The eighties was the decade of dance films, including Fame, and Flashdance. They captured the hearts and imagination of its generation, filling classes the world over with new students, and influencing fashion trends such as legwarmers. Today they continue to seduce a new generation of fans in big screen remakes and stage adaptations.
Yet one film influenced an entire subculture, and its stars inspired and tutored legendary music and dance artists. Twenty five years on its influence is still felt in today's established and up and coming dancers, rappers and DJ’s.
Hip Hop’s West Side Story
Frustrated dancer Kelly (Lucinda Dickey) is tired of her hum drum waitressing job and the unwanted advances of her lecherous dance instructor Franco (a chillingly charismatic turn from dancer Ben Lokey). Hoping to cheer her up Kelly’s friend Adam (a wonderfully camp Phineas Newborn III) introduces her to his friends, street dancers Ozone (Adolpho “Shabba Doo” Quinones) and Turbo (Michael “Boogaloo Shrimp” Chambers). Their raw energy and unorthodox dance moves re-ignite Kelly’s spark and soon the boys are teaching her to lock, pop and break, to not only battle a rival dance crew, with Kelly harbouring ambitions to take their act to the stage, much to the disdain of the dancing establishment.
Breakdance suffers from a weak plot, mostly poor dialogue and lacklustre acting from some of its cast, as well as mistakes typical of a very rushed filming schedule. Lucinda Dickey as Kelly lacks conviction delivering stunted dialogue and lacking emotion in her performance. Whilst Dickey is an excellent jazz dancer and gymnast, she performs little street dancing and it is evident she had not grasped some of the basic moves. However it does deliver on entertainment value and impressive performances from its dance cast.
In contrast, Quinones and Chambers are by far the most natural performers. As an actor Quinones is a charismatic lead, passionate, showing charm with a vulnerable quality. The teenage Chambers, is endearing displaying great comic timing and a likeable cheekiness winning him a legion of adoring female fans. The pair also display some exceptional dance skills combined with a natural chemistry and on screen presence.
A Generational Influence
It is the quality of the dancing and the music that are the film’s strengths embodying the spirit of Hip Hop, as a formless manner of self-expression. This was a Landmark movie for Hip Hop as it had been confined to slots on MTV or Top of the Pops but by having a full hour and a half movie in which to shine, audiences were dazzled by the gymnastic wonder of breakdancing as well as the unique sound of the music. Soon young people were inspired to learn all the moves, with much of it self taught from studying their idols on television, but eventually attending classes at dance schools and fitness centres.
The film also shows Hip Hop as an alternative to violence when resolving disputes. This was its essence since it had evolved from urban neighbourhoods where gang warfare was rife. The film capitalises on this by conveying the dance battles as if they were real fights. The scenes in the Radiotron club as the dancers gear up for a showdown, with shots of hard icy stares and the smoky dance hall, oozes with an atmosphere of a fight in waiting. Yet it also mixes urban dancing with showbiz nostalgia as in the scene with Turbo dancing with a broom, reminiscent of Fred Astair's coat rack dance in 1951's Royal Wedding. This gave added appeal to an older audience, and deserves recognition as an all time classic dance movie moment.
The film’s soundtrack proved to be an even bigger commercial success containing an eclectic mix of funk, and soul, such as Chaka Khan's Aint Nobody, and of course Hip Hop featuring the deejaying talents of Chris “The Glove” Taylor and lyrical gymnastics courtesy of MC and Rapper ICE-T. The album shot into the top ten of most of the world’s charts along with the single There’s No Stopping US by Ollie and Jerry that was the film’s anthem. The dance influence and the success of the film’s soundtrack created a demand for appropriate music and thus deejaying and rapping took hold, with artists such as Run DMC, Houdini and Afrika Bambaataa, discovering a wider audience for their material.
A Breakin’ Hit
The film cost $900,000 to produce and earned a staggering $4 million in its US opening weekend alone with a total of $36 million thereafter and more worldwide. It was one of the highest grossing films 1984 and turned its dancing stars into household names. Not only did it inspire hordes of children breaking and popping on makeshift dance floors (usually scrap bits of card or lino taped together), but also caught the eye of star studded performers. Before the film’s promotion and release, Quinones and Chambers had previously made various television appearances. The pair also featured in the video to Lionel Ritchie’s All Night Long, choreographed by Quinones.
Following the film’s release, Quinones again worked with Lionel Ritchie but also with Madonna and Luther Vandross, mainly as a choreographer. Both Chambers and Quinones also featured in Chaka Khan’s video to I Feel For You alongside their cinematic rivals Bruno “Poppin Taco” Falcon, Tim “Poppin Pete” Solomon and Ana “Lollipop” Sanchez.. Chambers and Quinones also worked alongside the late King of Pop Michael Jackson, teaching him to lock, pop and the now famous moonwalk.
However the film quickly disappeared into the ether due largely to increased competition from similarly themed superior films such as Beat Street and the commercialisation of Hip Hop veering towards the music. Rappers and DJ’s became the stars of Hip Hop as it is known today with the dancers and graffiti artists pushed aside. Yet its legacy lives on not only in the stars it has inspired but with the renewed interest following UK acts such as Flawless and Diversity, whose styles bear some of the hallmarks of this forgotten classic.
Yet one film influenced an entire subculture, and its stars inspired and tutored legendary music and dance artists. Twenty five years on its influence is still felt in today's established and up and coming dancers, rappers and DJ’s.
Hip Hop’s West Side Story
Frustrated dancer Kelly (Lucinda Dickey) is tired of her hum drum waitressing job and the unwanted advances of her lecherous dance instructor Franco (a chillingly charismatic turn from dancer Ben Lokey). Hoping to cheer her up Kelly’s friend Adam (a wonderfully camp Phineas Newborn III) introduces her to his friends, street dancers Ozone (Adolpho “Shabba Doo” Quinones) and Turbo (Michael “Boogaloo Shrimp” Chambers). Their raw energy and unorthodox dance moves re-ignite Kelly’s spark and soon the boys are teaching her to lock, pop and break, to not only battle a rival dance crew, with Kelly harbouring ambitions to take their act to the stage, much to the disdain of the dancing establishment.
Breakdance suffers from a weak plot, mostly poor dialogue and lacklustre acting from some of its cast, as well as mistakes typical of a very rushed filming schedule. Lucinda Dickey as Kelly lacks conviction delivering stunted dialogue and lacking emotion in her performance. Whilst Dickey is an excellent jazz dancer and gymnast, she performs little street dancing and it is evident she had not grasped some of the basic moves. However it does deliver on entertainment value and impressive performances from its dance cast.
In contrast, Quinones and Chambers are by far the most natural performers. As an actor Quinones is a charismatic lead, passionate, showing charm with a vulnerable quality. The teenage Chambers, is endearing displaying great comic timing and a likeable cheekiness winning him a legion of adoring female fans. The pair also display some exceptional dance skills combined with a natural chemistry and on screen presence.
A Generational Influence
It is the quality of the dancing and the music that are the film’s strengths embodying the spirit of Hip Hop, as a formless manner of self-expression. This was a Landmark movie for Hip Hop as it had been confined to slots on MTV or Top of the Pops but by having a full hour and a half movie in which to shine, audiences were dazzled by the gymnastic wonder of breakdancing as well as the unique sound of the music. Soon young people were inspired to learn all the moves, with much of it self taught from studying their idols on television, but eventually attending classes at dance schools and fitness centres.
The film also shows Hip Hop as an alternative to violence when resolving disputes. This was its essence since it had evolved from urban neighbourhoods where gang warfare was rife. The film capitalises on this by conveying the dance battles as if they were real fights. The scenes in the Radiotron club as the dancers gear up for a showdown, with shots of hard icy stares and the smoky dance hall, oozes with an atmosphere of a fight in waiting. Yet it also mixes urban dancing with showbiz nostalgia as in the scene with Turbo dancing with a broom, reminiscent of Fred Astair's coat rack dance in 1951's Royal Wedding. This gave added appeal to an older audience, and deserves recognition as an all time classic dance movie moment.
The film’s soundtrack proved to be an even bigger commercial success containing an eclectic mix of funk, and soul, such as Chaka Khan's Aint Nobody, and of course Hip Hop featuring the deejaying talents of Chris “The Glove” Taylor and lyrical gymnastics courtesy of MC and Rapper ICE-T. The album shot into the top ten of most of the world’s charts along with the single There’s No Stopping US by Ollie and Jerry that was the film’s anthem. The dance influence and the success of the film’s soundtrack created a demand for appropriate music and thus deejaying and rapping took hold, with artists such as Run DMC, Houdini and Afrika Bambaataa, discovering a wider audience for their material.
A Breakin’ Hit
The film cost $900,000 to produce and earned a staggering $4 million in its US opening weekend alone with a total of $36 million thereafter and more worldwide. It was one of the highest grossing films 1984 and turned its dancing stars into household names. Not only did it inspire hordes of children breaking and popping on makeshift dance floors (usually scrap bits of card or lino taped together), but also caught the eye of star studded performers. Before the film’s promotion and release, Quinones and Chambers had previously made various television appearances. The pair also featured in the video to Lionel Ritchie’s All Night Long, choreographed by Quinones.
Following the film’s release, Quinones again worked with Lionel Ritchie but also with Madonna and Luther Vandross, mainly as a choreographer. Both Chambers and Quinones also featured in Chaka Khan’s video to I Feel For You alongside their cinematic rivals Bruno “Poppin Taco” Falcon, Tim “Poppin Pete” Solomon and Ana “Lollipop” Sanchez.. Chambers and Quinones also worked alongside the late King of Pop Michael Jackson, teaching him to lock, pop and the now famous moonwalk.
However the film quickly disappeared into the ether due largely to increased competition from similarly themed superior films such as Beat Street and the commercialisation of Hip Hop veering towards the music. Rappers and DJ’s became the stars of Hip Hop as it is known today with the dancers and graffiti artists pushed aside. Yet its legacy lives on not only in the stars it has inspired but with the renewed interest following UK acts such as Flawless and Diversity, whose styles bear some of the hallmarks of this forgotten classic.
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