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Strictly
Ballroom
STRICTLY
BALLROOM DVD FEATURES
Region Reviewed: Region 1
Number of Discs: 1
Sound: Dolby Digital
5.1
Picture: 2.35:1
Anamorphic
Special
Features: Audio
Commentary with director Baz Luhrmann, production designer
Catherine Martin and choreographer John 'Cha Cha 'O'Connell
'Samba to Slow Fox' Dancing Featurette, The entertaining
documentary that inspired Strictly Ballroom, Special Deleted
Scene, 3D Gallery, 'Red Curtain 'Inspired Animated Menus,
Technical Specifications: 5.1 Audio Sound French Subtitles
and Spanish Subtitles
Strictly
Ballroom Review:
Opening at 'The Southern District's Waratah Championship',
the dance-floor swarms with couples hoping for a trophy. Scott
(Paul Mercurio), is a talented dancer who dreams of winning
the Pan-Pacific Grand Prix and is entered in this championship.
During a rumba final when Scott and his partner get boxed
into a corner, the only chance of escape is via acrobatic,
unconventional steps. His maverick approach flies in the face
of the rituals of ballroom dance and sees him being threatened
with disbarment by the ADF (Australian Dancing Federation)
judges. It's just too much for his partner, who flees in tears.
Enter the clumsy and visually challenged Fran (Tara Morice).
A mere beginner she hasn't even got a partner, yet Fran really
admires
Scott's ground-breaking performance and would love to dance
with him (a
preposterous idea under normal circumstances).
Scott can't quite believe that she's even asking but when
Fran stings his pride with a few well-aimed words, he just
has to take her on. Unsurprisingly she's pretty clumsy, though
nowhere near as bad as Scott had imagined, leading them to
snatch a few hours in the evening to practice. There's no
way that news of the illicit dancing can get out though, so
Scott still has to plow through the charade of trials. The
big problem now is time, with the State and Pan-Pacific contests
looming large.
The scenes when Scott is being instructed by Fran's father
Rico (Antonio
Vargas) stand out for their passion and expression of dance
as something to
be lived and enjoyed, rather than as a clinical sport. The
contrast with ScottÕs family, where trophies are all,
is extreme, with Scott a definite aberration.
When he is dancing in the finals with Fran, despite the desires
of Barry Fife
(Bill Hunter - he's the ADF President) who unsuccessfully
to disqualify the
pair and give the championship to a couple to whom he has
already promised
the prize. The audience goes wild with the unconventional
steps, especially
with the inclusion of the Spanish steps taught him by Rico
and the
impression is given that Scott and Fran win the prize and
go on to live
happily ever after.
Buy it. Watch it.
It's a feel-good fantasy with none of the negative connotations
that this
suggests. Strictly Ballroomwill make even the meanest curmudgeon
smile.
The camera lens, again and again, makes fun of the stuffy
judges and the
anxious parents.
The Miramax film is based on an Australian play of the same
name that was one
of that country's biggest 1992 screen hits. It's easy to see
why.
The movie is funny, energetic, and enjoyable Ñ the
perfect film for a night
or an afternoon out, regardless of what mood you're in. While
the plot and characters don't boast any special depth, there's
enough freshness to hold just about anyone's interest.
Strictly Ballroom focuses its attention on the gaudy, fantastical
world of
ballroom dancing and the fixated characters that live within
it. To the people who use performing as a way to escape the
daily grind of normality, there is nothing more important.
The beginning of Strictly Ballroom sets the tone for the rest
of the film
brilliantly, showcasing techniques which pop-up throughout
and introducing
the main characters. At first all is quiet, with the dancers
gliding in slow motion, then background sounds gradually seep
in as the camera pulls back. From intimate close-ups, the
arena and noisy crowd suddenly appears, thrusting us from
the refined to the popular. Throughout the film there are
fine intercuts and smooth transitions.
The plot is blatantly familiar, a romance blossoming between
an unlikely
pair, and they go on to conquer all, against all the opposition.
But the film
has flamboyant style and vibrant energy. The dancing is thrilling
to watch, enhanced more by the slick editing and rousing score.
The peculiar rituals of ballroom dancing are satirized without
making them look ridiculous. And the transformation of Fran's
ugly duckling into the beautiful swan is convincing.
Like Dead Poets' Society, Strictly Ballroom's motto might
be 'Seize the
day!' When Scott is dancing to satisfy everyone else's expectations,
he isn't
happy, but when he takes a chance and does his own thing,
he finds
fulfillment, and, with Fran, love.
In a world where winning means everything, Scott learns how
hollow victory
can be if the price means stifling creativity.
Strictly Ballroom Disc Review:
The DVD includes a host of bonus programs including: Audio
Commentary with director Baz Luhrmann, production designer
Catherine Martin and choreographer John 'Cha Cha 'O'Connell
'Samba to Slow Fox' Dancing Featurette, The entertaining documentary
that inspired Strictly Ballroom, Special Deleted Scene, 3D
Gallery, 'Red Curtain 'Inspired Animated Menus, Technical
Specifications: 5.1 Audio Sound French Subtitles and Spanish
Subtitles
