The Dirty Dancing Collection
After 25 years this is still the time of your life. "Dirty Dancing" (1987) became as culturally significant to its generation as "Grease" did when it launched the careers of John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John to the apex of pop-culture relevance. The same can be said of the original "Dirty Dancing’s" two lead stars Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey. It would single-handedly propel Swayze to super-stardom, and make him an unconquerable sex symbol. His "Johnny Castle" gyrated his hips into all our hearts, and stole the innocence right out from under Grey’s "Baby."
"Dirty Dancing" inspired audiences to dance. Its charm was in the revelatory power of the music and the movement - it celebrated the intimacy, sensuality and wonder. And although it was meant to appeal to the carnal, by today’s standards it was a much more a demure romantic adventure with a lot of heart.
This coming of age story will always resonate with an audience, but throw in a killer soundtrack and some sexy moves...the rest is, as they say, film history. The film looks and sounds spectacular in 1080p and DTS HD Master Audio in this Blu-ray presentation, and comes bundled with its sequel.
Attempting to catch lighting in a bottle and keep the franchise flowing "Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights" (2004) takes the same premise and transplants it into the middle of the revolution of 1950’s Cuba. The cast is full of fresh faces (a very young January Jones is joined by her eventual "Mad Men" co-star John Slattery) - moving the idyllic American family to the sultry, untamed tropics of a foreign country in the hope of ramping up the forbidden passion.
The doe-eyed American ingenue played by Romola Garai is soon romanced by the baby-faced Diego Luna. Both stars are meant to evoke the chemistry of their predecessors, but they come off too Disney-like and don’t have the instant sex appeal Swayze and Grey commanded. The contemporary soundtrack doesn’t lend to the credibility of the film either - although it sounds great represented in theater quality fullness, it’s full of pop hits from the Black Eyed Peas and Christina Aguilera - we’re pretty sure neither one had any part in the Cuban Revolution.
The price can’t be beat, and for the fan at heart, this bundled set is everything you can hope for - including the special bonus features remembering the career and contributions of the film’s star Patrick Swayze. Break out those suede shoes, and sweat it out to these oldies!
"The Dirty Dancing Collection"
2-film set on Blu-ray Disc
$19.99
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