Back to the 1980s - Dance Movies

I don’t know about you, but apart from the great music, the 1980s are also defined by their fabulous dance films. Think Flashdance! But there’s more.

A Chorus Line, Body Rock, Dirty Dancing, Fame, Footloose, Grease 2, Staying Alive.

It’s difficult to find a single common denominator, and the reason is probably that there isn’t one,  except that all of these films come with wonderful soundtracks. Be honest: just looking at these titles, you can’t help humming along with Maria Vidal, Irene Cara, Kenny Loggins, or the Bee Gees.

Of all the movies I listed, and probably because I was still very young at the time, I actually only watched two. Still, the others felt very much like part of my life; largely because of the music, which was everywhere.

If I’m honest, one of the reasons Flashdance is still one of my all-time favourite movies is Alex Owens, the main character, and the values she represents. She’s a passionate dancer, but she doesn’t come from a family with the means to pay for private lessons or a prestigious dance academy. Instead, she lives in a loft in Pittsburgh, not the kind of sleek, minimalist space we associate with the word today, but a raw, makeshift corner of an old industrial building, rides her men’s bike to work, and earns her living as a welder.

At night, she performs at a club where audience members often want to go out with her. Most of them are dirtbags, but one, Nick, seems different. To her surprise, they meet again at work, where he turns out to be one of the bosses at the steel mill.

Without Alex knowing, Nick uses his connections with the arts council to secure her an audition at the Conservatory. When she finds out, she refuses to audition, because she wants to advance on her own merits. But because this is a movie, all ends well: she ultimately decides to take the opportunity. She falters during the audition, then starts again and successfully completes her routine. The judges are impressed, and we’re left to assume that Alex now has formal training  and a promising career ahead of her.

For me, the moral of the story is that nothing in life comes for free: you have to work hard and believe in yourself. And if an unexpected opportunity presents itself, you shouldn’t be too proud to pass it up.

There are other elements worth mentioning.

Alex has two close friends who also have hopes and dreams. Jeanie wants to become a figure skater, Richie a stand-up comedian. Over the course of the film, we see Jeanie fail, while Richie moves away to L.A. Alex is the only one who gets her shot. There’s something like survivor’s guilt at play here. She succeeds while the others don’t, and she does so with a little help from her boyfriend.

Then there’s Hanna, a retired ballerina and something of a mentor, almost a grandmother figure, to Alex. She keeps encouraging her, but through her own lived experience she also delivers the film’s most valuable message. And honestly, it feels more relevant than ever; it’s something Generation Z, in particular, should hear:

Dancing is hard work. You’ll be rejected more often than not. You will wear your body out, just look at my arthritis. Your dream is legitimate, but be very aware that not everything that glitters is gold.

The brutal truth about Alex’s situation is that, whether she continues her day job as a welder or becomes a professional dancer, both paths are physically demanding and punishing on the body. The difference is that one of them is balm for the soul.

So of course, we’re rooting for her.

Have you seen Flashdance or any of the other dance movies back then? Did you enjoy them? Let me know.