Movie Review: Footloose

Footloose (2011) 

Directed by Craig Brewer

Written by Craig Brewer, Dean Pitchford

Starring Kenny Wormald, Julianne Hough, Miles Teller, Dennis Quaid

Release Date October 14th, 2011

Published October 14th, 2011

Critics can tend to overthink a movie. In the case of "Footloose," that is a deadly pursuit. "Footloose" does not invite inspection. This candy coated musical is all about putting on a show with pluck and good humor and not about the mechanics of great filmmaking. The only intention behind Footloose is to make a quick buck off of nostalgia and if it happens to not completely stink out loud, that's an unintended bit of good luck. 

Ren McCormick (Kenny Wormald) has moved to Bomont, Tennessee from Boston following the death of his mother. Moving in with his Aunt Lulu (Kim Dickens) and Uncle Wes (Ray McKinnon), Ren finds himself not merely in a new home but seemingly a new planet. Bomont, Tennessee could not be any different from Boston. Foremost among the differences is a ban on public dancing put in place by a local crusading Preacher, Shaw Moore (Dennis Quaid).

The preacher's daughter, Ariel (Julianne Hough) immediately catches Ren's eye, setting up a pair of showdown's for Ren and the preacher as he intends to fight the dance ban and date Shaw Moore's daughter. Credit Dennis Quaid for bringing a seriousness and even gravity to "Footloose" that the movie needs in order to keep from tipping completely into parody. Quaid is so good opposite Hough and Wormald that he makes the novice actors better.

Of course, "Footloose" is not about acting or drama, it's about nostalgia, dancing and a good soundtrack. The soundtrack of "Footloose" is a rather bizarre stew of country, hip hop, and covers of tunes from the original movie. Blake Shelton's cover of Kenny Loggins legendary title track is as rousing and cheesy as the original while Deniece Williams' original "Let's Hear for the Boy" makes a welcome comic appearance in the same context it did in the original "Footloose," as Ren teaches his new pal Willard (Miles Teller) how to dance.

Other call backs to the original movie include a reprise of Quiet Riot's "Metal Health" and a cover of Ann Wilson and Mike Reno's cheeseball ballad "Almost Paradise." These nostalgic touches make clear that director Craig Brewer has as much respect for the original "Footloose" as long time fans do. Brewer even manages to keep Ren's angry dance solo dance in the empty factory. No Kenny Loggins in this version, a rather forgettable hip hop song is in its place, but the heavy cheese dramatics are still there in great, unintentional comic effect.

That's another interesting thing about "Footloose;" the film can be enjoyed on an earnest level or an ironic one. If you are inclined to pick away at the movie you can, and you can have fun doing it, the movie has a certain awareness of its place in the movie world but not so much that it ruins a proper ironic appreciation of it. Bottom line, "Footloose" is just plain fun; a terrifically cheesy pop culture dessert all sugar and calories and nothing remotely good for you. But it tastes so good.

Movie Review: Rabbit Hole

Rabbit Hole (2010)

Directed by John Cameron Mitchell 

Written by David Lindsay Abaire 

Starring Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhardt, Dianne Wiest, Sandra Oh, Miles Teller

Release Date December 17th, 2010 

Published December 16th, 2010 

Grief is an individual thing, no two people, no matter how connected they are, react the same way to a catastrophic loss. Some will talk about the Kubler-Ross Theory, the five stages of grief, but Kubler-Ross is far too simple. No two people experience grief in the same way, attempting to simplify people’s reactions to trauma is a fool’s errand. 

The movie “Rabbit Hole” explores the different ways people experience grief, that individual experience, and how people recover or not from the most devastating of losses. Based on a play by David Lindsey-Abaire, who adapted his own script for this screenplay, and directed by John Cameron Mitchell, “Rabbit Hole” is a deeply humane drama filled with anguish and heartache but also with a longing hopefulness at its core.

Nicole Kidman stars in “Rabbit Hole” as Becca a stay at home mom whose 4 year old son Danny chased his dog into the street one day and was struck and killed by a car. 8 months later Becca and her husband, Howie (Aaron Eckhardt), are struggling with the different ways each is dealing with the loss of their son.

For Becca, comfort cannot be found in a grief counseling group where, in one of the films most remarkable scenes, Kidman says what is on the minds of so many of us though most would not have the nerve or seeming lack of compassion to say it. She does find something soothing in removing memories of David from she and Howie’s home beginning with the family dog that was the reason Danny ran into the street, and continuing with the removal of David's clothes, his pictures on the refrigerator and eventually a suggestion to sell their lovely suburban house.

Howie on the other hand does find comfort in the grief group and in the friendship of a veteran group member Gabby (Sandra Oh). Will this friendship offer him the comfort that Becca cannot? Meanwhile, Becca finds a much unexpected comfort visiting with the teenage driver of the vehicle that killed her son. Miles Teller plays Jason a mild, artistic, thoughtful kid who bears physical and emotional scars from the accident and despite the circumstances elicits deep sympathy from Becca.

Becca's relationship with Jason and Howie's friendship with Gabby are on an emotional collision course that unfolds in unexpected ways in the final act of “Rabbit Hole.” Director James Cameron Mitchell is best remembered for his outlandish musical “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” and his lesser known oddity “Shortbus” which earned an NC-17 for its explicit sex. In “Rabbit Hole” Mitchell subverts expectations by playing it straight, delivering in essence a highly conventional drama.

The distinct lack of oddity in “Rabbit Hole” stands out only for those unfamiliar with Mitchell's work. For the uninitiated, this stock approach to dramatic storytelling won't register in the same way. Both camps should find “Rabbit Hole” moving but only those who know Mitchell's work will be struck by the lack of playfulness, the standard approach and unfortunate lack of surprises.

Putting my expectations aside for a moment, “Rabbit Hole” contains scenes of heart-rending sadness and deeply moving emotion. A scene involving a video on Howie's phone that he believes Becca intentionally deleted is a powerful, gutty moment, exceptionally well played by Eckhardt and Kidman. The scene in which Howie discovers Becca's friendship with Jason is another agonizing scene filled with deep, passionate feeling.

I may have expected something else from director John Cameron Mitchell but what he delivers is quite strong even in its distinct lack of jaw dropping moments of surprise, the hallmarks of each of Mitchell’s previous films. “Rabbit Hole” has a strong sense of how individual the experience of grief is and it effectively shows the way two people as close as they could possibly be; experience the same trauma in different ways.

A strong cast that also includes Oscar winner Dianne Wiest as Kidman’s mother, playing her own grief storyline, and Tony Award winner Tammy Blanchard as Kidman’s newly pregnant sister, tackle a tough, perfervid story filled with inherent sadness and give it an uplifting and enlightening feel without losing that sadness that will never lift no matter how much time passes and healing takes place.

Resilience is at the heart of recovering from trauma and like grief, resilience is an individual endeavor. Some people will seem to bounce right back as if pretending nothing happened. Others will be consumed by grief and never emerge from the darkness. Only you know how you resilient you will be and likely not until you are forced to confront serious trauma.

The strength of “Rabbit Hole” is in knowing this, playing to it and delivering a drama filled with the understanding necessary to create resilience between the two devastated souls at its center. There are no simple answers for understanding grief and in that way “Rabbit Hole” is instructive and wonderfully understanding. Like the most resonant of dramas “Rabbit Hole” is going to help some who see it and likely move all who see it.