bkoganbing Hairspray both this version and the new 2007 one are a pair of great satirical films about teenage mores in the early Sixties of the Civil Rights Era. Sometimes our heroes and heroines for civil rights and human decency can be found where you least expect.Such a person is Tracy Turnblad played by later television host Rikki Lake who's a full figured gal in every sense of the word. Her biggest desire growing up in Baltimore of the Early Sixties is to get on the local teen hop show hosted by Corny Collins. The regulars who dance there have a celebrity status, but something a fat girl dare not hope to dream.Tracy doesn't hope, she lives the dream and actually gets picked to dance and be a regular to the distress of plastic teen princess Colleen Fitzpatrick. But it's a cause for celebration for Tracy's parents played by Divine and Jerry Stiller and her best friend Leslie Ann Powers.All this is against the background of the civil rights era and Baltimore had its problems also. The Corny Collins show is segregated with a prescribed Negro Day once a month. That seems as bogus to Tracy as baseball being segregated not too long ago and she joins the fight to integrate the show. She's even convinced her teen dream new boyfriend Michael St. Gerard to join in as well.A subplot is Powers finding love herself in the person of Clayton Prince who is black and that's upsetting to a lot of people, not the least is Powers's mother. It would be within that same decade that the Supreme Court did away with miscegenation laws, so these kids are running some real risks.Hairspray is a very funny film with a very serious message about live and live. In fact that's the main problem with the world today right now, certain people feeling they've got the right through religion or secular philosophy or plain out and out wealth who just feel they've the right to dictate the lives the rest of us are supposed to lead in conforming to how they see the world. In the remake of Hairspray, Queen Latifah who plays Ruth Brown's role of Motormouth Mabel says to the characters playing the Powers and Prince roles that as a racially mixed couple that those young people should be prepared for a whole lot of stupid in the world to deal with. One cast member of this version of Hairspray had occasion to deal with a whole lot of stupid back in 1994.In the cast he's listed as Keith Douglas, lead singer of the Lafayettes DooWop group, but he was Keith Douglas Pruitt, a talented musician, actor, and composer. He and his partner were attacked by a trio of suburban rednecks who were dismayed at seeing two members of the same sex holding hands on Waverly Place. Keith sustained a fractured skull and a hearing loss for a while looked to permanently impair his career in music.It was in my working days with New York State Crime Victims Board that I met Keith Pruitt. I did the claims for both he and his partner, giving them what my agency could provide for both of them. He did go back to work eventually to the applause of his friends and admirers of his work. Keith Pruitt died only a week ago at the age of 47. He left a legacy in art, but he also left a legacy in life as a genuine hero. One who certainly never started out to be one, but things are thrust upon us in life sometimes. He stood up to the homophobic bigots and bashers with dignity and pride. I'm really proud I knew him and was part of his story in a small way.And so this review of Hairspray is dedicated to Keith Pruitt, someone we can all emulate in life.

PoisonKeyblade I wanted to like this movie a lot, I really did. After seeing the fantastic 2007 version of Hairspray and hearing a lot of buzz about the 1988 original, I just knew I had to see it. So that's precisely what I did. I went right to Blockbuster and I bought it, expecting to like the movie for my recent obsession over all things Hairspray (I listen to the music from the movie more times than you can imagine). I really didn't like it very much at all. I loved a couple things (Penny getting shock treatment was HYSTERICAL and they definitely should have kept the subplot in with Prudy following them to Motor Mouth Records and being scared of all the black people. That was so funny when she went to the officer and she realized he was black and went screaming down the street!) but it was mostly really boring. Divine was good, but he was nothing compared to John Travolta, I'm sorry to say. I also felt that the movie was too short. I also really didn't like the woman who played Motor Mouth Maybelle, but some of the other choices were just perfect. I really liked Tracy (the always-amazing Ricki Lake). The thing that really annoyed me would be that there was always a line that they made into the songs! "Hey Mama, welcome to the 60s!" Link was pretty funny, and that riot where both his legs were broken was ridiculous, but pretty funny. The dynamite thing in the hair was a bit much. I just don't see how so many people could like the original! I expected much more from it, I have to say.So don't look here for lots of fun, although the laughs often surprise you out of nowhere. This original version was very cheesy, and while I know that was its intention, I just didn't altogether buy it. As much as I like John Waters, this movie really did not impress me. The script was fantastic and the acting was comedic genius, especially from the legendary Divine. I have to say, though, that without all of the music and the insane energy, Hairspray just doesn't feel the same or have that same magic spark about it. Check it out, but don't expect more than a disposable comedy with great performances. The 2007 version of Hairspray is superior in almost every way imaginable.

Lee Eisenberg Knowing that John Waters likes to make outrageous movies, "Hairspray" is an easy introduction to his movies. It portrays chubby teenager Tracy Turnblad (Ricki Lake) trying to help bring about integration in 1962 Baltimore, all in the context of hairstyles. Watching the movie, one gets the feeling that Waters long had a thing for beehive hairdos - I mean, look at Velma Von Tussle's (Deborah Harry). But overall, it's the sort of movie that you really wish that you could experience, especially when Penny's mother gets freaked out in the ghetto.Anyway, you gotta love John Waters (who appears briefly as the psychiatrist) for making these kinds of flicks. Also starring Divine, Sonny Bono, Jerry Stiller and Mink Stole.

maroonmagik Being a pleasantly plump teenage girl who loves to sing and dance myself,I absolutely adore this movie! Any movie where the fat girl steals the dreamy heart throb from the "perfect" skinny girl is a favorite of mine. This movie is empowering to big girls everywhere, even if they do have to shop at the "Hefty Hideaway." And personally, I think Rikki Lake was much more entertaining before she lost all the weight. When was the last time you saw her talk show or saw her in a movie? The musical version of Hairspray is one of my favorite shows and I would LOVE to play Tracy onstage. Waters may have his critics, but he sure knows how to direct a good cult classic.