IMDb > Flashdance (1983)
Flashdance
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Flashdance (1983) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
5.6/10   11,420 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 15% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Adrian Lyne
Writers:
Thomas Hedley Jr. (screenplay) and
Joe Eszterhas (screenplay) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for Flashdance on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
15 April 1983 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama | Romance | Music more
Tagline:
Every day, she works in a man's world. Every night, she dances through the universe that is her dream. more
Plot:
A Pittsburgh woman with two jobs as a welder and an exotic dancer wants to get into ballet school. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 10 wins & 13 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(28 articles)
Eisenberg's First Kiss Was Killer Smooch With Beals
 (From WENN. 18 September 2009, 12:26 PM, PDT)

Scenes We Love: Flashdance
 (From Cinematical. 30 August 2009, 5:02 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Lively Popular Entertainment more (97 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jennifer Beals ... Alex Owens
Michael Nouri ... Nick Hurley

Lilia Skala ... Hanna Long
Sunny Johnson ... Jeanie Szabo

Kyle T. Heffner ... Richie
Lee Ving ... Johnny C.
Ron Karabatsos ... Jake Mawby
Belinda Bauer ... Katie Hurley
Malcolm Danare ... Cecil

Philip Bruns ... Frank Szabo (as Phil Bruns)
Micole Mercurio ... Rosemary Szabo
Lucy Lee Flippin ... Secretary
Don Brockett ... Pete
Cynthia Rhodes ... Tina Tech
Durga McBroom ... Heels
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
95 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Colour:
Colour
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Director Adrian Lyne decided that Alex's back story included her having been molested when she was a child. Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas was horrified, saying it would "sink the entire story", and fought furiously with Lyne. The producers later sided with Eszterhas and Lyne gave up on the idea. more
Goofs:
Crew or equipment visible: During the strobe light dance sequence at the end of song, the camera moves in close. The shadow of the camera person can clearly be seen on the right side of the screen. more
Quotes:
Alex Owens: I don't want you buying me anything. I don't want you buying me, period! more
Movie Connections:
Spoofed in Shrek 2 (2004) more
Soundtrack:
I'll Be Here Where the Heart Is more

FAQ

Chapter headings, a semi-official version
more
33 out of 41 people found the following comment useful.
Lively Popular Entertainment, 14 January 2004
6/10
Author: James Hitchcock from Tunbridge Wells, England

In recent years there have been a number of British films based on the theme of working-class people who find fulfilment through their cultural activities; examples being Educating Rita (the first and most distinguished), Brassed Off, The Full Monty and Billy Elliott. Such films are frequently described as `quintessentially British' or `something that we can do and Hollywood can't', whereas the truth is that twenty years ago Hollywood was indeed making very similar films, mostly centred upon dancing, such as Saturday Night Fever, Dirty Dancing or Flashdance. Whereas these American films may not have had the covert (or, in the case of Brassed Off, highly overt) political message of their British counterparts, they nevertheless concentrated on differences in social class far more than Hollywood movies usually do.

The heroine of Flashdance, Alex, is a young woman who works as a welder and whose main joy in life is dancing. She moonlights as a dancer in a local nightclub, but her great ambition in life is to become a ballet dancer. The film tells the story of how she achieves that ambition, as well as the story of her romance with a wealthy middle-class divorcee, set against frequent dance sequences as Alex and her ice-skating friend Jeanie go through their paces. The climax comes with a scene in which she auditions for a place at a prestigious ballet academy and treats the judging committee to a bravura display of breakdancing. (Would a ballet school really be prepared to offer a place to a candidate whose dance skills owe more to the disco than to Swan Lake and who seems completely ignorant of balletic idiom?)

The film has its weak points. Although the plot is not as non-existent as some reviewers have felt, it nevertheless tends to take second place to the showpiece dance numbers; at times, it felt as if I were watching an extended series of pop videos. Potentially interesting themes are ignored; for example, Alex is a practising Catholic, but this seems to be a plot device to enable scenes set in the confessional to be used as soliloquies in which she can air her emotional problems. No attempt is made to explore the possible conflict between the demands of her religion and her sexually provocative dancing or her love for a divorcee.

The acting is undistinguished; Jennifer Beals makes an attractive and personable heroine, but it is clear why, despite the success of this film, she did not go on to become a major star. Her acting is too weak to enable her to carry a film; certainly I felt that she would be out of her depth in one that depends more upon plot and less upon song and dance. The other characters are little more than ciphers, with the exception of Hanna, the old lady who acts as Alex's mentor. I could certainly have done without the tasteless ethnic jokes told by Alex's comedian friend.

Yet, despite its faults, I enjoyed this film. Its redeeming feature is the zest and energy of its dance sequences, set to some well-chosen music such as Laura Branigan's Gloria or Irene Cara's title song. It may not be deep or significant, but it is an enjoyable, well-made piece of popular entertainment. 6/10.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Flashdance (1983)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Chapter headings, v1.00: annevejb
Did Jennifer Beals do any of the dancing? kedem524
Flashdance controversy Southern_Chic_345
Why was Jennifer Beals cast? KryptoKO
What Happens To Alex? SoonerFan80
Never dip you pen in the company ink. starmarker
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