Footloose is JUST a Remake - NOT the Musical!!

[billyboyA]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:38am

Maybe I'm just in the dark, but I assumed that if they were making a modern version of Footloose starring Julianne Hough, that it would be this year's movie musical. Went tonight with GREAT hopes that it would be amazing... instead, it's just an unnecessary and stupid badly done remake. What a disappointment!! Not that Footloose the musical was anything stellar to begin with, but when we only get one movie musical a year, I'll take what I can get.

I'm in SUCH a bad mood now, and wish I hadn't wasted my money. As much as I LOVE Julianne Hough, I honestly didn't need to waste a night and $13 bucks on an effing remake of a movie that didn't need to be remade...

Ugh!

[xxdrewboy85xx]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:39am

It was a musical when Kenny Ortega was attached. Then the producers decided to go a different route.

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:41am

Really? I didn't think they ever intended it to be the stage version, it was always billed as a remake.

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:48am

I actually respectfully disagree.

I saw the movie weeks ago in a free prescreening expecting what you said it was, a completely unnecessary remake. I found, however, that it turned out to be a very clever update. It respectfully and interesting incorporated the past elements that made the property famous in the first place, but updated it enough to make it relevant. That Dean Pitchford co-wrote the screenplay with the film's director, the always adventurous Craig Brewer, is what, I think, ultimately saved the film. Pitchford has been involved with the film since creating the original and co-writing the musical version's book himself as well as its lyrics, and he really thought of ways to fix issues the property has had all along. I'm glad the musical version was not the basis of this film; that has so many innate problems, fun though it may be, that it would've needed a complete overhaul anyway for a film version, and would've probably made for a worse film. The reviews are showing that the version they ended up with is actually a pretty good update.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:54am

I've been hearing good things about it. And a quick internet search would have revealed that it's not a musical. You were definitely alone in the dark with that. Even when Kenny Ortega was attached it was not being described as a traditional musical or as having anything to do with the Broadway stage version.

[Trish2]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:57am

Huh?

Ny Times; http://movies.nytimes.com/2011/10/14/movies/footloose-remake-with-julianne-hough-and-dennis-quaid.html?scp=1&sq=footloose&st=cse

USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/reviews/story/2011-10-13/footloose/50762494/1

Chicago Sun Times: http://www.rogerebert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20111012/REVIEWS/111019994/-1/RSS

Associated Press: http://news.yahoo.com/review-footloose-tries-dance-step-211702497.html

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 1:00am

The stage version is crap, not no need to make it into a movie.

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 1:01am

It's 73% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, which is not bad at all: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/footloose-2010/

And here's Entertainment Weekly's A- review: http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20518299,00.html

[billyboyA]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 1:21am

I fully admit that I was too busy to do any reading about it ahead of time. I just made an assumption it was going to be the musical and I had hoped they would clean up the book and make it work. Im just bitter and disappointed because we seem to only get one movie musical a year (two if we're lucky), and I went into it expecting a musical and was just bummed that it wasn't. So yes, I'm just being bitter and venting. After suffering through Baby It's You, Wonderland and People in the Picture, I had hopes that a new well made movie musical would wash the bad taste out of my mouth of bad Bway musicals. My mistake. Just venting my disappointment. I almost don't even care WHAT the movie musicals are every year, as long as we GET one!! (and that they're done well, of course).

Guess this is my season of ignorance. Been SO busy making a movie
, haven't had time to catch up on the industry. Hell, I even figured Lysistrata Jones was a new black musical! Was excited about some great soul singing on Broadway then saw all the white faces in the video posted here the other day and realized I was wrong about that too! I know, I know, just because Carmen Jones was a black musical doesn't mean Lysistrata Jones will be... But in my defense, I've been working on a film the past three months and completely out of touch.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 4:06am

And what is this: we get a musical once a year stuff? There are plenty of years that haven't produced a b'way show turned movie. 3 or four years in the last decade alone that didn't have one. Before Chicago was a such a big hit (in 02 I think) it's even worse.


And I certainly have seen one trailer that could even make someone suspect that perhaps this was going to be a musical.

[metsfan]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 11:32am

Hey billyboy, you seem pretty eager to let us know you're working on an ACTUAL MOVIE, but if you want us to be impressed about your ACTUAL MOVIE CRED, you might want to have the SLIGHTEST CLUE what's going on in the movie world. Just saying.

[JP2]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:12pm

Ortega, Efron, and producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron all described it as a musical. Not based on the actual broadway show, but a new movie musical with new songs. Craig and Neil had numerous interviews where they talked about the songs and how they'd be introduced.

Not sure what happened, but eventually they stopped referring to it as a musical in interviews.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:29pm

Correct.

FOOTLOOSE was going to be a "movie with music." New songs were to be written and Zadan/Meron wanted to move forward in that direction...until this project went askew. They lost its star, studio support, and a director.

Zadan/Meron finally caved to save their film. Too late. Didn't seem like it was going to happen. But then they got a new director and re-conceived the film enough where studio support was restored.

I think the FOOTLOOSE remake is smart and well done. I liked it. Didn't love it and it won't win any awards, but today's teens will appreciate it.

[charlesjguiteau]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 12:57pm

I wanted to hate the new Footloose for what it wasn't as well. But lo and behold, I was absolutely won over by what it was-- the movie's heart says that the world's troubles can be cured by dancing-- if that's not the essence of a Broadway musical I don't know what is. The kinetic energy of the choreography, editing and scoring had me by the gills nearly the whole time (and I was NOT a fan of the original, despite Herb Ross's hand). I had also seen the Footloose script a year ago and knew there would be no singing on film (except for a delightful take on "Let's Hear It for the Boy" that I won't reveal here). Taken on its own terms the show sold me and I can't wait for Craig Brewer to take a crack at a GENUINE musical for his next film outing.

And I'll just mention that THE MUPPETS comes along in a month with it's heart smack in the world of a Broadway musical. There are about 9 songs performed by humans and Muppets alike (of which 5 are originals). I'm not saying this will be the next "Chicago", but at least it can help hold up the movie musical banner till Les Miz arrives in 2013.

[JP2]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 2:15pm

Les Miz is being released December of 2012.. and Rock of Ages in June.

:)

[charlesjguiteau]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 2:28pm

^Even better news!

[jimmycurry01]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 3:20pm

When the previous director was attached it was going to be more of a musical. The producers grew weary of that which lead to the director and studio parting ways due to artistic differences. It was covered in a lot of the entertainment news sites at the time, and I believe I posted a link to one of the stories in a thread about Footloose here in the past.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 10/16/11 at 8:13pm

I thought this remake would be terrible (like thr Fame remake) but it turned out to be very good. 73 percent on Rotten Tomatoes is very good, its had some pretty good reviews