Hairspray (2007)

Director:

Adam Shankman

Writers (WGA):

Leslie Dixon (screenplay)
John Waters (1988 screenplay)

Release Date:

20 July 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Get ready for something big July 20th!

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Teenage Boy | Dance | Girl | Teenage Daughter | One Word Title

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 10 wins & 17 nominations

Cast

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

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

France:U | Czech Republic:12 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Brazil:Livre | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG | Portugal:M/6 (Qualidade) | Australia:PG | USA:PG | Malaysia:U | Taiwan:GP | Argentina:Atp | Philippines:G | Ireland:PG | Finland:K-3 | Netherlands:AL | South Korea:12 | Mexico:A | Singapore:PG | Hong Kong:I | Germany:o.Al. | Sweden:Btl

Filming Locations:

1116 King St. W., Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Gabriel Simon Production Services

Trivia:

The original Broadway cast included Marissa Jaret Winokur (Tracy), Harvey Fierstein (Edna), Clarke Thorell (Corny Collins), Laura Bell Bundy (Amber), 'Matthew Morrison' (Link), Kerry Butler (Penny), Linda Hart (Velma), Dick Latessa (Wilbur), Corey Reynolds (Seaweed) and Mary Bond Davis (Motormouth Maybelle).

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end of "It's Hairspray", Amber changes her positions 3 times. First, she's on Corny's left. The next shot, she's on his right. The following shot she's back to his left.

Quotes:

Wilbur Turnblad: [to a sobbing Edna, who thinks he's been cheating on her] Honey, it took me five years to realize you were flirting!
[softly]
Wilbur Turnblad: How could I?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The O'Reilly Factor: Miller Time!" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now (Instrumental)

Brings Joy to Summer....

So far I've seen this movie twice and both times the audience was involved 100%. "Hairspray: The Musical" is the definition of a feel good movie.

The storyline has been tweeked a bit from the original film. Whereas the original film had Sonny Bono's Franklin Von Tussle as the main antagonist, this one has Velma Von Tussle (Michelle Phieffer) as the head adversary; now seen as the station manager for the TV station airing The Corny Collins Show. Velma's goal is to ensure that her daughter, Amber stays Miss Hairspray in the face of the rising success of Tracy Turnblad (played wonderfully by Nikki Blonsky).

The musical numbers are fantastic, and while there's less of an emphasis on the dancing which was a big part of the original film, it doesn't detract from the wonder of the musical sequences.

Other differences is the take on the individual characters. Whereas Ricki Lake's Tracy was brash and confident, Blonsky's Tracy is more subdued. John Travolta, as Edna gives the character the sensitivity that wasn't evident in Divine's portrayal.

Although still done in connection with John Waters, it does lack Waters edginess, making an already mainstream Waters film even more mainstream for family audiences. However, the cast and the direction more than makes up for this.