From the moment the movie opens it’s already pumping up the volume to boogie down on a dance floor. Kenny
Loggins’ theme from the original film is revamped to higher standards, and it still has us smiling. But no sooner we settle in to this small town of Bomont, a big tragedy is about to take place that will take the lives of five of its precious students. This will include the only son of the town’s Preacher (Dennis Quaid) and his wife (Andie MacDowell.)
A law is immediately passed – ridiculous – saying you can’t dance in public places. This includes no
lewd movements and no loud noises either.
Fast forward three years later….Ren (Kenny Romald) from Boston arrives on the doorstep of his Uncle Wes’s (Ray McKinnon) house in Bomont. A simple man with a wife and two small daughters he sets down the laws to his nephew. But Ren seemingly has bad attitude, “Yankee Sarcasm” yet delivers a soft New England sensibilities we’ll immediately connect to. This kid beats
to his own drum even if his drum is his dance shoes and iPod, and his behavior attracts the attention of the Preacher’s daughter, Ariel (Julianne Hough) who parades around town in red cowboy boots while strutting her cleavage and mini skirts.
But one night at the drive-in movie, while everyone illegally lets loose rapper-style everybody sees that Ren can dance. And it’s what give him the thrill to enjoy life, to vent anger in a positive way, and be the teenager we all should be before settling down to the responsibility of family and careers. (fyi: real life Kenny Romald is a dancer for Justin Timberlake). In a warehouse scene true to the original Ren footstomps us out of our seats and lifts us to ‘wow’ expectations.
Kevin steps into the boots of Kevin Bacon and it’s a high order both to our audience and to the townsfolk, but the movie stays true to the original. The problem is while it could have been a great family film about loss, values and the importance of expression, it’s heavy on the sex which makes it a little too hot to handle for younger kids. Two and a half tiaras