Plot
Jennifer Beals stars as Alex Owens, a Pittsburgh steel-mill welder by day, and bar dancer by night. Harboring dreams of a career in ballet, she is given financial support in this endeavor by her boss Nick Hurley (Michael Nouri) and moral support by demanding but big-hearted instructor Hanna Long (Lilia Skala). The film's signature scene is, of course, Alex's water-drenched dance audition, largely performed in long shot by her dance double Marine Jahan. Essentially an old-fashioned backstage yarn, Flashdance was given a contemporary spin by its pulsating, musical score featuring the Oscar-winning Best Song, Flashdance...What a Feeling, (music by Giorgio Moroder, lyrics by Keith Forsey and Irene Cara). ~ Hal Erickson, RoviReview
The sleeper hit Flashdance had surprising crossover appeal for a movie that featured strippers and X-rated footsie under the dinner table. In part because of its soundtrack, which became a pop sensation on the strength of Irene Cara's "What a Feeling" and Michael Sembello's "Maniac," the R-rated Flashdance was seen by an untold number of viewers under 17. The glimpses of nudity may have been partly to blame, but more than that, the transformation of Alex Owens from blue-collar welder to legitimate ballet hopeful was the stuff of dreams for teenage girls. Factor in the subplot about a friend trying to make it in ice skating, and this film seems tailor made to be teen wish fulfillment, except for all the time it spends in the nudie bars. Flashdance turned Jennifer Beals into an overnight sensation, her tough cookie with sex appeal image quickly assuming iconic status. Its nearly 95-million-dollar domestic take, steadily buoyed by word-of-mouth during a months-long theatrical engagement, was almost unheard of for an R-rated movie, ranking it the third highest grosser of 1983. The project also became the first hit in the notorious careers of screenwriter Joe Eszterhas and producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer. The kind of film that's so aggressively formulaic that it bowls over any objections, Flashdance has become fodder for numerous parodies and spawned countless imitators. For whatever reason, it struck a chord, and indeed produced quite a feeling. ~ Derek Armstrong, RoviCast
- Jennifer Beals - Alex Owens
- Michael Nouri - Nick Hurley
- Lilia Skala - Hanna Long
- Sunny Johnson - Jeanie Szabo
- Kyle Heffner - Richie
Credit
Tom Jacobson - Associate Producer, Lynda Obst - Associate Producer, Jeffery Hornaday - Choreography, Sylvester Levay - Conductor, Michael Kaplan - Costume Designer, Albert M. Shapiro - First Assistant Director, Adrian Lyne - Director, Walt Mulconery - Editor, Bud Smith - Editor, Peter Guber - Executive Producer, Jon Peters - Executive Producer, Giorgio Moroder - Composer (Music Score), Michael Sembello - Composer (Music Score), Sylvester Levay - Musical Arrangement, Phil Ramone - Musical Direction/Supervision, Dennis Matkosky - Songwriter, Charles Rosen - Production Designer, Jerry Bruckheimer - Producer, Don Simpson - Producer, Marvin March - Set Designer, Jim Webb - Sound/Sound Designer, Tom Hedley - Screen Story, Joe Eszterhas - Screenwriter, Tom Hedley - Screenwriter, Betty Moos - Assistant to the Director| Flashbacks of a Fool (2008 Film), Flashbacks (Film) | |
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