'Footloose' 2011: Craig Brewer Pulls Off a Respectable Remake

Were it anyone other than Craig Brewer directing the remake of "Footloose," I wouldn't have bothered seeing it. This particular redo in a sea of endless remakes has been a long time coming, and it has seen directors and actors drop out of it constantly. Many started wondering why Paramount Pictures was even bothering to remake it since they couldn't keep a cast and crew together for more than five minutes.

But the writer/director of "Hustle & Flow" and "Black Snake Moan" is a huge fan of the late Herbert Ross' film (this version is dedicated to him), and his past efforts indicate that he wasn't even about to throw out some soulless imitation. While there's no way Brewer could top the original, and it does follow it very closely, he still gives it a Tennessee kick that makes this version all his own.

The plot is the same as before but with a few adjustments. Ren McCormack (Kenny Wormald) arrives in Bomont, Georgia to live with his uncle, aunt, and nieces after losing his mother to leukemia. McCormack is quick to show how good he is with cars; rebuilding that yellow VW Bug his Uncle Wes (Ray McKinnon) has lying around like a forgotten corpse in his garage. Of course, he will soon prove that he's quite the dancer even in a town that has banned public dancing after a terrible accident which claimed the lives of five teenagers. Whether or not he has read "Slaughterhouse Five" is another story.

Being an outsider, the locals unsurprisingly cast a lot of suspicion on McCormack, and even today the police have no patience for anyone blasting Quiet Riot's "Bang Your Head" out of their car stereo. He raises the ire of Rev. Shaw Moore (Dennis Quaid) when he gets close to his fiery daughter Ariel (Julianne Hough) who herself is spending way too much time with her good for nothing boyfriend Chuck Cranston (Patrick John Flueger). All of this eventually leads McCormack to work towards getting the law against public dancing in Bomont abolished.

Zac Effron and Chace Crawford were considered for the lead, but Brewer ended up going with relative newcomer Kenny Wormald. Going with an unknown was a good move as casting an established star would have likely taken away from the proceedings. Wormald is good for the most part even though he can't equal what Kevin Bacon brought to the original. I do have to say however that his scowl which crosses his face too often kept reminding me of my niece and when she gave me that same look when she was two.

Julianne Hough is no Lori Singer, but she acquits herself nicely as Ariel whose rebellious ways can't mask the pain over the brother she lost. Her scene where she yells at her father while in church is well played and she never overdoes or fakes the emotion shown (scenes like that usually cry out for Oscar). She is watchable here and Hough does good work in capturing her character's complexities just from a single look.

One thing that can't be denied about Wormald and Hough however is that they sure can dance! It's tempting to think they were cast just for the dancing skills as Wormald was a backup dancer for Justin Timberlake and Hough became famous on "Dancing With The Stars," one of those TV shows everyone is watching except me. It's the dance scenes where "Footloose" comes to furious life, and it brings that same raw energy which Brewer made so vivid in his two previous movies. Heck, he even makes country line dancing look entertaining, something I haven't seen since "Thelma & Louise."

The soundtrack features many of the same songs made famous in 1984 like the title track, "Almost Paradise," and "Let's Hear It for the Boy." While those versions sound no different from the originals, there are some interesting takes on songs like "Dancing in the Sheets" which takes on a hip-hop vibe and it is featured in an energetic scene that has the same exuberant energy it had when it played in the original. "Holding Out For A Hero" gets a big makeover that sounds much different than the version Bonnie Tyler sang, and I admired the direction it took.

Now while his performance may not compare with John Lithgow's, Dennis Quaid does solid work as Rev. Shaw Moore. Just when it looks like he will descend into emotional histrionics that would have us laughing out loud, he brings it in to show a vulnerability and confusion constantly imploding within him. His character could be seen as a bad guy, but he's really just a man trying to do what he thinks is best. Soon he will realize he needs to listen more and than talk. Before he knows it, he will get his boogie on!

The best performance however, which alone is worth the price of admission, comes from Miles Teller as Willard. Even when he does the same learning to dance montage the late Christopher Penn did in the original, Teller makes Willard a wonderfully aloof character who typically acts before he thinks, but his goofy nature grows on us as he takes to the dance floor with sheer confidence at the movie's climax. Watching Willard grow as a character throughout is endless fun.

Brewer's screenplay has some great bits like when Ren's uncle tells him about "Beer Day" and "God's Day" and how the two can't always go together. I also liked the exchange between Rev. Moore and Uncle Wes over which young adult is more of a bad influence. The way Brewer writes it, the dialogue comes out like we're watching two regular joes we know from our neighborhoods having a dueling conversation about who knows and understands kids better.

The script does falter however in regards to characters that aren't as well developed as they were previously. Andie McDowell is a nice presence here as the reverend's wife Vi Moore, but her part is seriously underwritten to where the moments where she acts as the voice of reason don't have the needed emotional impact. Even that bully Chuck Cranston feels like an afterthought in this version as he is basically around for Ren to make a fool out of. The town of Bomont is really more of an antagonist than Chuck is, and that bully just can't compete.

I'm interested in what today's generation thinks of Brewer's "Footloose," especially those who haven't seen the original. The story of a town banning dancing sounded ridiculous in 1984, and in some ways still does today. But with many people overreacting to what they perceive as "bad influences" on their children still leads many to live in a needlessly repressed environment. When you really think about it, the story of "Footloose" is as important today as it was back then. Brewer fully realizes that, and that's one of the reasons his remake is worth watching.

* * * out of * * * *

See also:

"Footloose" - 25 Years Later

The Original Cast of "Footloose:" Where Are They Now?

"Black Snake Moan"