EXAMPLE REVIEW CAE BOOSTER P67

There are so many great film moments. However, for me one of the best candidates for the
Fantastic Films website is the scene from Singing in the Rain where Gene Kelly sings the song
`Singing in the Rain’. I know lots of people think the final dance scene in Dirty Dancing where
`Johnny’ played by Patrick Swayze and `Baby’ (Jennifer Grey) dance to `The Time of my Life’ is
the most iconic dance scene of all time, but I disagree, and would go as far as to suggest it’s
not included.

In the Singing in the Rain scene, Don Lockwood played by Gene Kelly breaks into song to
express his love for Kathy (Debbie Reynolds). He sings moving from the pavement to a road full
of puddles. Gene Kelly’s dancing is fantastic and entertaining. The audience can also feel his
happiness and can identify with his expression of newly found love.

In contrast, the dancing in Dirty Dancing while as technically accurate as Gene Kelly’s lacks a
sense of joy. In this scene, Johnny goes on stage to perform the last dance of the season at a
holiday resort. He pulls `Baby’ on stage with him. The dance itself is nothing special by today’s
standards and not as entertaining.

I would argue that the whole film is not as good as Singing in the Rain, in terms of plot and
entertainment value. The latter is clearly an all-time classic, while Dirty Dancing is just a typical
film from the 1980’s.