"Common Threads" is the working title of a feature I will do once and a while where I will look at various trends in movie history and look at some highlights and lowlights of that said trend.
--------------
So I was surfing the series of tubes called the interwebs last night and I was provided a link to this 2 minute piece of genius:
This is from 1989’s Teen Witch, which made $27,843 at the box office, making it one of the few films that is jealous of MacGruber. This is just an example of the kind of scenes we saw in the 80’s, many of them impromptu and utilizing actors that have no particular skill at such activities. If these white boys were caught behaving in such a way in real life, they would be shot. Even in an upper class white neighborhood. Someone would see them, go out of their way to buy a gun, return and finish the job.
Apparently the girl I presume to be the witch uses her power to make her friend “hip” and “funky”. Apparently her brain sees this sad excuse for a man as “attractive” and she is embarrassed to be in his presence. Luckily we’ve got our teen witch to save the day, but in the end the man does not seem to be attracted to her so much as he is angry that “that” has been topped.
However, this scene got me to thinking, what other awesome/hilarious/thoroughly uncomfortable dance scenes have I seen from movies? I now take a look at a few impromptu dance scenes from otherwise non-dancing movies and laugh at their expense. I will finish off with a scene that actually uses this technique for the better.
--------------
Now, I know whenever we all go to McDonald’s we have the time of our lives. It’s always crowded, and the customers break out into pre-choreographed dances to forgettable 80’s songs. Wait, what? It’s different for you? Well, obviously you’ve never seen this scene from Mac and Me.
I don’t know if you were able to surmise the plot from this clip, but it’s a blatant rip-off of E.T. with some of the most shameless product placement I’ve seen in the history of film. I don’t know if there is a shot in the above scene in which the golden arches are not shown. Not to mention our good friend Ronald McDonald stops by to spread some cheer.
The fact that it is held in a McDonald’s simply makes this dance scene even more beautifully terrible. There are the hip street dancers out in the parking lot, and inside everyone is just having a gay old time. There are children celebrating a birthday, choreographed dancing, and- what in the name of- ARE THOSE FOOTBALL PLAYERS?! Look how funky they are!
It’s only a shame the FBI agents did not join in on the hoedown. Instead they go after our alien friend in the teddy bear suit surrounded by the most oblivious extras I’ve ever seen. He dances on the counter in front of the happiest McDonald’s employees of all time. It is followed by an inexplicable leap out the door, and the FBI agents give chase. The fact that they cannot outrun a kid in a wheelchair indicates they need to rethink their training.
Basically, the message is that McDonald’s is an oasis of pure joy and you should go there for every meal for the rest of your life, which would only be about another month if you actually did that.
--------------
We now move ahead to 1990’s Lambada. That’s right, 1990. They should know better by now, right? Right? Wrong.
“Computers are only as boring as the people that use them.” –Egghead, my favorite Batman villain
If you can reproduce a Mac computer from the late 80’s with this break dancing hip hop program, I will eat my hat on national television. I’d buy sponsorship for an hour-long special, since they’re doing that now.
Devotees of the American version of The Office might recognize a young Melora Hardin as one of the students who suddenly lets loose while her teacher goes to the bathroom. She claims “you can almost dance to that” while the computer is only emitting clicks. I too enjoy dancing to metronomes, Melora. You and I have a lot in common.
By the way, what’s up with the ape sounds that are in the background throughout the clip?
Now, I am not entirely sure of the plot of Lambada, except that it involves a teacher who goes out the clubs and gets all freaky every night. His students like to dance as well, and maybe he uses the power of dance to teach? I’ll never tell.
--------------
Our next clip comes from the criminally underrated comedic masterpiece Good Burger, from our friends at Nickelodeon Movies. It involves a young Kenan and Kel trying to expose the evil that is Mondo Burger, which is run like the mafia. Eventually our heroes, along with Abe Vigoda, end up in an insane asylum. There is only one way out. Funkadelic!
George Clinton has a cameo here, first as the old man who asks Kel (I forget the characters’ names, so roll with me) to change the music, and he later sings to his own song “(Not Just) Knee Deep”. Is this dance scene out of nowhere? Duh. But I enjoy it more than most for some reason. Maybe because Kenan takes the initiative and actually uses the dance to move the plot forward? Maybe because it’s not terrible 80’s crap? Who knows? It ain’t smart comedy, but I enjoy Good Burger as a bit of a guilty pleasure.
Ever since Good Burger, Kenan Thompson has gone on to a regular spot on Saturday Night Live, and Kel Mithcell- Well, no one knows where Kel Mitchell is. If you do, let me know.
--------------
Let’s flash forward to 2009, and the funny, entertaining, and just all-around joy that is (500) Days of Summer. There is a dance scene here, but it actually serves a purpose. It begins just after he emerges from his apartment the morning after… getting to know Summer better.
Tell me this doesn’t put a smile on your face. This scene is used to show the character Tom’s obvious happiness after the night before. It is thoroughly cartoonish, but it is an integral point in the film. This is a film that breaks form often, including a brilliant sequence that shows Tom’s “expectations” and “reality” side-by-side.
This is a rare case of a random dance number that works in every way possible. There is a similar example at the end of The 40-Year Old Virgin, a scene which I could not find on YouTube.
--------------
So, there you have it. A few clips of random dance numbers in film. Some work, most don’t. If you have any more you’d like to mention from a movie or TV show you’ve seen, let me know and I’ll post a link.
But I think we can all agree that the 80’s were a different time.
No comments:
Post a Comment