The late actor Patrick Swayze starred in the Oscar winning film Dirty Dancing (1987) alongside Jennifer Grey. This movie has received so much praise throughout the years, not just about Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey’s good looks, but because of how the messages of building bonds, adversity, and love has resonated with others past the screen. Swazye’s and Grey’s raw acting melted the hearts of the audience just by the sight of them. Even decades later, Dirty Dancing has maintained a cult following.
As a member of Generation Alpha, I have always loved older movies and refrained from watching more recent movies due to them struggling to capture the true essence of the younger generation. Most newer films and tv series barely make an effort to depict what a younger person acts like. We aren’t the mindless, disrespectful, or careless people who are addicted to their phones. There are a good handful of people out there who may seem that way, but it isn’t fair to push that stereotype onto the rest of us. There are a lot of intelligent, kind, and talented young people who have their own individual personalities and express themselves in a respectful manner. Some writers hardly show the audience the individuality of a younger person. When they try, they either try too hard or not hard enough where the outcome of a character is unrealistic.
That’s why I lean to older movies; they actually try to give the protagonists and supporting characters good character development without making it look corny and unrealistic. Dirty Dancing remains an iconic coming-of-age movie because of its special way of portraying dynamic characters even after 38 years!
Hey, Baby!
Jennifer Grey plays Frances “Baby” Houseman who is from a well brought up family who spends the summer of 1963 getting roped into the world of merengue, mambo, and provocative dancing. If there’s anything to love about Baby’s personality, it’s how she’s always willing to help out, yet is so naive. However, these well known traits about her also cause a lot of problems. In older films, the female love interest doesn’t have much of an individual personality and is usually just dumbed down to portraying the common “ditzy pretty girl.” Modern films usually try to depict the opposite and show the depths of a character’s disposition. Although this is a movie that takes place in the 60s, Baby breaks these societal norms by constantly speaking her mind and doing what she wants. Naturally, it didn’t go over so well. Baby was free-spirited and rebellious. She always tried to get her way to prove to others she was more than a lousy little rich girl. Her dad was opposed to who she was hanging out with (Johnny Castle) because he wasn’t the typical rich man stereotype that was “suitable” for Baby to settle down within his eyes.
These stereotypes are still present today. The desire to be with someone successful to have a better self image rather than someone that will actually make the person happy. One night, Baby wandered off to snoop around Kellerman’s Mountain House which was the fancy resort Baby and her family were staying at for the summer when she came across a young man struggling to get a grip on three large watermelons. She offered a hand, but the young man named Max immediately brushed her off. As she starts to glumly walk away, Max has a change of heart (partially because he couldn’t carry those on his own) and asks: “Can you keep a secret?” This question would completely alter the course of Baby’s summer.
Hungry Eyes
When Johnny Castle, Max’s cousin and an extremely skilled dancer, made his official debut, I despised him. I felt like he was cocky and disrespectful towards Baby. Sometimes, Johnny was tolerable and once he started to reveal himself later on, I started to empathize with him. Part of me likes the way Johnny was portrayed at the beginning. He was supposed to be perceived as nothing more than a miserable working man with barely anything to offer. We get to see how that presumption can shape a person that people hardly get to know. We also gain an understanding not to judge a book by its cover and that there is more to a person than what is displayed in front of us.
There are a lot of poor boy X rich girl tropes in films like that in more present films. For example “In Time” (2011) depicts a poor boy saving a rich girl from her seemingly perfect lavish lifestyle. Another well known example of that trope is Noah Calhoun and Allie Hamilton from The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks, whom many fans of Dirty Dancing may also familiarize themselves with. Baby was standing in the corner at a secret staff party that Max allowed her to tag along that fateful night, watching in awe as the other dance members from a distance did an unfamiliar type of dancing to an unfamiliar type of beat. Johnny makes his way towards her and teaches her how to dance. Nobody would’ve expected that this simple “lesson” would become more than just a dance – it turned into something intimate and pure. Baby couldn’t care less about Kellerman’s nephew Neil who tried to pursue her at the beginning of the summer. Maybe he had more brains and wealth, but Baby would never be able to care about him the way she cared about Johnny.
The Houseman’s
The Houseman family (Jake Houseman, Majorie Houseman, and Lisa Houseman) is greatly impacted by many decisions made by Baby over the summer, especially her dad. At the beginning, Baby and her dad appear to have a close bond that could never be damaged. As time goes on, Baby does things that her dad disapproves of (including hanging out with Johnny) which fractures his trust for his daughter. Majorie Houseman (Baby and Lisa’s mom) was oblivious to the whole situation. I liked her a lot, but I wished she got more screentime. She was definitely more lenient compared to the father. To be fair, she hardly knew what was going on.
Present films still tend to really use up that good cop X bad cop trope, specifically when it comes to parents and their ways of parenting. It isn’t necessarily bad because there are going to be people in life who approve and disapprove of your actions which makes the trope realistic, otherwise there would be simply no conflict-but it’s pretty predictable at this point. If the supporting characters aren’t overbearing or heavily criticizing the protagonist’s every move, they’re slightly involved or just a pushover. Supporting characters today don’t exactly distinguish from ones in the past. However, a lot of critics and I can agree that Baby’s older sister Lisa was an obnoxious, talentedless, and whiny brat. She was jealous of Baby and consistently ignored Baby’s warnings about Robbie. Although I feel like she also got less screentime, I’m grateful. Almost every word that came out of her mouth made me roll my eyes, cover my ears, and want to shut off the T.V.
Baby found out that former Rockette and Johnny’s dance partner Penny was impregnated by employee Robbie (the same person who takes an interest in Baby’s sister Lisa). Robbie works at Kellerman’s as a waiter and he’s a horrible person. I didn’t take much of a liking to Penny either because she was also super rude to Baby–a good handful of people were rude to Baby at first. But of course, Baby grew on them. Penny needed to get an abortion (which was not just illegal during that time period, but also pricey and life risking).
Abortion has always been a topic that no matter what the reasoning is, some people in society will look at it as something to be frowned upon, when it truly shouldn’t. It’s one of those controversial subjects that movies and tv series try to address, but shy away from it due to the backlash received from viewers. I believe that topics like this should be brought up more in television because after all, this is the real world we live in and real problems we have to face. It doesn’t have to be graphic, but even just implementations of something life altering happening on screen to a character can still be enough to make the viewer appreciate the representation of the topic the film is addressing.
Of course, some viewers claim it shouldn’t be on television, but that’s just being too sensitive and inconsiderate. We need touchy subjects to be represented in an accurate and mature matter. In addition to that, Penny and Johnny had a dance performance the following Thursday but they could not cancel it. Baby goes to her dad, who was completely unaware of the situation, asks for $250 and gives a vague reasoning why. Her dad gives in, but later on regrets it when he finds out what she was hiding from him. Penny had a botched abortion and almost dies, so Baby gets her dad who works in the medical field to save her life. Everyone is relieved and luckily Penny ends up alright, but Baby’s dad is distraught about the fact Baby lied to him.
You Don’t Own Me
As I’ve previously stated before, I hated Johnny Castle. In this part of the film my dislike for him grows to an extreme where it gets difficult for me to even continue watching the movie. Unlike Baby with her witty nature, Johnny is very serious and stern. Baby tries her hardest to learn the dance routine for Thursday night, but she has trouble with her two left feet. Johnny nagging and making snooty remarks didn’t help her either. Baby was clearly sick of it and clocked him so badly it was only right to laugh and cheer. She sure got him to behave. Johnny and Baby experienced an intimate sequence of events from the dance lessons leading to the show that led to them admitting how they felt deep down inside. The eye contact, the embraces that everybody wants to have once in their lifetime–once you have that it’s hard to forget the feeling. Baby couldn’t care less about Kellerman’s nephew Neil who tried to pursue her at the beginning of the summer. Maybe he had more brains and wealth, but Baby would never be able to care about him the way she cared about Johnny. Their relationship is so special and deep. Every person has their own flaws, but Baby and Johnny don’t perceive each other as flawed. They see the good in each other and look beyond that. That is such an important quality to have which makes their bond mean so much more than just a summer fling.
I’ve Had The Time Of My Life
It was a summer that Baby would never forget. She developed so much as a person and assisted so much in the growth of others. Baby sure knows how to make an impression on others. That’s something I believe everyone can agree on. Johnny and Baby guided one another through their conflicts whether it was external or internal. Johnny revealed his inner feelings to Baby-not just romantic ones but his financial struggles (me too, Johnny) and his uncertainty of the future. He and Baby confided in each other talking about their insecurities about themselves and both make an effort to explain that they are more than just what others perceive them to be. Baby showed him that there are good people out there you can count on and will see more than a negative perception of someone or just somebody you can take advantage of and push to the side. She genuinely sees people for who they are. Baby was standing in the corner when Johnny stated his most famous line: “Nobody puts Baby in a corner” which has become one of the most memorable references ever since. Even Baby’s dad realized he was wrong about Johnny Castle and delivered his rightfully deserved apology to him. It’s never okay to make assumptions of somebody all because of their social class. You should always look beyond that. The end of the summer of 1963 resolves in a dance party with Johnny showing everyone what he truly stands for and shows off his special type of dancing with Baby.
If you’re looking for a beautiful love story that teaches you valuable life lessons on not only how to love others, but how to love yourself, Dirty Dancing should be your next go-to-watch film.
