Hairspray

PG | 1h 32m| Comedy/Drama
Director: John Waters
Stars: Sonny Bono, Ricki Lake, Divine

Come for the big hair, the dance numbers and the ’60s nostalgia. Stay for a heartwarming story about acceptance and overcoming racial barriers.

Tracy Turnblad is an overweight Baltimore high school student who loves watching local teen dance program The Corky Collins Show. When Tracy is spotted at a record hop by Corky, she is invited to join his show—which is segregated. Her slick dance moves make her the star of the show, and she uses her newfound fame to advocate for integration.

“Controversial filmmaker John Waters finally hits his commercial stride in this film, parlaying his keen social observation and great compassion for society’s outsiders into a colorful and engaging comedy full of dancing, music and heartfelt nostalgia,” says TV Guide. The sweet and upbeat Hairspray was a big departure for Waters, previously know for making X-rated cult films.

Waters told the Los Angeles Times that when he put out a call for an overweight teenager to play Tracy, almost no one showed up. “Thank God, one of them was Ricki Lake,” he said. “But Ricki would have gotten the part even if thousands of them showed up.”

“Tracy became the poster child for anyone who felt like an outcast, who didn’t fit in,” Lake told the Times. “I mean, she’s a superhero for so many young girls. I love that her spirit and the character has lived on.”

The New York Times declares “the overall mood of Hairspray is so joyful, so full of unforced enthusiasm, that only the most ferocious cynic could resist it. It imagines a world where no one is an outsider and no one is a square, and invites everyone in. How can you refuse?”