Hairspray (2007)

Directed by Adam Shankman. Starring Michelle Pfeiffer, John Travolta, Christopher Walken, Queen Latifah, Nikki Blonsky, Brittany Snow, James Marsden, Elijah Kelley, Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes, Allison Janney, Jerry Stiller, Paul Dooley. [PG]

Film version of the Broadway musical based on the John Waters cult classic Hairspray is a crisp, shiny, professionally-mounted dud. All the plastic cheer and manufactured exuberance in the world can’t mask how paint-by-numbers this product is, draining the original film of its kitschy texture and vigor. But even if Shankman’s routine choreography and the colorful sets and costumes had real heart or subversion behind them, the script unwisely throws focus away from the feisty young rebels (including Tracy Turnblad, played here by the winning Blonsky) and onto the adults that previously filled supporting roles—no surprise, that attention is devoted to the name “stars.” Just as glaring an error: stripping the antagonists (including Pfeiffer’s racist witch of a station manager and Snow’s waspish brat) of their humorous flair and just making them nasty pieces of work that ruin any opportunity for vivacious fun. And right in the middle of the movie, Latifah has a sober, chest-beating show-stopper preaching for racial equality…are the filmmakers actually trying to make a John Waters movie seem subtle? A lot of these problems may have been inherited from the stage show, but Shankman and screenwriter Leslie Dixon’s adaptation had the opportunity to make corrections, one assumes. Difficult to hate—even for a hollow effort, it sure is pretty and peppy—but truly a disappointment. Travolta, who gained a lot of press for playing his role in drag (same as Divine did in the original film), brings the wrong kind of energy to the part, and is only memorable in head-scratching ways.

41/100