DIRTY DANCING - Blu-ray review

I do not want to admit to how many times I've seen "Dirty Dancing" since it debuted twenty years ago. I shouldn't even admit that I owned "Dirty Dancing" and "More Dirty Dancing" on cassette. I'm a sucker for the Oldies and especially the Four Seasons. I believe my first experience with this film was being taken with my older sister Cindy to see the film at a theater. Since then, the film has been released countless times on standard definition DVD by Lionsgate and I've written at least two other reviews for the title. Sitting down to type up yet another review, I was tempted to simply rehash one of the reviews for inclusion here. However, one was a ‘Capsule Review' from the now defunct Digital Bayou and I just wasn't happy with the other review. I decided to sit down and reflect on the film and not necessarily review it.

By now, everybody in the world is familiar with "Dirty Dancing." It features Jennifer Grey before she defaced her natural beauty with a bad nose job. That was one bad business decision for the perky actress and her career took off with this film and ended when the tip of her nose was lopped off. One of the most prevalent actors of the Eighties, Patrick Swayze, also appears in the film. Audiences would flock to see a Patrick Swayze film back in the day. Veteran actor Jerry Orbach appeared alongside the two stars and the cast of dozens that have not been seen since. This film was all about Patrick Swayze and dancing. I'm sure that was the primary reason that Cindy dragged myself and my nephew Don to go see "Dirty Dancing." Don and I are the same age, as my sister is a good deal older, so we both had to suffer for this ‘date movie.'

Truth be told, there is something I have always enjoyed about "Dirty Dancing." It isn't the humor. It isn't the dancing and it certainly isn't Patrick Swayze. Jennifer Grey was twenty seven when "Dirty Dancing" was released and she portrayed a teenage rich girl in the film. She was cute, but she wasn't the reason I agreed to go along to see this film. I was fifteen years old at the time and going to see "Dirty Dancing" with your sister wasn't exactly the ‘cool' thing to do. What I enjoyed about "Dirty Dancing" was the music. I absolutely love some of the Oldies that appear in the film. "Be My Baby," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Where Are You Tonight," "Do You Love Me," "Love Man," "Stay," "Some Kind of Wonderful," "These Arms of Mine," and "Love is Strange" are just a few of the great songs contained on the film's soundtrack. If anything, "Dirty Dancing" is one of the finest films based upon its soundtrack.

Twenty years later, "Dirty Dancing" is still going strong. It has even survived a shoddy and forgotten sequel, "Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights." I have many of the songs on various CD collections. No matter how many times Lionsgate releases this cash cow; it sells. I don't recall if the dancing depicted in the film was necessarily shocking and risky twenty years ago. It was all offensive to me at that time. Since then, I've certainly spent enough time on club dance floors to not find anything in "Dirty Dancing" to be offensive. This film had a decent story and decent performances, but it is a tribute to the music and the era in which the film is set. It is a journey back in time for many to enjoy, such as my older sister. For younger audiences, it is a curiosity of the Eighties that looks at the Sixties. I've seen this film more times than I want to admit to. Oddly, I still find myself enjoying it. Now, off to watch "Roadhouse."

Video:
"Dirty Dancing" is presented in a passable 1.85:1 widescreen transfer using the AVC MPEG-4 codec. The film is overly colorful, although the hues are slightly degraded due to the age of the source materials. Black levels are strong and shadow detail is not the strongest, but pretty good considering the film's age. "Dirty Dancing" certainly looks better than any of the previous home video releases that dwell deep in the depths of my collection. This was not an overly expensive film and the source materials' flaws jump out during this film. The ever present problem of film grain exists throughout the film and at times it can be quite hideous. The level of detail is not particularly strong. It can be downright weak. This is another problem due to the low-budget underpinnings of the film. It wasn't made with the finest of film stock and its age shows. Comparing this version to the most recent DVD release did show a lot of improvement, but this is a film that was betrayed by DVD and will probably never look stunning in today's formats or any future endeavors.

Sound:
My Playstation 3 is reporting a 7.1 channel Uncompressed PCM mix. The packaging lists 6.1 channels on the packaging, but the display says otherwise. I'm not sure as to which I should believe. Until I upgrade my receiver, I'm still stuck in the 5.1 world. I had intended to upgrade last year, but the new game consoles and high definition formats emptied my wallet. Regardless, the new Uncompressed PCM track is good. If fact, it can be very good and "Dirty Dancing" easily sounds better than it has ever sounded before. The songs have a lot of ‘pop' to them, although the rear surrounds and .1 LFE channel are not heavily used even during the liveliest of moments. The soundtrack is incredibly clean and dialogue is as clear as it can get. A 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround EX Audio mix is included and is only a small notch below what this Uncompressed PCM track delivers.

Extras:
This list of extras contained on this Blu-ray disc is downright frightening. There are twenty eight bullet points on the packaging. Some of these are technical specs, but one of the bullet points states And More…. You've got to be kidding, right? Much of the materials on this disc have been ported and rehashed from the umpteen previous DVD releases. While the last DVD was called the "Ultimate Edition," this new Blu-ray title takes it one step further. One thing we can say for certain is that this is not the "Penultimate Edition," as there is more than one more release left in the "Dirty Dancing" cash cow.

Under the "Audio Setup" menu, there are two commentary tracks and a trivia track. The Commentary with Eleanor Bergstein spends time with the film's writer and co-producer and Bergstein is full of good information. Her own life influenced the film and her experiences are shared throughout the commentary. This is the better of the two commentaries, as the Multivoice Commentary with Kenny Ortega, Miranda Garrison, Jeff Jur, Hilary Rosenfeld and David Chapman is a edited together track with more people than I could keep track of. Miranda was a teacher at Arthur Murray with Eleanor Bergstein. This track featured a lot of people, but it isn't as good as the first track. The Dirty Dancing 20th Anniversary Pop-Up Trivia Track is selectable from the Subtitle menu and features little animated pop-ups that provide some nice details about the film. This was a nicely done feature.

The Special Features menu is where things get scary. The Dirty Dancing with Patrick Swayze (12:29) features an interview with Patrick Swayze as he shares his recollections about the film and discusses the opening sequence, the history of dance, music and other elements of the film. This was a nice little chat. The Tribute to Jerry Orbach (6:34) is narrated by Kelly Bishop and looks back at the late actor. There are eleven Deleted Scenes contained on the disc. Along with the three Alternate Scenes, six Extended Scenes and forty one seconds of Outtakes, there is nearly forty five minutes of extra footage to quench the thirst of anybody looking for more "Dirty Dancing." These scenes are all featured in very nice cleaned up high definition. My only complaint is that the viewer is dumped back to the film after selecting each individual scene.

The supplements continue with the Original Screen Tests. A "Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey Screen Test Montage" (1:12) and two "Jennifer Grey Screen Test Comparisons" are short, but probably enjoyable for fans. The Multi-Angle Dance Sequences feature the scenes "The Lift" and "Everybody Dance" and uses the remote and the multi-angle capabilities first used with DVD to allow for interactive viewing from different camera angles. The Classic Story on Stage (13:20) looks at the stage presentations of "Dirty Dancing." Yup, the story of Kellerman's became a stage show. Featuring Eleanor Bergstein and others, this was a quick wrap-up of the film's stage life. A lot of British folk were present in the making of this featurette. A Photo Gallery (5:01) slowly runs through a few photos and the time I have listed for the feature is the length of the song that will repeat if you don't get through the pictures in time.

The number of supplements continue on with the Interviews that are listed as separate bullet points on the packaging. Interviews are contained for Jennifer Grey (11:23), Eleanor Bergstein (18:39) and choreographer Kenny Ortega (15:24). I wish Lionsgate had not turned off the menu buttons for their special features. Music Videos for "Hungry Eyes," "She's Like the Wind" and "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" are included to feed those nostalgic urges. The Emile Ardolino Tribute (13:31) looks at the film's director and pays tribute to his life and work. Finally, the Disc Production Credits ends the lengthy list of value added content. I have to admit, Lionsgate put together one hell of a nice disc.

Closing Comments:
I've seen "Dirty Dancing" many times over the past twenty years. The first time was with my sister. The next couple times were a mix of screenings for reviews or viewing the film with girlfriends that were overly excited that I had copies of the film in my DVD collection. Now, on Blu-ray, I watched "Dirty Dancing" yet again. Somehow, someway and for some reason, I have never gotten tired of this film. I don't consider it one of my favorites and I certainly do not love the film, but the music is something I enjoy a great deal. The story and performances aren't bad either. This is truly a classic of the Eighties and a film that has made Lionsgate a lot of money; which explains why this feature packed Blu-ray has been released in the first year of the format's life. The transfer looks decent, but "Dirty Dancing" is a film that is technically incapable of looking spectacular. The soundtrack is powerful and although it does not fully utilize the multi-channel surround mix provided, it sounds pretty good. The features are lengthy, plentiful and entertaining. This is easily the best release of the film yet.