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Hairspray

Musical remake is colorful and frizzy, with a whole lotta bounce

By Matt Pais, Metromix

July 20, 2007

Critic's Rating:

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Perky, open-minded and overweight teen Tracy Turnblad (likable newcomer Nikki Blonsky) dreams of shaking her stuff on local TV's Corny Collins show despite objections from her mom Edna (John Travolta in drag). When Tracy gets her wish, her presence sets off a dance craze as well as a movement to end the program's "Negro Day" and completely integrate the show's cast. The flick co-stars Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Queen Latifah, Amanda Bynes, Zac Efron of "High School Musical" and James Marsden.

Big question: Owing more to the sassy Broadway version than the 1988 John Waters film, does this remake still have cultural relevance and a campy style?

Catch it: Piling on the songs and steering away from the Waters weirdness, "Hairspray" still sings and swings in all the right ways. Tracy's hips don't lie, and her undying commitment to the groove really seems like enough to move a town in the right direction.

Skip it: If you also have no idea why Travolta is in this movie. Since Edna is defined only by her weight—hurting the movie's message of equality—Travolta's phony baloney cross-dressing performance is lightly annoying and really weird.

Bottom line: Director Adam Shankman ("Cheaper by the Dozen 2," "Bringing Down the House," "The Pacifier," "A Walk to Remember") finally has a movie he can be proud of, and we have a feel-good musical that doesn't collapse halfway through like "Dreamgirls." It's worth celebrating a story that doesn't ask its characters to slim down—unlike "The Devil Wears Prada," for example—even if none of the messages connect too strongly when piled onto this much fluff.

Bonus: As Tracy's joke-shop-owning dad, Walken tells the evil TV station manager (Pfeiffer) that if his inventory can't put a smile on her face, "Your skin's too tight." Listen for the awkward gasps in the theater from any plastic surgery vets!

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