In Complete Shock! (Footloose Spoilers After Cut)
So after much debate on whether or not I really wanted to see the remake of one of the most iconic movies of my generation, the decision was taken from me when Frankie drove me nuts all weekend and I needed to get away for a few hours. So I decided what the hell, and went to see Footloose this afternoon. I was in complete shock when I walked out of the theater!
The movie opens with the original Footloose song by Kenny Loggins and a bunch of kids dancing. It turns out that this is the back story left out of the original. It shows the 5 kids (including Bobby Moore) partying and dancing and then getting into the car. It shows everything up to and after the deadly accident. You also find out later in the movie that Bobby was actually just driving because he was the only one sober. Then it cuts to the town council outlawing everything.
Then jump to 3 years later and the rest of the movie.
Believe it or not, form this point on, they stayed pretty much as true as they could to the original being 25 years later. The music was the same songs, but different versions (with the exception of the beginning Footloose and the song when Willard is learning to dance), the fashions of course were updated, the VW was the same, etc. There were 2 big changes - 1) Wren's mother is dead and his aunt and uncle have a much bigger part and 2) THEY COMPLETELY CHANGED THE MOST ICONIC SCENE OF THE MOVIE!
Instead of the chicken tractor race, it was a school bus demolition derby. According to the rules of the race, technically no one won, but of course, Wren gets credit for the win.
You could tell the over 30 from the under 30 crowds in the theater. The over 30's who grew up on the original were outraged at the scene, and were also singing the songs in the original style they were sung.
Now the scene where Wren and his cousins are teaching Willard to dance was AWESOME! And IMHO better than the original version. They used the part of the orginal "Let's Hear it for the Boy" and the rest the newer version but it started as the little girls singing it as karaoke! It was so funny I nearly peed my pants laughing.
Wren's speech in front of the Town Council was also changed. They included the main points, but left out the whole "And there was a time for this law, but not anymore. See, this is our time to dance. It is our way of celebrating life. It's the way it was in the beginning. It's the way it's always been. It's the way it should be now " Also the book burning scene was cut.
So basically the cut out a lot of the BS Crap from the original. Also there was no sliding down the stair rails when he renters the dance, but it worked. And Almost Paradise wasn't as butchered as I thought it would be. That song is sentimental to me for many reasons, and I'll ALWAYS prefer the original.
Oh another big change was the movie takes place in Bomount, Georgia and Wren is from Boston. In the original, the film takes place in Utah and I can't remember where Wren is from.
So if you saw the original and loved it as much as I did growing up, you'll pretty much enjoy this one too. One a scale of 1 - 10, I'd give it a 6. If they hadn't completely changed the most iconic scene, I would've given it at least an 8 1/2!
I'm definitely getting both soundtracks since God only knows where my copy of the original is!
The movie opens with the original Footloose song by Kenny Loggins and a bunch of kids dancing. It turns out that this is the back story left out of the original. It shows the 5 kids (including Bobby Moore) partying and dancing and then getting into the car. It shows everything up to and after the deadly accident. You also find out later in the movie that Bobby was actually just driving because he was the only one sober. Then it cuts to the town council outlawing everything.
Then jump to 3 years later and the rest of the movie.
Believe it or not, form this point on, they stayed pretty much as true as they could to the original being 25 years later. The music was the same songs, but different versions (with the exception of the beginning Footloose and the song when Willard is learning to dance), the fashions of course were updated, the VW was the same, etc. There were 2 big changes - 1) Wren's mother is dead and his aunt and uncle have a much bigger part and 2) THEY COMPLETELY CHANGED THE MOST ICONIC SCENE OF THE MOVIE!
Instead of the chicken tractor race, it was a school bus demolition derby. According to the rules of the race, technically no one won, but of course, Wren gets credit for the win.
You could tell the over 30 from the under 30 crowds in the theater. The over 30's who grew up on the original were outraged at the scene, and were also singing the songs in the original style they were sung.
Now the scene where Wren and his cousins are teaching Willard to dance was AWESOME! And IMHO better than the original version. They used the part of the orginal "Let's Hear it for the Boy" and the rest the newer version but it started as the little girls singing it as karaoke! It was so funny I nearly peed my pants laughing.
Wren's speech in front of the Town Council was also changed. They included the main points, but left out the whole "And there was a time for this law, but not anymore. See, this is our time to dance. It is our way of celebrating life. It's the way it was in the beginning. It's the way it's always been. It's the way it should be now " Also the book burning scene was cut.
So basically the cut out a lot of the BS Crap from the original. Also there was no sliding down the stair rails when he renters the dance, but it worked. And Almost Paradise wasn't as butchered as I thought it would be. That song is sentimental to me for many reasons, and I'll ALWAYS prefer the original.
Oh another big change was the movie takes place in Bomount, Georgia and Wren is from Boston. In the original, the film takes place in Utah and I can't remember where Wren is from.
So if you saw the original and loved it as much as I did growing up, you'll pretty much enjoy this one too. One a scale of 1 - 10, I'd give it a 6. If they hadn't completely changed the most iconic scene, I would've given it at least an 8 1/2!
I'm definitely getting both soundtracks since God only knows where my copy of the original is!