Absolutely Brilliant!

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Growing up in the 80's I'm not sure how I missed this film, but when I saw the cast or Parker, Hunt, and Doherty, along with the promise of a great soundtrack I was definitely curious to check it out recently. There is a fun and positive overall energy to the production that I enjoyed and appreciated. However, the script is so predictable and poorly written that nothing can really save it. The direction is also weak and despite all the good energy, much of the acting is pretty bad as well.

Somehow this one completely slipped my radar. Recently, I don't even remember if I googled Sarah Jessica Parker and found the title on Wikipedia or whatever, but when I saw the DVD box cover it was enough to hook me. And young Sarah Jessica Parker and young Helen Hunt and extra-young Shannen Doherty sounded like a treat.Well, just watched it, and wow, Sarah Jessica Parker in the absolute flower of youth! The scene stealer though is Shannen. Every time.I had the music on loud, and it was 80s again. If you are a fan of the era, I would advise this movie. To all the nasty old spoilsports out there (lots of the negative reviews): this is the way it was. It was done back then, you can't fault the movie for being a mirror of the times. Hindsight would make many a whole lot wiser. Then again, as long as there was fun. Nothing else counts.Addendum, 1 Sept. 2015. Upon viewing it again, I found my heart swelling with pride. I originally gave only six stars, that is now changed.My favorite bit, 'Look at me, I can fly', Scene 8 on the DVD. Sarah is absolutely breathtakingly heartbreakingly gorgeous, and then there is the swan-lift as well, beating out DIRTY DANCING by several years. Charming to the extreme.All the enthusing about Helen Hunt? She has almost a minor part in the movie? And Shannen's credited at the end only, while she is the second-most memorable actress. Good thing they had that casual barefoot photo of the trio for the box cover.I wholeheartedly agree with the reviewer who mentioned that the actresses must have been thankful for their parts, but now, thirty years later, people only wanna see the movie because they are in it. They owed their initial success to it, but now the DVD release of the movie owes it to them.Hey, if only Brenda Walsh was this cute, hey Shann?

The main plot is about a girl who loves to dance and auditions for a dance TV show even though her strict military father doesn't approve. Only problem is that Sarah Jessica Parker is cast in this role and she's a TERRIBLE dancer. I think at times they have a body double dancing for her but in the scenes where she is "dancing" she looks like she's having a spasm.One of the most amazing things about this movie is the wardrobe. I actually think that of all the 1980s movies this one has some of the worst clothes. When I am out in public and see kids under 30 wearing 1980s "fashion", I have this overwhelming urge to reenact that scene from Clockwork Orange by tying them down and forcing them to watch this movie. Hopefully that will cure them from thinking that era of fashion should ever be replicated.Best line in the movie: "Velcro: it's the best invention since the Walkman and Tab".

Shy, but sweet teenager Janey Glenn (an endearingly sunny and dynamic performance by the adorable Sarah Jessica Parker) enters a contest for the local Chicago television show "Dance TV." Janey gets partnered with hunky nice guy Jeff Malene (likable Lee Montgomery), faces stiff competition from spoiled rotten rich snob Natalie Sands (marvelously played to bitchy perfection by Holly Gragnier), and receives help from her perky rocker chick best gal pal Lynne Stone (a wonderfully spunky portrayal by Helen Hunt). Director Alan Metter and writer Amy Spies craft an refreshingly upbeat, pleasant and innocuous teen comedy romp that eschews the usual crude'n'crass raunchy adolescent sex antics in favor of relating a charming tale about realizing your potential and following your dreams. There's a wholesome and tasteful quality evident throughout which in turn greatly adds to the film's overall irresistibly good-natured appeal. This picture further benefits from engaging acting from a winningly sincere cast: Parker positively shines in the lead (you'll find yourself totally rooting for her character right from the start), Montgomery likewise does well as Jeff, Hunt is a complete brash hoot, plus there are nice supporting turns from Shannon Doherty as Jeff's bratty younger sister Maggie, Morgan Woodard as stuffy wealthy jerk J.P. Sands, Jonathan Silverman as Jeff's brainiac opportunist best friend Drew Boreman, Ed Lauter as Janey's hard-nosed killjoy ex-army officer father Colonel Glenn, Kristi Somers as conceited hipster Riki, and Bill Yeager as Jeff's chipper pop Mr. Malene. Thomas E. Ackerman's crisp cinematography makes nifty use of wipes and dissolves. Thomas Newman's bouncy score, the zingy dialogue ("Don't throw a mental, dad!"), lots of great funky dancing, several inspired moments of gut-busting lunacy (the sequence with a bunch of rowdy punkers crashing a posh débutante's ball is absolutely hilarious), and the terrifically catchy soundtrack of bubbly rock tunes all keep the movie humming throughout. A totally awesome blast from the gnarly 80's past.