HairsprayHalf expecting a song to burst out of the characters during key points of the film, isn't a reflection in anyway on my desire for it to be like the remake. In fact, it's more a testament to the merit of the original source. I wouldn't have all these songs queuing and running through my head were it not for the progenitor.
This earlier, quieter rendition offers me more, for it deconstructs a slick decedent, showing the purer, more unpolished prototype. And I like it!
It's a bold mixture of serious and silly, combined with the added oomph of being a musical. Not a book musical, but a capturing of dancing and music of the day, in a type of docudrama/comedy way. Is that a genre?
I'm not told in song what to feel, like in the lyrics, "There's a dream in the future, there's a struggle that we have yet to win..." No, it's just storytelling, or better yet, story showing. Both styles have their appeal. Getting to see them side by side, comparing and contrasting also has its appeal!
Now I finally get to read oldkid's review.