very set ideas about what the movie was and couldn’t break out of that frame of reference as the movie proved to be very different to what it seems to be on the surface. Sometimes we need to abandon our conceptions of a thing when it starts showing us things about itself that don’t fit the pre-conception and let it teach us what it really is. This movie is a perfect example of that. Especially for someone born so far from that time who might not get the implications if they go into it thinking it’s a “dance movie”. Like when you say “I didn’t expect some of those really deep scenes in a movie like this”, you’re not being taught by the content itself that it ISNT “a movie like this”. And the lift? The only reason the lift was an element in the movie at all WAS to have a tangible sign of Baby’s growth and her having learnt to believe in herself and have confidence. Without that lift at the end the previous scenes of her training for it and failing to do it in the routine at the hotel wouldn’t even be in the movie. Basically all the bits you were confused why they were in the movie and made it drag for you ARE the actual movie. The dancing is just window dressing and plot device. Hope this doesn’t sound aggro or anything, I’m not butt hurt or anything. I just really think this movie deserves a lot more respect than it gets and I find most often that it doesn’t get it because of fundamental misunderstanding of what it actually is about due to the marketing it had and the reputation it has gotten has pretty much followed that shallow interpretation in the decades since. I cannot recommend strongly enough rewatching this with your mom and getting her to talk about it with you as you watch. Get her perspective on it as someone who lived through those years…. If she did at an age to understand what was going on… otherwise a grandmother?
I live in Northwest NJ near the border of NY State. Just 20 minutes, you’re in The Catskills. The dance practice scene with Penny, Baby, and Johnny was filmed in one of the abandoned shacks in a old resort in Liberty NY. The last of the Summer resorts went away a decade ago, so sad to see these pieces of Americana go. In a time where the interstate highways were just being constructed and road trips and Sunday driving with the family were a big deal. These were the days where the airline industry was just being in development in expanding world wide air travel. Las Vegas tourist going to gamble and see Elvis and the big name entertainers. That’s what started killing the resorts. People wanted to see the world traveling. They tried to bring Vegas style gambling in the Catskills and the Poconos in Pennsylvania to entice those former resort goers to come back. But gambling didn’t happen, because of Atlantic City and the Jersey Shore.
I am so glad you watched this! It was released just before my 13th birthday and it was a big part of my early teens (as well as most of my friends)! I know waaaaay too much about the filming and the cast of this film since I saw it 100 times before my 16th birthday and had every book, magazine and article I could find, lol! You have made me super excited that you are doing "Roxanne" next as I live in the town it was filmed in, Nelson, BC Canada!
@68K Lmao! We have a giant mural of Steve Martin in his firefighter costume with the nose and everything! It’s a lovely piece by the late local artist D Dan❤️
Joel Grey was a Broadway and movie Actor/Dancer, not a Choreographer, although since he later directed musicals, I suppose he had the skillset. He was the Master of Ceremonies in Cabaret, winning a Tony for it on Broadway and an Oscar when they made the movie. Aside from her father being a famous dancer, Jennifer apparently went to dance school, so yeah. She pretended not knowing.
Baby's father was Jerry Orbach, who was best known during his stage career for singing "Try to Remember" in "The Fantastics on Off-Broadway in the 60's, and he was later best remembered on TV as a long running star of the original "Law & Order" series.
As a 42 year old guy, I had never seen this movie until this Christmas, I was visiting my parents and one evening this movie came on. My mother and my wife wanted to watch it, and I thought, sure, why not. I actually liked it, it's very cheesy ofc, but it was pleasantly enjoyable, and I wouldn't mind watching it again a cold rainy night, while sipping on a coffee and a whisky, it has a cosy vibe to it.
Have you seen MASH 4077 episode from 1981 "Blood brothers" where Patric Swayze plays a soldier with pancreatic cancer , that he died from 28 year later . In MASH episode he was going to donate blood to fellow wounded soldier , but was denied when they found that he had cancer .
@@nebularain3338 You're not wrong, but that's not what I took away from it when we watched it. Might have been the atmosphere in the room was cozy enough to bleed into the movie. For me it felt like a good old 80's feelgood movie, girl meets boy etc etc, even though, as you said, some of the themes in the movie are rather heavy, thinking back on it.
Case in point, regarding how multi-faceted this movie is. When Penny and Johnny are doing their "Baby-sandwich-dance-training-maneuver", it's kind of hot... But the scene is really about gratitude. Baby is trying to help Penny, so Johnny and Penny are both being as supportive of her as they can because they appreciate her help.
Also, I think it should be noted that Ashleigh was mistaken (understandably so) in thinking that the women were going to have tension over a dude (which is what usually happens) but instead their early tension is a direct result of the classism you talk about, but they find ways to get past that and bond/support each other. It makes for a nice change, especially in the 80s when that was less talked about. They could have easily turned this into some kind of cheesy love triangle, but I'm eternally grateful they didn't go that route. This movie DEFINITELY has it's cheese factor, but I think people often don't give the story enough credit.
Lol Ashleigh you know how to ruin a movie’s iconic moments and you keep us coming back for more. Also, it’s much easier for Baby to do the lift in water than 8+ feet from a hardwood stage floor extended in Johnny’s arms, that’s why she chickened out every other time but was able to do it in the lake. Also she never had true balance when doing it in the lake. The final scene was triumphant because she finally found her balance and wasn’t fearing the possible fall to the floor below.
As a dancer, the one thing that can get a crowd going more than a big impressive dance move is charisma and Patrick Swayze had it. His skills as a dancer showed when he combined technicality with style and vibes. Sometimes even the smallest and simplest of moves when done right affects people more than a complicated one
I figured you being a Disney Princess chick would appreciate this tidbit, the father Jerry Orbach (or however you spell his last name) was also the voice of Lumire in the animated Beauty and the Beast.
This movie takes place in a resort in the Catskills which were basically Jewish summer vacation spots for people who wanted to get away from the heat in the cities (No A/C n those days) with fun for the whole family. Also called the Borscht Belt. They were a big deal all the way into the 1980's or 90's. Now they are basically extinct. A ton of comedians got their start as kids in these resorts including Mel Brooks, Danny Kaye, Woody Allen, Jerry Seinfeld, Sid Caesar and Joan Rivers. There is a whole story arc in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel that takes place in one these resorts.
That series is gold! I hope the next season is soon!
Carol Burnett also had a couple of summers in the Catskills when she was first starting out.
Exactly. It was known colloquially as the ‘Borscht Belt,’ by the entertainers that travelled around & performed at those places.
African Americans had a similar group of resorts & vacation areas, often called the ‘Chitlin Circuit’ by the musicians & comedians who primarily worked those clubs & resorts. Many famous performers got their starts playing one or both of those areas.
You mentioned Jerry Seinfeld. Did you see his nemesis Newman? Yes,Wayne night had a small part in the movie.
Baby's father is Jerry Ohrbach, the great musical comedy actor. Lennie Briscoe in Law & Order, the origjnal El Gallo in The Fantasticks, off-off-Broadway;, the young guy in Promises, Promises, a long and stellar career.
My wife’s favorite movie. I lost her 8 years ago. I will guarantee, if at all possible, she is looking all over Heaven for Patrick Swayze.
You made me laugh and brought tears to my eyes at the same time, lol. Sorry for your loss, RIP to both of them.
Bless your sweet heart.
🙂Love it. One day I will be looking for him too!
Won’t we all?
🤣♥️♥️
As for the botched abortion, you have to remember this takes place in 1963 when abortion was illegal. back table procedures in basements with coat hangers and knives that left women dead or permanently damaged were not uncommon.
This is why legal abortion needs to be available.... the alternative is this
Women still die from "safe" and LEGAL abortions. All the time (see, for example, Kermit Gosnell). If abortion became illegal, abortions would be done with medical equipment, not clothes hangers. We must not legalize procedures that kill the innocent just to make the killing process less hazardous. The central horror of illegal abortion remains the central horror of legal abortion.
Whatever
@@thegorn68 You're bringing up Gosnell, who is listed as a serial killer, who performed ILLEGAL late term abortions. Really?
There are legitimate times when abortion is the least objectionable answer, such as what I'll call here "forced pregnancy" and if the fetus is not viable. The lives of the mothers also matter
My ex-military dad cried when she nailed the lift at the end. I remember looking at him and giggling and he said "aw shut up and watch the damn movie!"
@J N shit*
No need to "censor" yourself on the internet, there's no internet police coming to arrest anyone.
So a lot of the tension early in the film is because Baby, from Johnny and Penny's points of view, is a little rich girl on summer vacation trying to play nice with the help. "Aren't I such a nice person? I was kind to the help. You know it's important to treat the lower classes well." Penny snapping at Baby over the compliment was her pointing at the silver spoon in Baby's mouth and that the world never handed her anything, that she had to work for everything she has. Johnny's saying "It takes a lot of courage to ask Daddy for money" is lashing out because he's likely been stressing for days about how to help Penny, where he can pick up the extra money, when Baby just walks in like it's nothing because issues like "money" are a little people problem. It's only when Baby showed she's willing to put in the hard work that they started to accept her.
Don't forget, Baby is suppose to be a teenager still, so the other reason Johnny and Penny dismiss her is that she really is still a kid. The movie does a poor job of selling that she is only suppose to be 15-16 years old. There are a number of hints throughout the movie, but they are very subtle.
@@johnhenkel1828 I still remember my grandmother being absolutely furious after watching this movie, because she thought Johnny was a creep and too old for Baby. I didn't get it at the time but tbh now I do. There is a whole other imbalance of power here due to class divides however - probably an interesting subject for a critique.
@@johnhenkel1828
I'm pretty sure that she just graduated high school, so she should be 17 or 18.
@@johnhenkel1828 No, she has to be at least 17, probably 18, because toward the beginning of the movie Baby's dad says, "Baby starts Mount Holyoke in the fall." and that's a four year college. So, she's graduated high school, meaning she can't be less than 17. I would guess Johnny is supposed to be about 24/25. (Even if Patrick Swayze was actually 35!) He was still older than her, obviously, but she's legal, and times were different. He doesn't hold any particular power over her, in fact it's the other way around, since she's the one with the money and status. So, I never found anything inherently gross about their relationship.
Great explanation. I came here to say just this. Now I don't have to. 😄
As a daddy's girl, that scene where Baby is crying to her dad and the dynamic of their relationship is changing because she's growing up BREAKS ME. Him being so stoic but then crying as she leaves 😢 the pain of having your daddy be disappointed in you and also of that first time you're disappointed in *him*... Just ouch, my heart 💔, every time
A father's always going to have a difficult time letting go of his daughter. Jerry Orbach nailed the performance.
Here Casey, have a thumb. 🙂
It's an emotional movie no matter who you are.
(I'm just a random guy with no daughters.)
Baby's father definitely doted on her, more than her sister, and that, plus the fact that Lisa is shallow while Baby is intelligent and going to college (Mount Holyoke) explains the animosity between the two sisters. The only scene I couldn't get is why her father tells her to wipe the makeup off her face when Lisa wears enough to scrape it off with a spatula.
The break in their relationship was because he felt he couldn't trust her anymore, rather than that she was "growing up." Parents always think their kids (especially daughters) are still their li'l precious pumpkins. It takes a jolt to break them of that mindset.
Patrick Swayze can also sing. He performs "She's Like the Wind" which is featured in this movie.
Could, not can. Sorry.
@@gengoosekhan really?
Such a great song!
Not only did he sing it, he co-wrote it. Lol as Ashleigh said he can do anything.
Some would say he could even rob banks.... lol.
When I asked my grandma why it was called Dirty Dancing she pointed out that his knees got dirty after his knee spin in the final dance. It took me several years before I realized she lied to me lol.
Lol
Nice one grandma 😂
That's hilarious lol
I just became fond of both of you
Lmao, that is great!
I was 13 when this movie came out. It was EVERYTHING to me and girls my age. We had BOTH soundtracks. Recreated the routines. Dressed like Baby. And we knew the names of all the dancers. This was before social media. This was EVERYTHING.
I didn't think Ashleigh was so jaded...
She sees cheese, I see innocence being ground away and lovely sexuality and devotion being uncovered. Part of the charm of the Jennifer Gray character is that she is an innocent idealist and so much of the movie's script.and photography and "cheese" is to get that across.
The movie has a large helping of 80s cheese...which is what makes it so great. It is designed to make people feel good, and it achieved that. It's not The Godfather lol.
I think a lot of younger people have a different definition of cheese because I have seen a few reactors call things cheesy that totally aren't.
Your thinking to hard
@@m0ckingb1rd_flxsh
Respectfully, you used 4 words to say nothing
@@bobbabai I said that your thinking to hard, it’s a movie it’s to watch and enjoy not to dissect the meaning of
Practicing a lift in the water where it's safe to fall is NOT, in any way, the same as doing it on a dance floor.
And they were never able to hold it for any length of time in practice. Holding it was a big part of the deal.
@@ckobo84 Maybe they did but they didn't show it, the scene is cut.
@@ckobo84, and doing it in front of more than 100 people, including your parents!
I think Ashleigh missed that point. They never were able to get the lift exactly right until that final moment.
Right, and not being able to do the lift was never his issue, it was hers. The person being lifted needs to have the core strength and coordination to hold their body in the right position, otherwise they are just dead weight that no one can lift. it was about her trusting him completely to hold her up, not about his strength.
“Is there anything Patrick Swayze can’t do?” He can also bust heads, like in “Road House”! And he can rob banks and do extreme sports like in “Break Point” with Keanu Reeves chasing him.
But he can’t beat cancer.
Point Break :)
@@stalefurset9444 Too soon
Yes great movies ❤️
Roadhouse is one of those movies that I don't go out of my way to watch but if it's on I have to watch it. It's a bad movie but I love it.
When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, East Berliners rushed to the movie theaters to see "western films" - and what was playing? DIRTY DANCING! It was so exciting for East Berlin viewers that cinemas stayed open 24 hours a day to play the movie over and over to packed theaters. It's still extremely popular and nostalgic in Berlin, as is the song "The Time of my Life".
Fascinating tidbit, I didn't know that. Thank you!
Netflix’s The Movies That Made Us had a really good episode about the making of this movie that basically implied that it was inspired by one of the writer’s summers growing up, and how she fought to keep the abortion scene included in the movie. Also explained how this movie is what launched the success of Time of My Life.
Season 1 episode 1 covers this movie. I came searching to see if anyone had mentioned this. that is an excellent series. all 3 seasons were great
I enjoyed this documentary more than the actual movie, it was fascinating!
This is a great Netflix series indeed.
Agreed!
The lift represents more than just a lift. Like : trusting each-other, accepting each-other fully and baby going with what she truly believes in as an adult.The don't put baby in a corner can also represent baby moving on in life to being her own person and Johnny supporting that/being part of that. Sooo many metaphors in this film.Remembering the time when this is supposed to take place...The social constructs,expectations, and also " a woman's place" in society just to name a few.
"Nobody's puts Baby in a corner" I believe is metaphorical. Yeah, she's in a literal corner, but I think he's referring to her father kinda backing her into a corner of being the ideal daughter HE wants her to be, instead of being the person SHE wants to be. Remember, he says "a corner", and not "the corner"...
Also, the lift thing wasn't something that was easily done. Lifting someone in water is different than lifting someone on dry land, which is why they struggled before and after the lake, along with her fear. They practiced in the water due to safety, as well as making it easier to practice the actual lift with the shifting weight, and even then, they struggled because of the keeping balance after she's been lifted. So the only time we actually see them hit the lift properly was at the end, due to her practicing, but also to display her newfound confidence, as opposed to her first attempt at doing it in a room full of people...
Yeah but the run up to the lift is much harder in water 🤣
This movie is about classism, not about the dancing. It pushed a lot of boundaries for its day, especially with the subversion of stereotypes (the objectification of the man by rich women rather than the objectification of any of the women, trust me for the 80s this was DIFFERENT), the focus being on Baby's relationship with her father rather than any badly conceived romantic conflict. And lastly, Baby was probably the first woman I saw on screen who came fully formed - she knew who she was (the story wasn't about her "finding herself" or anything) and she made active choices that were vital to moving the plot along rather than having things just "happen" to her. Also there was no cattiness between her and any of the other women in the movie, especially Penny. This was all very refreshing for the 80s.
Fun fact - the actor/dancer who played Penny is also in Flashdance.
Nicely stated! Also this is a quintessential coming of age story, but told from the pov of a young woman. She loses her innocence many times over and in complex ways.
I also remember Penny in Flashdance, as well as from the ultimate cheesy 80s dance movie, Stayin` Alive!
Cynthia Rhodes is also in the movie Stayin' Alive. She is a fierce dancer. Is she also married to Richard Marx?
Pushed a lot of boundaries? What are you on about? Like it, but it's an incredibly silly love story with any a much depth as a puddle.
Well said.
It was 1987 not 1957. I was alive in the 80's and it wasn't THAT unique. The 80's was a time of smashing boundries, pushing the envelope and challenging past ideas. Perhaps you're confusing the era the movie is set in with the era it came out in? Haha
Not only was Jerry Orbach on Law & Order, but he also voiced Lumiere in "Beauty and the Beast"! 🕯🕯🕯🕯 EDIT: OK, someone beat me to it. But my enthusiasm stands 🤪
He was also the original Billy Flynn in Broadway’s Chicago in the 1970s.
he was also a recurring character on murder she wrote. with Angela "mrs potts" Lansbury.
And in the OBC of 42nd Street and Carnival - such a gorgeous voice!
And an author.
@@rmhartman That's a great show :)
I can’t help but to feel disappointed in Ashleighs reaction tbh. All the missed points where she was either talking, drinking, fixing her hair or thinking about something funny to say. It really irritated me because she couldn’t get the right “feel” for the movie like she would’ve if she paid attention to it.
Don't forget, dancing dirty was not a thing people did on tv or in movies in the 80s. Go back and watch any episode of Dance Party USA, Soul Train, etc and you will not see people dancing anywhere close to this. It's what drove teens and young adults to the movie theater to see this and why it was so popular and still is in a nostalgic sense for people who were coming of age in the 80s. People were doing it, but not on TV/films. Plot is so so, but we watch it for the romance and the dancing.
AND, it really drove some of the styles when this movie came out. Keds sales exploded, permed hair, Patrick's mini mullet, cut-off rolled denim shorts (Baby), and jean shorts with prints (Lisa), all became hugely popular at this time. So it's nostalgic for everything we were doing in the 80s.
"My sports bra is doing the Lord's work right now."
Funniest thing I've heard all day :)
The reason "I've Had The Time Of My Life" is associated with this movie is because it was written for this movie. It even won the Oscar for Best Original Song.
every time standard track in the disco. I went drinking ^^
Unpopular opinion, but this song only works in combination with the movie for me. When I first heard it on the radio I hadn't watched the movie yet and it didn't do anything for me! It starts with the Chorus and doesn't really get a great exceleration or showdown from there but only kinda drips along at the same pace. I was born in '78 so I still remember feeling the excitement of discovering a great new song and frantically trying to catch most of it on tape. And this song just wasn't ot for me, sorry. It did work great with the visuals of the movie though!
I can’t believe Ashley complained about cheese during Swayze’s “She’s like the Wind”
The moment where Baby is dressing her father down when he sitting on the porch, and he doesn’t say anything back to her… Jerry Orbach‘s facial acting should have one an Oscar.
Baby’s mom is also known as Emily Gilmore (Gilmore Girls) and was the original Sheila in A Chorus Line (which for me makes her comment at the end on Baby’s dancing “She gets that from me” all the better :-)
One of my favorite parts of the movie is the father's response to her saying that. It's a rare moment of "wtf are you smoking?"
She's also an award winning dancer is she not? She's a Tony winner anyway.
I was wanting someone to reference Mrs Gilmore.
Kelly Bishop is fabulous!
@@bridiemcloughlin8326 Yes, I think she won the Tony for her role in "A Chorus Line" in 1976. There's a clip on YT showing her accepting the award and saying a few words in thanks.
The scene where Patrick and Jennifer were practicing and she gets ticklish and he gets frustrated was real. He got very annoyed with her in that moment.
Of course. He was a perfectionist. I miss him.
Many people didn't notice when Mrs. Shumacher dropped her purse, before talking about taking dance lessons from George Burns, there were multiple men's wallets that fell out and Baby just picked them up and put them back in her purse.
I'm sure everyone noticed that lol, that's why it's there.
@@2Takki the Dancing school that mrs Schumacher went to was named after the creator of dirty dancing Eleanor(Ellie) Bernstein
This movie (like many 80's classics) has a strong subtext about class, counterculture and civil rights. It's a crowd pleaser allright, but back then many writers were 20 in the 60's (and teens in the late 50s, like the lady who wrote this movie) and that whole journey shows in their work. There's a good episode about this movie in "The Movies that Made us" on Netflix that you all might enjoy. Also, The Time of my life is actually the only modern song of the soundtrack and while it wasn't strictly composed for the movie, it became the movie theme and got released in it's soundtrack... so it won the oscarf or best original song.
Now I HAVE TO recommend Strictly Ballroom. Your reactions always crack me up. So much fun.
I was just about to comment the same thing. Strictly Ballroom is great!
One of the best performances by Patrick Swayze is in a movie called "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" I highly recommend you watch it if you have not seen it.
I’ve been leaving this recommendation on a few of her vids lol hope she does watch it!
If I could like this comment a thousand times I would!!! Love love that movie! I really hope she watches it!
Truth. Dirty Dancing, Ghost, and Road House are great. But nothing beats Swayze as Ms. Vida Boheme!
Yes! When she said "What can't Patrick Swayze do?" I said "Nothing! He can even be a beautiful woman!"
I second the original comment. Vida Boem, chi chi Rodriguez and noxema Jackson mutha fukkah!!!
Yes, they've done the lift in rehearsal, but there's a big difference between rehearsing and performing. There's a leap of faith and confidence that is difficult to accomplish. I used to play the piano for myself wonderfully, but I would suffer incredible anxiety when I had to play the piano in front of an audience. That's why the lift scene is so cathartic. Baby showed everyone what she knew in her heart. And that takes incredible confidence and fortitude.
Yes, in high school band I played clarinet and a pianist, a saxophonist, a trumpeter and myself learned “Easy” by the Commodores by ear. The band director offered to let us play it at the Spring concert, but we chickened out.
exactly. Doing something, especially as physical and scary as being lifted over someone's head and remaining graceful and pointed, can throw one way off balance when you know someone is watching. Huge difference. I'm a dancer and before I had stage confidence, there were many things I could do in rehearsal that did not happen in performance.
That's one thing, I would add to this - the lift in the water is physically easier (the water makes you "lighter") and safer (landing in water vs. landing on a dance floor... not the same thing).
@@AdamNeoDot Good point.
The importance of the last dance lift was that Baby was no longer scared of fully trusting another man, that was not her father. And it was LIVE in front of an audience. Up to then, it had only been done alone in rehearsals, which were also mirroring her private relationship with Johnny.
Also it symbolizes her full transition into a self aware woman, fully mastering her body and physicality
I'm just glad you watched it, but tell your mom I'm on her team lol. I saw DD for the first time when I was 9 or 10, so it can do no wrong in my eyes. Also bless my mom who let me get a "How To Dirty Dance" book, which I took to the school playground. I swear, it only showed feet placement for the Cha Cha and the Merengue and stuff 🤣
Dirty Dancing is one of the few movies depicting how unfairly the working class are treated. Also, it shows the dangerous harm of illegal abortions for women who desperately need it.
I think the "nobody puts baby in a corner" is like she shouldn't be hidden away, she's an amazing person, very passionate, caring & talented & she should be encouraged not held back. She should be up on that stage & as soon as her Parents see her dancing they get it.
Swayze's character starts off thinking she's a spoilt rich girl but she shows genuine care & heart for people & stands up for herself so he comes to love that.
It definitely 100% has dual meaning. Nuance is often lost with Ashleigh. She's a great fun reactor overall, but sometimes she completely misses the boat ⛵. Like in Titanic: "Why don't they just sink the boat already" ...so we can get this stupid movie over with.
And she's made an incredible effort, very hard work. It deserves to be appreciated.
I think the lift is a metaphor for baby's willingness to be open about her relationship with Johnny.
Movies have a lot of symbolism in them. If you notice, Johnny does that beconing finger gesture at every key point in Baby's character ark. The first staff party she went to, the dance on the log, and the final dance. These kinds of details are easy to miss, but they're not accidental.
Great points!
I think it was more because she began to trust herself. All through the movie she was a people pleaser, shy and unsure of what to do or seeking approval for her decisions. By the end, she overcame her inhibition and gained the confidence to believe in herself and her choices, cost what they may.
I completely agree. I always thought the same.@@sadee1287
I laughed too hard at "he can dance ... he can make ceramics" lol
"Make ceramics"? Is that what the kids are calling it these days?
@@jculver1674 lol #ghost
At the same time?😂
This movie is more GenX than millenial. It came out in the mid-80s. I was 12 at the time and it definitely shaped my adolescence.
It's not implied that the movie is millenial, Ashleigh is a millenial and she reacts to movies that came before her time and that 'oldies' like us are recommending to her 😉
Saw this movie for probably the 50th time a couple years ago at a winery with my wife. "Sipping Under the Stars". They had a projector and a screen out on the lawn. About 200 people laying out on blankets and just drinking wine under clear sky watching Dirty Dancing... Was a good time.
Patrick Swayze also plays a really great Drag Queen in *To Wong Foo"
That is one of my favorite movies of his, and both Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo make good buddies. Snipes character, Noxeema Jackson, gives the best explanation of the difference between cross dressers, transgender women, and drag queens I ever heard. Yes, it is played for laughs but knowing people who are in each category, it hits the mark.
My 1 year old nephew loves thr ending scene of this movie (it's the only part he's seen) and always makes me play it for him. He dances along to the music, and even knows when it's time to run to me so I can lift him in the air. ❤️
That is the most adorable thing I have heard in a long time 😍
Ashleigh you really need to watch Footloose. Be sure to watch the original from 1984. I think you will like it a lot better than Dirty Dancing.
Yes! 👏👏👏
🥓🥓🥓
Yes, I was gonna write that 😊
Another vote for Footloose from me!
I totally agree, I saw a triple feature of Flashdance, Footloose, and Dirty Dancing in about 1990 and they really were a great group of films to put together...everyone was boogieing during the intermissions, lol!
the thing with Baby is that she is a bit naive and so she really did think that by admitting that she was with Johnny that night would have saved him, not realizing that by admitting to it she would also have been costing him his job. you have to remember the time period (the early 60s) and understand that for someone like her in a family like hers, she would have been treated with kid gloves and been pretty sheltered. hence, the makeup comment as well from her dad (even though she had already graduated high school, makeup was still considered something she shouldn't wear because they still considered her the "baby" of the family).
Fun fact: the lake that is part of this resort a number of years after filming this movie began to shrink. Eventually it completely emptied and researchers found a hidden cave and the water escaped through there.. the lake fills up sometimes but then drains completely and there is no schedule to it.. Anyway.. after the lake drained for the first time the centerblocks used for Patrick Swazy to stand on where exposed and i believe they are still there to this day..
Edit: they also found 2 human skeletal remains.. 😬😳
I love how you thought the cinder blocks were more worth mentioning than the human remains 😂
Best line.... the Dad says "Baby's gonna change the world"... then they ask Baby about her sister... "She's gonna decorate it.".... epic.
“Sweaty Patrick Swayze is a thing...”
*waiting for Ashleigh to count the Road House comments*
First off, this is my favourite movie and it is becoming a theme that you do not enjoy my favourite movies, and it is devastating hahahah
The tension between Baby and Penny in the beginning wasn't over a boy, it was over classism. Baby just told Penny she envied her.. right after Penny told her that her mother kicked her out when she was 16 and she had no choice but to take up dancing. I love that the main tension in the film is that very classism theme! Also, LOVE the fact that this is a trojan horse movie for the importance of legal/safe abortions.
PS. If you want to see some Swayze butt, check out Road House!
I think she'd get it a lot better if she watched some analysis vids on it. There are some great ones on UA-cam
I must have watched this 300 times since I was a kid. One day I was sick off work and sat and watched it, got to the end, rewound the tape and watched it again... I did that all day. No joke. I know every line, every song, it never gets old. I just don't even know what it is about it but it's magic.
Watched this at every sleepover when I was a kid because everybody loved it from the parents too the kids❤ Patrick can do anything he can kick some rear ends "RoadHouse" anyone❤
I think you would appreciate the movie more if you watch Netflix's "The MOVIES that made us" episode of Dirty Dancing. It goes into how the writer made this movie based on her past experience, the fight to get the music for the movie and keep the abortion scene; it goes into details of the dislike between Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey (Baby), and the many takes Swayze did on a bad knee to do that jump off stage to get the 'right' jump.
That behind the scene netflix episode forever ruined this movie for me. Knowing the two leads hated each other, and the scene where she is ticklish when rehearsing- where you can see the real annoyance on swayze's face... totally ruined it for me on rewatch.
The documentary about it was fantastic. Super interesting.
Actually, there's a couple analysis videos on UA-cam that really delve into the themes and symbolism. Shows all the layered depth in the movie
@@Elisheval ....they didn't hate each other. They did on a prior movie then had a heart to heart and came to a better place. I'm sure they still irritated each other sometimes, as expected. The scene in the movie where Johnny and Baby mouth sing and crawl to each other was also borne out of Patrick and Jennifer having fun with each other. That's definitely not a relationship someone can label flatly as "hate". Sounds like a typical complex dynamic
@@Elisheval They first hated each other on the set of Red Dawn. There is a funny interview were Swayze talked about not getting along on Red Dawn and he never thought they would work together again.
You should check out Road House another Patrick Swayze must see. It is a typical cheesy 80s action movie, but Swayze has so much charisma. Sam Elliott is also in it.
Also shirtless Swayze
And some naked Swayze butt.
And one of the best bad guy one liners in movie history.
I'm surprised the recommendation for Road House was so far down the comments.
Is there anything Swaye can't do? How about martial arts?
And if you pause the lake scene just right you can see something more of Patrick Swayze
Dang it! I was so hoping you would like this movie. I feel like you missed so many "moments" that captured the times and important character developments. Dirty Dancing was set in 1963. I think they did a good job capturing that time period. Kellerman's was located in the Catskills of New York where back then a lot of families escaped city life and went for summer vacation to resorts (much like a cabin vacation in The Smokey's except they had activities and all inclusive services). Regarding Penny's "health" that was unfortunately done quite often because it was illegal to perform that procedure back then. Baby went to Penny first to establish that her character was a "helper" and would come to the rescue of complete strangers because that is who she is as a person. The dance skills in this movie were stellar and not easily done. The lift was only done a couple times in the water before the last one. The level of balance that took was very impressive. A story was told just with the use of camera and the actors bodies. Sad you didn't love it, but you win some you lose some.
Wait, are you saying she doesn’t like dirty dancing? I don’t know if I can watch til the end….I’m still getting over My Cousin Vinny only being a 4, lol.
@@anneb889 LOL! Sadly she didn't love it. But ya can't win em all! It did sting a little watching this one. I have to admit.
@@kathrynsmith831 Sometimes I feel like reviewers miss things because they are constantly talking. I get the 80s cheese….yes, but this movie dealt with the guy from the wrong side of the tracks and the hypocrisy of her liberal fathers expectations, abortion, coming of age, and was a sleeper hit that no one expected. I will agree JG wasn’t the strongest of actresses, but the moments where he goes to lift her strap in the lake, kisses her nose, doesn’t go with the cougar….show he actually does care about Baby. And the point of the cheesy line….is Baby has many wonderful attributes, and she shouldn’t be a wallflower blending into the background…..but she’s talking literally about people sitting in corners. I get it…..we have the benefit of seeing most of these movies many times. And I find a lot of her comments funny. And my gripe isn’t with just her….in many reaction videos I keep thinking….you missed a great line because you’re talking! Lol.
There is a channel called Popcorn in bed who released her reaction to this just recently. I think you would appreciate her response!
@@amandabaker4678 Yes! I loved her reaction. Pure joy.
I was 9 years old when this movie came out and I remember everyone talking about it but my parents wouldn't let me go see in the theater because of the name lol. Well, when it came out on VHS my grandma bought it and we watched it on pretty much a constant loop that summer. Ha, hooray for grandmas! I have such fond memories of that summer! My cousins and I perfected a rendition of the final dance, lift and all. Maybe I'm nostalgic but the movie stills holds up for me and I'm so happy every single time I watch it. Thanks for letting us experience it for the first time again with you, Ashleigh. What a gift.
This movie is filled with Broadway talents...
- Jerry Orbach (the dad), besides 'Law & Order' was the voice of Lumiere in the animated classic 'Beauty and the Beast' singing "Be Our Guest". He also won a Tony Award for the musical 'Promises, Promises' and created the role of Billy Flynn in the 1970s original production of 'Chicago'.
- Kelly Bishop (the mom) was on 'Gilmore Girls' and also won a Tony Award playing Sheila in the original landmark musical 'A Chorus Line'. Not only did she originate her role, the character she played was based on her experiences as a Broadway dancer.
- Jennifer Grey (Baby) was Jeannie Bueller in 'Ferris Bueller', and she is the daughter of Joel Grey, the Tony and Oscar winning actor best known for creating the role of The Emcee in 'Cabaret', playing the role first on Broadway, then reprising the role for the film. And as we all know you love the MCU...Jennifer is the real life wife of Agent Coulson (aka Clark Gregg).
- Neil, the insufferable ass was played by Lonny Price who is a Broadway actor and director. He made a film as well, a documentary about the first Broadway show he ever did. The show was called 'Merrily We Roll Along' and was written by the late Stephen Sondheim. The show was a flop but had a few now famous names making their professional debuts...like Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) and Giancarlo Esposito ('Breaking Bad' and 'The Mandalorian'). The film about the orignal production of 'Merrily We Roll Along' is called 'The Best Worst Thing That Could Ever Have Happened' and is on Netflix.
for the absolutely best patrick swayze movie you HAVE to watch "to wong foo"! you would love it and not only for patrick, but because it is just the funniest and sweetest movie ever
@12:19 Baby's laughter was 100% legit and Patrick Swayze's frustration was 100%. In reality these two didn't get a long during filming. But would make up as friends and vow to never work together again.
Yeah I heard that too. Which surprised me because they worked with each other before on Red Dawn.
@@davesteller6301 If I remember correctly in an interview one of them did it sounded like there was some bad history from when they worked together previously. They hashed it out one day and the rest of filming went well.
@@davesteller6301 According to the Netflix documentary about this movie ("The Movies That Made Us"), the bad blood between them originated during the making of Red Dawn. Patrick Swayze had done something that really upset her, and she vowed never to work with him again (nobody disclosed what the "something" was). The producers of Dirty Dancing were aware of this, and basically ordered Swayze to fix their relationship before production started, which he did. The whole documentary was actually really interesting.
@@lynnjohanssen6552 oh ok. And I always thought Patrick got her to work on dirty dance. But I guess that's not the case
@@Johnny_Socko is it still on Netflix?
It’s such a great movie. The soundtrack, that beautiful finale. And, although the line is cheesy - I don’t think he means literally in the corner. I think he is saying that she is special and doesn’t deserve to be hidden. Nobody makes her feel small. It’s so good.
"You showed you could do the lift before, but you chickened out" But that's the point, that she didn't chicken out. That she had the confidence now. It was a triumph of the mental rather than the physical. So yes it's still an achievement, from the very fact that you note that she always chickened out before.
And no Baby did not realize that he would still get fired, because she was very naive about the way the world really works.
"My sports bra is doing the Lord's work right now" Best line ever!!!
Now you need to watch Too Wong Foo, Thank You for Everything! Julie Numar. Patrick Swayze in DRAG along with 2 other amazing male actors in Drag and it was one of my favourites to watch with my mom as a kid 💕
Hell of a cast over all... Lots of big stars and then tons of character actors in the town.
Jennifer Grey was the sister in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" - she also won her season in "Dancing with the Stars"
Post nose-job!
No wait... PRE!
She is also married to Coulson from the MCU.
"We almost saw Patrick Swayze's PP" - so does that mean "Road House" is on the viewing agenda? That movie has something for everyone. Bar fights - monster trucks - romance - a whole lot of PS (wink wink)
@@misterprickly She got her nose job in the early 90s, after this movie. She blamed that for the sharp decline in her career. She was not as recognizable afterward. It might also have been the fact that they weren't making enough roles for women in their 30s in the 1990s, so by sexist Hollywood standards at the time, she was getting old. Geena Davis, who has a similar look, a similar style, is also enormously talented and is just a few years older also saw a sharp decline in her career during the 1990s.
In the short lives Ferris Bueller TV series.. Ferris sister was played by a young...Jennifer Aniston..
I think this is definitely a generational thing. Being 15 and going to see this in the 80’s, all of it was a little taboo and a whole lot of like you were seeing something you shouldn’t but liking it.
Ashleigh: spicy dance moves, they's a getting pregnant
Blake: breaking news from Tennessee, cute young couple is busy doing spicy adult things after watching Dirty Dancing. Neighbors report repeated noise disturbances with one quoting "get a room, you two". When reached for comment, the couples landlord Beans the Cat commented "i haven't been fed in literally forever"
This was one of my absolute favorites growing up. I think I watched it 100,000 times. Patrick Swayze was bae.
Okay now I can't wait for Ashleigh to see To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar for even more Swayze.
As Peter Griffin says ROADHOUSE!!! I think it's one of his favorite movies as well as mine!
The fact that this movie's plot hinged on an abortion is still revolutionary. It lost sponsorship during marketing when they learned that it was impossible to edit it out, and it affected how teen movies were pitched and produced afterwards.
Revolutionary? Were you hatched on the day it was released?
They were already having abortions on sitcoms in the 70s and making jokes about it. Maude, for example. But sure, still WILDLY revolutionary for a movie. Maybe someday they'll have a movie about a woman who has a job!
This is the second reviewer I've seen who refers to the "time" this movie came out and, as the others have said, it was not revolutionary. I was young and a little naive and innocent at the time and that was not what gave me pause because it was talked about and represented extensively for at least a decade before. The dancing, however, I did a double take.
Y'all seriously get a clue.....it WAS huge to have an illegal abortion and the dangerous consequences of it, not only portrayed, but the impetus for the whole movies plot. Social commentaries of this sort were too often cut and left on the editing floor because production companies and supporters would lose their international sponsorship. The writer was paid by their sponsor to cut the abortion out, but she was like....no, eff you, and made due without their sponsorship. That was possible in those days when writers and producers had more control over the final product. Nowadays, it's big money sponsors that ultimately control the final product. Movies are mega sensored today. So YES, this was a big deal 🙄🙄
@@thorstrebla980 And in a drama with songs and teenagers? I don't think so!
I first saw this when I was 16 or 17, and I thought it was just okay. A couple of months ago, I went to a thrift store and they had the DVD- unopened- for $2.52. I had been wanting to give it a second chance, so that night I watched it, and I loved every minute of it.
Yes, I'm a 23-year-old male and Dirty Dancing is one of my favorite movies. I watched Good Will Hunting the same day, and I loved this more, even though they both made my favorite movies list. So there. :)
OK so this movie along with Steel Magnolias were my mom's two favorite movies of all time. She knew they were cheesy and we ALWAYS made fun of it like you did in this review. Yet because of how close we were as a family around the time it came out on video it ended up being a weekly thing for us. Even if all we did was have it on in the background while we hung out and talked about our weeks. It was my moms favorite soundtrack and even now whenever I hear the closing song I tear up. My mom was an amazing person. She wasn't perfect by any means but she did her best to give us the best life she could.
If there was anyone nobody backed into a corner it was her. I miss you, mom. So much.
Thanks for another wonderful review, Ashleigh. If I ever get a chance to buy you & your hubby a drink the cold mint juleps are on me.
“Nobody puts Baby in a corner” is metaphorical, Ashleigh 😁
Yes, I don't understand why so many people can't understand that.
It's both actually.
It didn't go over her head, her reflexes are too fast.
@@Angela-bm3lp It's a metaphor and it's literal because in the movie they have her seated in the corner when he says that.
Millennials dont do metaphor. Look at their humor...its so literal.
People equate “time of my life” to this movie because it sprang directly from it and won awards that year.
“She’s like the wind” the song that plays when Swayze is fired and leaves was written and sung by the man himself.
If you like "regular" dancing, there's another movie that's worth a watch. The Australian film "Strictly Ballroom" is absolutely great.. even features a rendition of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" that I dare say is on par, maybe even a little better than the original.. and it's actually sung by the lead actress!
I looooooove that movie! Time for a rewatch!
I love the “Perhaps” number.
@@clarissathompson even more fun when you realize the director is Baz Lehrman...who directed..Moulin Rouge..
Strictly Ballroom is SO GOOD.
I love that movie!
This is my “if you could only watch 1 film for the rest of your life” pick. It may not technically be the best, but it’s a film I never get tired of. It always puts me in a good mood. Also, you gotta do Footloose, flashdance and Fame too.
It's my favorite movie, to me it's just perfect.
This is set in 50s or 60s I think, this is how people used to spend their vacations. And also Patrick Swayze also made a song for this movie
My mom's fav movie. She was really ill with pneumonia for a good month and watched this about a hundred times lol.
Yes Ashley, we danced that way in clubs for more than a few years after this movie came out.
I think the dance at the end was to show the growth on their relationship - their dancing was more intimate because of their relationship and the lift was possible because she now trusted him fully.
“Is there anything Patrick Swayze can’t do?” Girl, wait till you see To Wong Foo.
I worked at a summer resort when I was in my teens in the Muskoka region of Ontario (Canada) - “cottage country”. Way back early in the previous century before air travel became so accessible to fly to Florida, the Caribbean, Europe, California, etc. Resorts in the countryside near large population areas were where people (with some money) could escape to in the summer. Sprawling between hills and forests, near a lake or river, with tennis or golf or other leisure activities, and social programs for dances, games and events, resorts like this were the place to be and relax. You’d reach them in the early days by train and boat and spend months there perhaps. Later, when the road system grew and car travel became the norm, more people would drive there and spend a week or more there. Eventually though, air travel to much more exotic and exciting locations won the competition for vacation dollars. Starting in the last half of the previous century and on these resorts have been disappearing. The end of an era. This movie was set in either the late fifties or early sixties at the end of the golden age for these “backyard” (my term) resorts.
My older sister got to name me. She loooooved this movie and wanted to name me Baby so bad. I should note she was only 4. Lol. My mom said she couldn’t name me Baby so she wanted to name me Frances and my mom (thankfully but no offense if your name is Frances) said no. So they agreed on Jennifer for Jennifer Grey.
My sister passed away unexpectedly last year. This movie will permanently be held close to my heart. Thank you for watching it and giving it a chance. ❤️
I was a kid when this came out, and I refused to watch Dirty Dancing because it's "a girl film", and girls films were BAD.
'course, a few decades later and it turned out that I *am* the target audience, and I know Girl Films can be good!
Also, Dress go spinny!
A girl's film?
This has been one of my go to films just based on the well written story, the music, and the overall direction of this film.
Plus, it's Swayze. And both one puts Baby in the corner.
@@3Kings_Industries I thought that, at the time, because I was so deep in the closet that a tall pale woman tried to get me into her sled by offering me Turkish Delight, but that stuff is rank so I ran away and then just got SUPER into Transformers instead.
Dirty Dancing is a really *really* good film and I adore it, but little-me's brain just hated the possibility that people might find out my "secret".
I can understand calling Beaches a girl film….but Dirty Dancing has universal appeal. It may not be a rewatch for guys as much, but it’s a good movie.
Patrick Swayze hated the line, “Nobody puts baby in a corner,” and refused to say it for several takes. Finally, he agreed to do it only once, and it turned out to be the most famous line in the movie.
It's one of the stupidest lines Ive ever heard in a mainstream movie. There's a reason it gets mocked anytime the movie comes up.
@@tophers3756 The whole movie is cheap, cheesy, and stupid. But plenty of stupid things have become pop-culture icons. There's no accounting for taste.
... and the stupidest
@@burntvirtue what's your favorite movie?
Check out Red Dawn also with Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey
Apparently their characters had a love scene that was deleted from the film, not sure if it was a time edit or to alter the story...
Omg this was my mom's favorite movie . she passed away in November i cant tell you how many times we watched this and did our nails and drank hot chocolate i miss you so much mom you were only 56 me dad and luke miss you every day 🦋
💜
@@bethanythatsme thank you
This film still pulls full houses at theatres. I've even run it as a classic film at my local cinema. It's a good happy film.
Even though the movie was made in the 80s, it was set in late 1950s/early 1960s, before abortion was legalized, hence the subject matter. But even so, the makers faced some issues with having abortion being part of the main story line. The last 50 years have seen some amazing changes, not the least of which is peoples' points of view about these subject matters. To put it in perspective, women couldn't have credit cards in their own names just 10 years or so before this movie was made. #wevecomealongwaybaby
No, we haven't. We are going back to the days when we needed underground organization like JANE.
@@cheriremily9360 We haven't come as far as we need to - but it sure looks different than the 60s
I've watched this movie hundreds of times, but I only just caught on to that in the last one... I was born a few years after RvW, so illegal abortion has never been a thing... But the line "It's not for anything illegal, is it Baby?" and how she stammers, "No, Daddy!" made me realize, that yes, at the time the movie was set, it very much WAS illegal, and very dangerous.
I'm pretty sure Baby says 1963 at the beginning and mentions that it was before Kennedy's assassination.
When this film opened in 1987, not many people heard of it. In a year where the top films of that year were Fatal Attraction, Wall Street, and Beverly Hills Cop II, this film worked its way into becoming a phenomenal success. When it went to home video, it was still running in theaters. And I have a vivid memory of going to my local video store the week that Dirty Dancing was out on VHS, and seeing a group of teenage girls watching the film on the in-store TV’s, and hearing them swoon when Johnny comes back and finds Baby and says “Nobody puts Baby in the corner.” I could see what they were seeing in the movie.
This is a timeless classic. I hope that even though you felt it was cheesy in certain spots, it was still a good enough movie to see; maybe watch it again with your husband.
(P.S. Ashleigh, if you’re still “crazy for Swayze”, then I recommend you look at three other films he did in between Dirty Dancing & Ghost.
- Roadhouse (1989)
- Next of Kin (1989)
- Point Break (1991)
Hope you’ll see them soon.)
Roadhouse!
Ghost came out in 1990, a year before Point Break. It was also another sleeper hit like Dirty Dancing.
Also Red Dawn...which Swayze (and Jennifer Grey) did before Dirty Dancing.
Some people are Dirty Dancing people, other people are Red Dawn people (and yes, some people are both).
I have a sneaking suspicion that Ashley is a Red Dawn person...
That's Patrick Swayze singing "She's Like the Wind".
Point Break with Keanu Reeves and Gary Busey and Lori Petty! Yowza!
Point break!!
It feels like you’re getting stuck in the mindset of this movie being “about dancing” which makes the deeper scenes confusing as to why they are in “a movie like this” whereas this movie ISNT a “dance movie”, the movie IS the deeper stuff. The dancing is just the maggufin used to hang it all together. To differentiate the rich from the poor, to frame the dynamic between the blue collar and white, the old and the young etc in this pivotal time of change in society that was the early 60s as the rigid, unyielding morales of the 50s gave way to growth and freedom of spirit. It’s the time that spirit transitioned from fighting authority to becoming normalised across that decade and into the 70s.
Seems to me that for whatever reason, maybe your mums build up and other peoples comments, you went into this one with very set ideas about what the movie was and couldn’t break out of that frame of reference as the movie proved to be very different to what it seems to be on the surface.
Sometimes we need to abandon our conceptions of a thing when it starts showing us things about itself that don’t fit the pre-conception and let it teach us what it really is. This movie is a perfect example of that. Especially for someone born so far from that time who might not get the implications if they go into it thinking it’s a “dance movie”. Like when you say “I didn’t expect some of those really deep scenes in a movie like this”, you’re not being taught by the content itself that it ISNT “a movie like this”.
And the lift? The only reason the lift was an element in the movie at all WAS to have a tangible sign of Baby’s growth and her having learnt to believe in herself and have confidence. Without that lift at the end the previous scenes of her training for it and failing to do it in the routine at the hotel wouldn’t even be in the movie.
Basically all the bits you were confused why they were in the movie and made it drag for you ARE the actual movie. The dancing is just window dressing and plot device.
Hope this doesn’t sound aggro or anything, I’m not butt hurt or anything. I just really think this movie deserves a lot more respect than it gets and I find most often that it doesn’t get it because of fundamental misunderstanding of what it actually is about due to the marketing it had and the reputation it has gotten has pretty much followed that shallow interpretation in the decades since.
I cannot recommend strongly enough rewatching this with your mom and getting her to talk about it with you as you watch. Get her perspective on it as someone who lived through those years…. If she did at an age to understand what was going on… otherwise a grandmother?
First off the movie with the best comebacks is Kathy Bates in Deloris Claiborne. Second you recognize Baby because she played Ferris Beullers Sister.
I live in Northwest NJ near the border of NY State. Just 20 minutes, you’re in The Catskills. The dance practice scene with Penny, Baby, and Johnny was filmed in one of the abandoned shacks in a old resort in Liberty NY. The last of the Summer resorts went away a decade ago, so sad to see these pieces of Americana go. In a time where the interstate highways were just being constructed and road trips and Sunday driving with the family were a big deal. These were the days where the airline industry was just being in development in expanding world wide air travel. Las Vegas tourist going to gamble and see Elvis and the big name entertainers. That’s what started killing the resorts. People wanted to see the world traveling. They tried to bring Vegas style gambling in the Catskills and the Poconos in Pennsylvania to entice those former resort goers to come back. But gambling didn’t happen, because of Atlantic City and the Jersey Shore.
I am so glad you watched this! It was released just before my 13th birthday and it was a big part of my early teens (as well as most of my friends)! I know waaaaay too much about the filming and the cast of this film since I saw it 100 times before my 16th birthday and had every book, magazine and article I could find, lol!
You have made me super excited that you are doing "Roxanne" next as I live in the town it was filmed in, Nelson, BC Canada!
@68K Lmao! We have a giant mural of Steve Martin in his firefighter costume with the nose and everything! It’s a lovely piece by the late local artist D Dan❤️
You may have seen the dad, the phenomenal Jerry Orbach, if you watched a lot of TV. He was Detective Lenny Briscoe in Law and Order.
And the voice of Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast.
And the only one in this movie I would have wanted to hang out with. At least he was golfing.
The irony here is that Jennifer Gray is the daughter of Joel Gray, a famous choreographer. She had to pretend to not know how to dance.
I never knew that! Thanks
Joel Grey was a Broadway and movie Actor/Dancer, not a Choreographer, although since he later directed musicals, I suppose he had the skillset. He was the Master of Ceremonies in Cabaret, winning a Tony for it on Broadway and an Oscar when they made the movie.
Aside from her father being a famous dancer, Jennifer apparently went to dance school, so yeah. She pretended not knowing.
Baby's father was Jerry Orbach, who was best known during his stage career for singing "Try to Remember" in "The Fantastics on Off-Broadway in the 60's, and he was later best remembered on TV as a long running star of the original "Law & Order" series.
"My sports bra is doin' the Lord's work right now..." 🤣🤣🤣 Ah, Ashley, you never fail to make my neighbors wonder what the HELL I'm laughing at. 🤣🤩
As a 42 year old guy, I had never seen this movie until this Christmas, I was visiting my parents and one evening this movie came on. My mother and my wife wanted to watch it, and I thought, sure, why not.
I actually liked it, it's very cheesy ofc, but it was pleasantly enjoyable, and I wouldn't mind watching it again a cold rainy night, while sipping on a coffee and a whisky, it has a cosy vibe to it.
I don't think it's cheesy. It deals with a lot of very serious subjects, and at a time where the world wasn't so open minded.
Have you seen MASH 4077 episode from 1981 "Blood brothers" where Patric Swayze plays a soldier with pancreatic cancer , that he died from 28 year later .
In MASH episode he was going to donate blood to fellow wounded soldier , but was denied when they found that he had cancer .
@@nebularain3338 You're not wrong, but that's not what I took away from it when we watched it. Might have been the atmosphere in the room was cozy enough to bleed into the movie. For me it felt like a good old 80's feelgood movie, girl meets boy etc etc, even though, as you said, some of the themes in the movie are rather heavy, thinking back on it.
Love this movie, love the women helping each other, and the classism being explored. Loved the sexiness of this movie as well. Take care
Case in point, regarding how multi-faceted this movie is.
When Penny and Johnny are doing their "Baby-sandwich-dance-training-maneuver", it's kind of hot...
But the scene is really about gratitude. Baby is trying to help Penny, so Johnny and Penny are both being as supportive of her as they can because they appreciate her help.
Also, I think it should be noted that Ashleigh was mistaken (understandably so) in thinking that the women were going to have tension over a dude (which is what usually happens) but instead their early tension is a direct result of the classism you talk about, but they find ways to get past that and bond/support each other. It makes for a nice change, especially in the 80s when that was less talked about. They could have easily turned this into some kind of cheesy love triangle, but I'm eternally grateful they didn't go that route. This movie DEFINITELY has it's cheese factor, but I think people often don't give the story enough credit.
Lol Ashleigh you know how to ruin a movie’s iconic moments and you keep us coming back for more. Also, it’s much easier for Baby to do the lift in water than 8+ feet from a hardwood stage floor extended in Johnny’s arms, that’s why she chickened out every other time but was able to do it in the lake. Also she never had true balance when doing it in the lake. The final scene was triumphant because she finally found her balance and wasn’t fearing the possible fall to the floor below.
In her defense, she says she's only danced once in her life, so it makes sense the moment would be lost on her.
@@m_i_s_t_a_h__j_ agreed, and I’m not hating, I love her videos, look forward to them every Fri and mon
She was unfortunately a lot heavier all wet, tho. Poor Patrick lol
As a dancer, the one thing that can get a crowd going more than a big impressive dance move is charisma and Patrick Swayze had it. His skills as a dancer showed when he combined technicality with style and vibes. Sometimes even the smallest and simplest of moves when done right affects people more than a complicated one
I figured you being a Disney Princess chick would appreciate this tidbit, the father Jerry Orbach (or however you spell his last name) was also the voice of Lumire in the animated Beauty and the Beast.