Dirty Dancing is radical: here's why.
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- Опубліковано 24 січ 2020
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Why is this eighties movie more progressive than most of the films at the box office right now? Why is Francis' dad hotter to me than Patrick Swayze in this film? Why are abortions so hard to feature in mass-market stories?: A video essay.
Life Moves Pretty Fast: The Lessons We Learned From Eighties Movies by Hadley Freeman: bit.ly/2GorJpC
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As a woman who’s had an abortion, I so appreciate the way this film depicts the emotion surrounding Penny’s abortion. It was portrayed as a sad emotional event that she wishes wasn’t happening, but ultimately necessary and not a tragedy.
more! films! written! by! women! * clap hands emoji *
Unexpectedly refreshing, never thought Dirty Dancing could represent so many perspectives (feminist among others)!
:)
I think you've made an interesting point about female friendships on screen being either extremely close (to the point of exclusivity) or frenemies and I think that that is partially why I am constantly searching for a "bestie" or tight knit clique within my friendships which is not realistic and holds me back from making friends.
Fave quote: "Me?. I'm scared of everything. I'm scared of what I saw, I'm scared of what I did, about who I am and most of all I'm scared of walkin' out of this and never feelin' the rest of my whole life the way I feel when I'm with you."
Yeeeessssss!!!
Dirty Dancing is one of those films I've seen a thousand times (I say "I carried a watermelon" at my boyfriend all the time and he doesn't get it) but I've never really thought about it. I wanna go and rewatch it now because hell yeah that film is awesome!!
I've always loved Dirty Dancing but you just made me realize that love is valid and just not because it's a cute little nostalgic love story. Thank you!
brb gonna go watch dirty dancing for the first time
Omg welcome to the fold! Sorry for the spoilers but also I left out shots of some iconic scenes so if anyone IS new to it, those bits can still be magic 🧡
i’ve never seen dirty dancing and never had interest in seeing it UNTIL NOW!!! such a persuasive argument
Aw well I hope you do watch it - I purposefully left out shots of the most iconic scenes so that if you do end up seeing it there are still some new bits for you!
Same.
I never wanted to watch dirty dancing until I did, if that makes sense. I just couldn't believe I hadn't seen it sooner!
My husband and I watched Dirty Dancing last year (first time for him, first rewatch since my teens for me) and we were shocked how nuanced and just excellent it was and willing to deal with controversial issues head on and with complexity.
Also the tree trunk dance scene is perfection.
This is so gooooooooood and I must immediately rewatch dirty dancing
Go go go!
I've never seen this and now I FUCKING MUST
“BABY’s GOING TO MOUNT HOLYOKE!” Mount Holyoke is a very prominent women’s college (and my alma mater 💙) AND Frances Perkins is a big deal legendary Mount Holyoke alumna.
I’m so glad someone pointed this out!
And, at least c. 1990 they had a dorm named after Perkins, meant for older students.
Also, I heard they wanted to film a sequel at Mount Holyoke, but the college decided it would disrupt campus life too much.
@@catsmom129 as a DD longtime fan, I completely forgot about the talk of the sequel following Baby/Frances to college. Would have been rather gritty I imagine, and not the franchises version of the later DD2 film.
Also during freshman orientation, we have a screening of Dirty Dancing... I think it happens every year, it's a tradition!
Netflix have a series called movies that made us, and has an episode on how they made dirty dancing and is so good!! I was brought up on dirty dancing and have never really been a fan, I’ve never realised how many important themes it has
Thank you for sharing. I just added it to my list.
"I carried a watermelon." -Is my favorite quote from Dirty Dancing. My best friend and I watched this movie 60 times when we were young. It was back when most people only had a few VHS tapes so you just watched what you had over and over.
thank you for this video! dirty dancing is an evergreen favourite film of mine but i'd still not thought of some of these things in this way. baby houseman pouring water down sleazy robbie's front will always be an iconic cinematic moment
The smirk before she does it is my favourite bit!
“The four genders” killed me. Gonna have to go back and rewatch DD, it’s definitely an 80s film I’ve slept on. More of this vibe of vid please Leena!
I... have been waiting for this all my life. ❤
Also my bf who recently vetoed Dirty Dancing as an evening film choice is now going to watch it with me this week after I told him how happy I was about seeing the majority of the reasons I have always loved it so sharply delivered to me!
I was not into the first few minutes of the film and wanted to turn it off but I thought I'd be nice to my girlfriend and keep quiet. Bro I ended up crying more than once and genuinely adored the movie
"Do you have sheet music on this stuff?"
Love Dirty Dancing - my mum watched it a lot when she was pregnant with me so I feel like I was conditioned to love it from inside the womb! There are some points you made in this video that I hadn't really considered before and now I want to rewatch it for the millionth time!
I saw it for the first time not long ago actually and loved it! I was expecting it to be super cheesy and basically like 'grease' which I'm not personally a big fan of, but it was a lot more complex which I really appreciated :D
I also found it interesting as it was one of the first films as a whole piece I loved whilst not liking the two protagonists that much, as i think a lot of people (myself included) place a lot of value on liking the characters rather than if the plot and production as a whole is powerful
Yeah definitely - and craft wise DD is about a million leagues ahead of Grease!
Love love LOVED this! Such an interesting perspective and it made me love "Dirty Dancing" even more :)
Aw thank you!
Same here! 😍
Great video, and analysis of some of the elements that make Dirty Dancing an awesome movie.
I'm glad they didn't remove or alter the storyline about Penny's abortion. I think what I love is that it dealt with serious issues, and yet, remained/remains a fun movie to watch.
Also, as a writer of Modern Historical Fiction (writing now, about the 1980s and 1990s), I love the "double retro" thing. As in, it was basically "modern historical", at the time - as with Grease.
Best Dirty Dancing line: "They told me, if I left quietly, I could keep my Christmas bonus." Line delivered by Johnny, just before the climax, and dance scene. Oh, and the mother saying: "She gets it from me." In context, love it. 😃💖💝
I used to watch this film every night as a teenager (obsessed) and as if I needed even more reasons to love this film 😍 this video is brilliant. Also, her dad...yep. The bit where he joins in with the dancing at the end, HIS FACE
Love Dirty Dancing and loved this! And fav quote (of course): 'I carried a watermelon'.
Yessss
after watching this video I feel like my third eye has opened and is staring directly at dirty dancing
My grandmother loved this movie. I haven’t watched it since I was a kid. Definitely going to rewatch soon and be proud of my cool grandma. 😊
I have vague memories of watching Dirty Dancing when I was like 4-5 but I will definitely watch it TONIGHT!
Also some suggestions of movies that I love to bum scratch and think about: Legally Blonde, Lilo & Stitch (Lilo's possible autism and her relationship with tourism/white settlers on her island), The Devil Wears Prada (was Miranda really a villain??), Crimes of the Heart
Omg enjoy!!!!
Hahah great, noted!
Well I've just realise Dirty Dancing is on Netflix so that's my Sunday sorted.
I didn't know anyone else felt as strongly about Dirty Dancing as did!!! This was incredible! I have noticed so many of these things you mention over the years as I have rewatched Dirty Dancing many times, but never really put it into words.
Looooved this Leena! I really appreciate the work you put into your videos and I am very grateful that we now get more of them, thank you
I bloody loved this Leena!! I don't watch longer videos often but I would love to see more of these!
This was the first video of yours that I stumbled across on my recommended page and I just wanted to let you know how thoroughly I enjoyed it! On the one hand I love dirty dancing but also the different perspectives and analysis with depth you brought in were super interesting. I also had to subscribe after like 5 minutes of watching because you were so likeable I just wanna see a lot more of you!
I've been watching you for years and this has to be one of my favorite videos. Such an insightful critique, you really helped me to name things in that movie that I hadn't named before and are so important! Love just hearing your thoughts, it helps me expand mine :)
I loved this!!! More videos like this would be amazing, don’t really have any specific reuqests cos honestly I’d prefer to discover knew things I might not have heard about before from you, tho gaining a new appreciation for things I already loved is also great ;)
I'm half way through watching this video essay and it's already incredible. Super insightful and expresses why I've always loved that film. Thanks Leena!!
I've seen Dirty Dancing several times and loved it, but I will def look at it in a different way after this video, thanks! Please do more!
You have enlightened me about a movie that is very dear to my heart (cough - I'm a bit (WAY) older) and I know really well. You are so right about it! I knew there was a good reason to love it as much as I do! Thank you so much for this! It's a good thing that this was one of the movies that shaped me as I entered my 20's!
This video articulated all of the reasons why I LOVE Dirty Dancing but that I couldn’t quite put into words ♥️ Would love if you did a series of videos like this!
I think I was 10 when I saw Dirty Dancing for the first time, it felt very forbidden and exciting and I loved it. I saw a theatre production a few years back and rewatched the film again recently and loved it all over again. I now feel validated that my adoration wasn't just nostalgia. While I wince a little at the age gap between Baby and Johnny, there is a lot of depth and nuance. Thank you for elucidating that so well.
Please make this a series !!!!! 😍
I've been subscribed to your channel for some time now and your videos were always great put recently they have just been on a whole next level, I enjoy them a lot!!
That is just as beautiful as the film is, Leena! Love the film with passion since ca. 1995, and always was convinced, it's a treasure, but didn't think of why exactly I feel so. Now you've substantiated it perfectly for me. 😭 Thank you.
LOVED this analysis Leena! I watched dirty dancing in my early 20s for the first time and I was shocked & amazed at the topics it tackled. I'm off to go rewatch the film.
This video is brilliant!! I watched Dirty Dancing for the first time when I was around fourteen and became absolutely obsessed with it, combined with my tendency to rewatch stuff I like, I ended up watching it an unholy amount of times per week for a couple of months. To justify this I desperatly tried to explain my parents and friends and sister and everyone I was trying to convince to watch it why I loved it so much and honestly I just want to go back in time and show everyone this video. Thank you :) I'm so happy when I randomly stumble on such good content
I love that you made a video about this! Dirty Dancing was my go to film in my teens, I watched at least once a month ( usually whilst lying on the sofa with terrible period cramps!) I have probably seen this film at least 20 times if not more. I haven't watched it in many years though so now, after watching your video, I want to watch it again! :D I also really want to read that book!
No, I haven’t seen Dirty Dancing (somehow), and yes, you’ve convinced me to watch it! Loved this, Leena - I’m definitely down for more “gems you might have missed” recommendations/analyses from you ☺️
Really loved this, video essays sit perfectly as an extended format of cultural critique, and your opinions are well thought out and delivered! More of this please 👍🏾
Emma showed me Dirty Dancing a while back cause it's one of her faves, and whilst it's not geared to my tastes I could definitely see there was something special about it, so to have it spelled out for me like this was really helpful!
OMG Leena, I'm crying! One of my all time favourite movies and I've watched it more times than I'd care to count since the age of around 12. Thank you for pointing out things I'd never even noticed before. Gonna have to go and watch it again :)
I have loved the film for many years but never could quite find the words to describe why I loved it so much. Thank you so much you made me love it even more !!
I was 10 when Dirty Dancing came out and I’ve loved it since, and it’s one of the few films from my childhood that I can still enjoy, and you’ve given me even more reasons to love it. It’s been so nostalgic for me I’ve never stopped and really examined it the way you have. Thank you!
There's a great podcast called "Butt Out, Baby!" currently being released - which is a scene by scene breakdown of the film with context, and has the extact reverence for the film Leena projects in this video. Had to rewatch because I've devoured the episodes released so far and I'm hungry for more DD content!
This makes me want to watch this movie, and previously I've never really even known anything about it and was kind of uninterested in it because of that. But hearing you talk about it has definitely changed my mind. In fact, I'd like point out that this phenomenon has extended into my general life, as a lot of your videos have made me want to look into things I never really considered before or they've made me want to experience new things, and that has been an amazing experience in itself. So, thank you for that. :)
I’m an American dude born in ‘87 with a twin sister. Just for context, and to say I didn’t love this movie as a kid despite being exposed. I also don’t have much nostalgic feeling for this movie…some but not much. I’m still obsessed with this movie, one of my favorites ever. Great vid!
Like you, I watched "Dirty Dancing" later on, and I also loved it and came back to it regularly after the first viewing! I never really analysed the reasons for my enjoyment of it, so I was very interested to watch your analysis, which I very much enjoyed. It actually became a ritual for me to watch the film the weekend before I went back to school to beat those back-to-school blues!
Like like like like. Thoroughly enjoyable content. Just my cup of tea and right up my street. Did I mention that I liked it!
I’m gonna go watch it now. No one ever made the film seem that interesting past the ages I wasn’t allowed to watch it. This was awesome! Thank you! x
I'd love to see more videos like this, this was super interesting!
My mom watched this movie with me and my two sisters when we were far too young to understand it, but we still liked it because she obviously did. Ever since I kinda loved it and watch it every now and then, but I never thought about why. Thank you so much for explaining! It means even more to me now that I know it wasnt just a nostalgia thing but it actually has interesting things to say.
this was an AMAZING video. i would love to watch more like this from you!! i need to rewatch this film now!
this film is so important to me! i did grow up with it, and, looking back, it definitely shaped the person i became.
You have absolutely convinced me to watch Dirty Dancing! Love this kind of specific, cultural criticism - I don't know if I can suggest anything because a lot of my favorites of your videos are the ones i could never have predicted you making (like this one)!
The Banging Film Club, now that's a podcast I could devour..
Ordered a used copy of this book immediately.. thank you Leena 💚
Just found out about you and your channel. This is goooold! I love the way, you are phrasing your thoughts, one can really see, how much passion (what a strange sensual word) is involved here. P.S.: Writing this after crying a bit after your Mamma Mia video... :')
YES Leena! Thank you for another insightful video. I truly appreciate the time and research you put in your work.
LEENA! This video is amazing. You have helped me to better understand why I have loved this film since the first moment I watched it. Thank you for your excellent film analysis!
Tbh when I saw this movie again as an adult I was gobsmacked how radical and forward it was. All that you have mentioned is so rarely seen in movies even today.
I keep coming back to this! Ahh this is so good.
Yes. YES. Leena this was absolutely sublime. You've taken basically all my thoughts and reasons why I love this film and put them so succinctly. Excuse me while I send this video to everyone I know who's dismissed Dirty Dancing as cheesy. Honestly your 2020 content thus far is just * chef kiss *
This video was amazing! You offered such deep insight that I have honestly never thought of before & I have been watching dirty dancing since I was only 5 years old! It's been my fav. Movie my entire life! ( now 31). I am obsessed with this movie and ever could figure out why besides the dancing of course and the nostalgia. I'm a little different compared to others tho, my favorite character has always been penny and I wish we would have seen alot more of her in the movie. It would be awesome if you could do a part 2 and talk about the movie more and maybe the actors/actresses? My favorite scene from the movie would probably have to be when penny and johnny are dancing together. I just love watching those 2 dance. My favorite line of course is " no one puts baby in the corner "..it's a classic and I love how johnny stands up to her father!
Great video, sad i saw it so late. love Dirty Dancing and just saw in a theater last night ironically. great points here and alot of the saem elements seem to have traveled with Swayze to the end. Would be cool to see you talk about "For keeps"
You were SO persuasive that in the first 2 minutes I paused, went and watched the entirety of Dirty Dancing, and then came back to finish this video. Omg what a fantastic film!!
I’ve never thought about Dirty Dancing in this way so thank you so much for sharing! Such an interesting perspective on a GREAT film x
Loved it! It's my Mum's favourite film (as she grew up in the 80s and made me and my sister sit and watch it!
That’s great parenting right there!
I love this format! would very much enjoy more videos like this x
thank you so much for this video, leena! this film really shows that it's not that difficult to make a non-problematic film that goes in to depth. what a legend!
This is brilliant - I will show this to my dissertation students to show them how to build a good argument! I would be interested to see you tackle La La Land!!!
I loved this video. It’s brillant. Video essays are so good. I’ve only seen dirty dancing once and now I need to watch it again! And yeah! We don’t have movies like Dirty Dancing anymore. And it sucks.
Please make more videos like these ! You have become my favourite youtuber 😃
You totally nailed it. What a great commentary. I am one of the luckiest to watch it in theaters when it was first shown. I was around 9 10. As soon as we get in the theater I saw the Be my baby clip and, I hit puberty 😄 just at that moment. My father like Baby’s father became so nervous and must have thought “how on earth I brought my little daughter to a dirty film like this?”
It is very nice to hear it appeals to younger generations even praised more than modern studio pictures. For me Dirty Dancing meant lush green scenery and misty 60s soundtrack first but when I grew older I appreciate it more. Be my baby opening scene is my favourite part and I owe huge thanks to late director Ardolino and chroegrapher Ortega for this magical scene.
I loved this casual essay style video!!! Haven't seen Dirty Dancing but I love hearing your opinion and thoughts
i also love dirty dancing and would say its my favourite film! i was even in the process of working on a blog post detailing why i love it so much. this video is so much better than what i would have written, although to be fair i am usually kinda drunk when watching the movie/working on this blog post. anyway other than the things u said the soundtrack is bomb af
My mother has always loved this film, as she was 23 when it was released. So naturally, I grew up with it. It was one of my favorite movies as a child, and it still is today. I think it’s partially the reason why I’m such a big pro-choice feminist today, as an adult. I self-identified with Baby when I was a kid, as an awkward girl with curly hair. Even though she was awkward at times (especially in the beginning), she always stood up for herself and others. She is inspirational and I will forever be appreciative of Dirty Dancing.
This was so interesting. I am not a lover of films or books but now I want to learn more about films and stories. Thanks!
I can’t believe I’ve never watched this film! I’m literally tearing up by the themes! I can’t believe we don’t discuss these things anymore in cinemas.
Really loved this video. It reminded me you the UA-camrs Nerdwriter1's video essays. Perhaps you could go through the rest of the book you mentioned, and analyse 80's films. Or focus on film genres that impacted you. Either way, this video was great and I cant wait to watch more!
Leena, I don't know how you manage it, but every single one of your videos is just. FASCINATING. I've never watched Dirty Dancing, thinking it would be a flat/boring story of a girl changing everything about herself for a guy. Now I am super excited to give it a proper chance! Thank you for all the amazing insights! Ah! xxx
Thank you for a refreshing perspective on my favorite movie. I grew up in the 80s so this move was my obsession as a young girl. I was so in love with Patrick Swayze [RIP] so when I watch it, it's hard to see it outside of my nostalgic perspective. Good job.
Have seen. Love. Need to watch again, right now! :)
I feel like I have found new "UA-cam Bestie"!!! This was wonderful! I first saw Dirty Dancing when it was released and I was in college. I went with a group of girlfriends and we loved it so much we went to see it the next night! I have seen it many times over the years and have noticed different things about it as I have aged! Your insights are spot on and you are fun to watch!! Thank you!!! Now my only question is should I dust off my VHS copy of the movie, my DVD of the movie or just stream it like someone from the 2021!!!
great highlights! I've seen this movie quite a few times, always liked it, but never thought too much about why. I think your list probably was ringing through unconsciously. And I'm a graduate of the college program named for Frances Perkins ;)
I started watching you with your Emma vs Emma review, which I found wonderful, bringing up things I really want to hear discussed, as well as things I might not have thought of, so when I go back and rewatch Emma 1996 and then find a way to see Emma 2020, I'll be really ready. Now one of my favorites of all times, Dirty Dancing! I lived through the illegal abortion times (believe me, we DONT WANT TO GO BACK) and the take-abortion-lightly times, and some of the other things "Baby" goes through and am delighted empowered thrilled affirmed happy and satisfied that you like it too!
This was SO GOOD and so informative ! Please do more !!
I watched Dirty Dancing for the first time last night, prompted by watching this video. It'd always been described to me as "girl falls in love with her dancing teacher", so I'd categorised it as "a film I should probably watch at some point because it's big in our culture". I really enjoyed it! I've often found I'll be more likely to consume some kind of media if I know more about it's layers and complexities, so this type of video is great. I really enjoyed the film too, thanks so much!
Thanks for sharing these insights!
I never liked watching films, in general (I see most of them shallow, and unrealistic - in a bad way) but I remember thinking _Dirty Dancing_ was fine, and you offered good explanation why is that. (Born in 1974, "seen" it... passively, many times. I was usually painting or doing other hobbies while tv was on/family members watching, and I was listening to improve my English)
Background info also adds to the explanation...
so, Yes, do more videos like this.
Thank you for this video! I've always loved this film yet wasn't able to put all the reasons into words.
Dirty Dancing is one of my favorite movies of all time, and I'm so happy you did it justice. This was great!
There is a small moment where they are in the water and Baby's strap falls off her shoulder and Johnny goes to help her put it back and stops himself and I don't know why but I always found that small moment so sweet and respectful.
This is the content I never knew I needed but the content that we all deserve.