Hairspray (2007)

Pleasantly plump teenager Tracy Turnblad teaches 1962 Baltimore a thing or two about integration after landing a spot on a local TV dance show.

Director:

Adam Shankman

Writers:

Leslie Dixon (screenplay), John Waters

Stars:

John Travolta, Queen Latifah, Nikki Blonsky

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 21 wins & 41 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Travolta	...	Edna Turnblad
Michelle Pfeiffer	...	Velma Von Tussle
Christopher Walken	...	Wilbur Turnblad
Amanda Bynes	...	Penny Pingleton
James Marsden	...	Corny Collins
Queen Latifah	...	Motormouth Maybelle
Brittany Snow	...	Amber Von Tussle
Zac Efron	...	Link Larkin
Elijah Kelley	...	Seaweed
Allison Janney	...	Prudy Pingleton
Nikki Blonsky	...	Tracy Turnblad
Taylor Parks	...	Little Inez
Jayne Eastwood	...	Miss Wimsey
Paul Dooley	...	Mr. Spritzer
Jerry Stiller	...	Mr. Pinky

Storyline

Tracy Turnblad, a teenager with all the right moves, is obsessed with the Corny Collins Show. Every day after school, she and her best friend Penny run home to watch the show and drool over the hot Link Larkin, much to Tracy's mother Edna's dismay. After one of the stars of the show leaves, Corny Collins holds auditions to see who will be the next teen regular. With the help of her friend Seaweed, Tracy is chosen, angering evil dance queen Amber Von Tussle and her mother Velma. Tracy then decides that it's not fair that black kids can only dance on the show once a month (on "Negro Day"), and with the help of Seaweed, Link, Penny, Motormouth Maybelle, her father, and Edna, she's going to integrate the show.....without denting her 'do.

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Plot Keywords:

tv dance show | racial tension | racial segregation | racial integration | remake | 

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Taglines:

On July 20th, the summer blockbuster is getting a whole new look.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Musical | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language, some suggestive content and momentary teen smoking

Details

Country:

USA UK Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 July 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hairspray

Filming Locations:

Lakeview Restaurant, 1132 Dundas Street. W, Toronto, Ontario

Box Office

Budget:

$75,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$27,476,745, 20 July 2007

Gross USA:

$118,871,849

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$202,548,575

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, Ingenious Film Partners, Zadan / Meron Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Zac Efron and James Marsden both went on to appear in a movie based on a Nicholas Sparks book: Efron in The Lucky One (2012) and Marsden in The Best of Me (2014).

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Goofs

In a classroom scene, the elevation of Mount Everest is listed on the green board as 29,035 feet. Although this information is correct, the correct elevation of Everest could not be determined before GPS (Global Positioning System) technology. At the time the events in the movie were to have occurred (1962), the accepted elevation of Mount Everest was 29,028 feet.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tracy Turnblad: [singing] Oh, oh, oh, woke up today, feeling the way I always do. Oh, oh, oh, hungry for something that I can't eat. Then I hear that beat. That rhythm of town starts calling me down. It's like a message from high above. Oh, oh, oh, pulling me out to the smiles and the streets that I love. Good morning, Baltimore!

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Alternate Versions

In an alternate ending on the Hairspray DVD, Corny Collins convinces the police chief to arrest Velma von Tussle during the "You Can't Stop the Beat" finale. In addition, Amber von Tussle reforms her ways and dances with one of the "Negro Day" dancers during the final refrain of the song.

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Connections

Referenced in Starz Inside: Fashion in Film (2008)

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Soundtracks

(It's) Hairspray
Written by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman
Performed by James Marsden

User Reviews

Dated Good Musical

20 July 2007. Strangely enough, if this musical film had been released 20 years ago in the eighties, it would have been quite a cinematic feat, but now 20 years later, this good movie seems dated, quaint, and at times manipulative. It's so mainstream, so full of the now expected cliques and politically correct integration and everybody get along themes that its release now is suggestive more of its unfortunate need to be released then its entertainment value. In other words, unlike Chicago or Moulin Rouge, Hairspray doesn't really add much to the cinematic experience than if one went to a live stage production of the same musical. The singing and the acting were all entertaining, but not great in part due to society having supposedly moved on. The retro aspect of this movie seems disconnected from today or if it isn't then its a sad indictment of how society hasn't really made much progress in the last 20 years. Chicago had the cynical look at lawyers that is popular even today, the fascinating look at murder and betrayal, and a whole cinematic courtroom feast while Moulin Rouge has the eternal bittersweet love story and a truly psychedelic musical visual banquet. Instead with Hairspray we get to see how John Travolta becomes a fat mother (transexual almost) with good acting. Oddly enough the star of the show was the little African American girl who won the contest and who out-sang everybody. The dubbing, lip sync onto the movie also was distracted as opposed to a live production. Nevertheless, the movie was entertaining, had good humor thanks to John Travolta, and had good singing voices that resonated but unfortunately 20 years too late.