Line #36 Film/Footloose


1	%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1595044278038845600
2	%% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread.
3	%%
4	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/footloose_2_1.png]]
5	%%
6
7	After his parents' divorce, Ren [=McCormack=] (played by Creator/KevinBacon) moves with his mother [[FishOutOfWater from Chicago to a small town in middle America]]. While he finds many of the town's backwards ways frustrating, there is one inexplicable rule that really catches his attention: Rock music and dancing are illegal. He soon makes it his mission to try and reform the law before senior prom, but Ren faces some stiff adversaries. His [[BigBad main opposition]] comes in the form of the extremely conservative Reverend Shaw Moore (Creator/JohnLithgow), who is certain that if rock music is allowed in the town, then all the young people will end up pregnant cocaine addicts.
8
9	Regardless, Ren and his new friends--including the beautiful Ariel, who happens to be Reverend Moore's daughter--set out on their quest to give the town's teenagers SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll.
10
11	Well... rock 'n' roll, at least.
12
13	A [[AllMusicalsAreAdaptations stage musical]] was made in 1998. It won two Tony Awards and ran for 709 performances. A film remake was released in October 2011.
14
15	Compare with ''Film/FerrisBuellersDayOff'' and ''Film/TheBreakfastClub''.
16
17	Not to be confused with [[Webcomic/{{Footloose}} the webcomic]] of the same name.
18	----
19	!!This film provides examples of:
20
21	* TheEighties: The movie takes place in the eighties.
22	* EightiesHair: Oh yeah!
23	* AbandonedWarehouse: Great place for doing an AngryDance.
24	* AccidentalHero: Ren is challenged to a GameOfChicken in a tractor, and finds himself the accidental victor as his shoelaces get stuck in the gearing, preventing him from bailing out.
25	* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: Ren's mother is dead in the remake.
26	* AdaptationalExpansion: The 2011 remake adds a scene at the beginning of the film that shows what caused Rock music and dancing to be banned in Beaumont.
27	* AdaptationalHeroism: Wes is much more supportive of Ren in the remake. When Reverend Shaw tries to get him to see that Ariel is too good for Ren, Wes replies that it's most likely the other way around. He also explains how Ren spent his mother's last years taking care of her, after his father left.
28	* AdaptedOut: Ariel's friends Wendy Jo and Edna/Urleen, supporting characters in the original movie and the play, get cut out of the remake to focus more on her friendship with Rusty.
29	* TheAggressiveDrugDealer: Subverted. The "dealer" just wants Ren to get caught with contraband.
30	* AllThereInTheManual: The novelization reveals that Principal Dunbar lost his daughter in the accident on the bridge, which explains why he supports the ban so much.
31	* AMFMCharacterization: The contrast between Ren and Rev. Moore is underpinned by the music they like.
32	* AndStarring: The opening cast roll ends with "and Creator/JohnLithgow".
33	* AngryDance: To the max in the warehouse.
34	* ArtisticLicenseLaw: The 2011 remake is guilty of this as the rules they set in the town violate the Constitution such as the freedom of expression and the right to gather, regardless of how the incident that started these draconian rules started, no city council (especially one in small town America) in their right mind would even think of implementing such rules.
35	* AsTheGoodBookSays: Ren quotes Biblical scripture to support the value of dance to the town council. It doesn't work, but Rev. Moore personally appreciates the gesture.
36	* BannedInChina: InUniverse - Rock and dancing are banned in Beaumont.
37	* BarBrawl: Happens to Willard after someone else dances with Rusty.
38	* BetaCouple: Rusty (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Willard (Chris Penn).
39	* BeYourself: The moral of the story: don't conform to what your parents want you to be.
40	* BigBad: [[TheFundamentalist Reverend Shaw Moore]] is the one behind the outlawing of dancing and rock music, a measure that protagonist [=Ren McCormack=] opposes.
41	* BlitheSpirit: Fits Ren like a glove. Or some sort of dance shoe.
42	* BookBurning: Townspeople start doing this, making the reverend realize things had gone too far.
43	* BrokenWindowWarning: Ren tries to start a movement to repeal his town's "no dancing" law... and late at night, he gets a brick through a window of his home for his troubles.
44	* CaughtComingHomeLate: Ariel's father awaits her when she returns late at night while the curfew was on.
45	* ChristianityIsCatholic: Zig-zagged. Reverend Moore is clearly a Protestant (he's married, wears no Roman collar, and is referred to as a Reverend, not a Father), but at one point Ariel makes an impassioned speech about "confessing her sins to her preacher in the church," a Catholic practice.
46	* TheCityVsTheCountry: The fact that he's from Chicago nets Ren HateAtFirstSight from most of the townsfolk, instantly labeling him a rebellious ne'er-do-well. And it only gets worse when he starts to actually rebel.
47	* TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes: Reverend Moore is a great motivational speaker, but he cannot reach his daughter. As said by his wife:
48	--> '''Vi''': You're a wonderful preacher. You can lift a congregation up so high ... they have to look down to see heaven. But it's the one-to-one where you need a little work.
49	* DancePartyEnding: Of course!
50	-->'''Ren''': "Hey, what's this I see? I thought this was a party! LET'S DAAAAANCE!!"
51	* DancingIsSeriousBusiness: You better believe it.
52	* DeathByAdaptation: Ren's mom, in the remake.
53	* DeliberatelyBadExample: Principal Dunbar to Reverend Moore. Moore is a WellIntentionedExtremist, even in his worst moments. Dunbar is borderline fascistic.
54	* DeathSeeker: It's heavily implied that Ariel is this as a way of coping with her brother's death.
55	* DisappearedDad: Ren's father abandoned him and his mom.
56	* DisobeyThisMessage: In a way.
57	* DystopianEdict: The town of Beaumont has the strict ban on dancing and rock music after a car accident involving that stuff killed five teenagers.
58	* DivingSave: Ren pushes Ariel out of the way of the onrushing train.
59	* EstablishingCharacterMoment:
60	** Ariel's car stunt showcases her DeathSeeker attitude.
61	** Ren's is a bit more subtle. When members of the council speak about wanting to ban an English teacher from discussing the book ''[[Literature/SlaughterhouseFive Slaughterhouse Five]]'', Ren speaks out in support of the book. This moment both foreshadows [[FishOutOfWater his relationship with the town]] and establishes that Ren is not the outright rebel everyone assumes he is.
62	* FishOutOfWater: Ren.
63	* FromTheMouthsOfBabes : Ren's cousin Amy comments that Ren is "a total fox".
64	* GameOfChicken: On ''tractors,'' set to "Music/HoldingOutForAHero" to great effect. Ren wins [[spoiler:because his shoelace gets caught on the gas pedal]].
65	* GeniusBruiser: Woody. He protects his smaller friends from Chuck's thugs, and is big and strong enough to pin several of them at once. Then in another scene he explains to Ren how the town government works in Beaumont.
66	* GenreMashup: Comedy? Drama? Romance? Musical? Your guess is a good as any.
67	* HateSink: Both Principal Dunbar and Chuck, contrasting to [[AntiVillain Reverend Moore]]. Dunbar is the [[SmugSnake slimy but ultimately ineffectual]] sort, while Chuck is [[DomesticAbuser legitimately dangerous]] in his own right.
68	* HeelFaceTurn: Reverend Moore starts going through this when Ren, attempting to get the ban on dancing repealed, quotes several Bible verses that are supportive of dancing. Reverend Moore is moved by Ren's speech, but the repeal fails anyway because the city council votes against him.
69	* HighSchoolDance: The film ends with the prom.
70	* ICantDance: When Willard reveals to Ren that he cannot dance, the latter challenges him to a TrainingMontage of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8S3OVzof8s dance practice]].
71	* InformedAttractiveness: Early on, one of the town girls about Ren: Are you blind? He is gorgeous!
72	* IOwnThisTown: The no-dancing law doesn't get repealed because Reverend Moore already had enough City Council voters in his back pocket.
73	* LoopholeAbuse: Although Ren couldn't overturn the dancing ban, he is able to find a place just outside of town limits where a dance can take place.
74	* MeaningfulName: Ariel. [[ShoutOut/ToShakespeare The spirit from]] ''Theatre/TheTempest'' who longs for freedom. (This was five years before the [[SmallReferencePools more readily available]] [[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989 use of the name]].)
75	* MissingMom: In the 2011 remake, Ren's mother died of cancer, resulting in Ren moving to Beaumont.
76	* MoodWhiplash: The 2011 remake starts off with kids at a party having a blast dancing to Music/KennyLoggins' "Footloose" with Ariel's brother, Bobby and his friends leaving for the night. [[spoiler: They're still listening to the song on the stereo enjoying themselves before Bobby is momentarily distracted veering onto the wrong side of the road and getting plowed by an oncoming semi-truck killing everyone inside. The song cuts off at the moment of impact just to let the audience register what they just saw.]]
77	* MoralGuardians: The Reverend is acting as one of these but ends up being a [[CulturePolice Culture Cop]]
78	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Perhaps part of the reason Reverend Moore was willing to listen to Ren after the book-burning incident: he finally realized that the repressive trends that he'd started and approved of had gone too far. He also gets this when he slaps Ariel in anger.
79	* TheNewRockAndRoll: Dancing is forbidden and the Reverend preaches against the evils of rock music. All because of a fatal car crash that happened five years ago.
80	* NoMusicAllowed: The untimely death of his son leads Reverend Shaw Moore to believe that music is to blame and convince the City Council to ban it throughout the entire town. The newcomer Ren soon upends this trope.
81	* PacManFever: The music-and-dance montage at the drive-in abruptly ends when Rev. Moore presses the stop button on the blaring boombox. Everyone stops celebrating and bows their heads in shame, including the reverend's daughter, Ariel, and the sound of Pac Man dying can be heard from the arcade.
82	* ParentalObliviousness: Rev. Moore is very guilty of this, as he thinks that Ariel only began misbehaving when Ren came to town, somehow managing to overlook the fact that she's been acting like this ever since her brother died.
83	* PetTheDog: The Reverend has several moments to show that he isn't ''completely'' close-minded. The most memorable might be when he stops a group of citizens from burning books, or when he sits down to actually talk to Ren about their respective losses after the town meeting. The most touching is his reunion with Vi at the close.
84	* PopCulturalOsmosisFailure: Willard doesn't know ''Music/ThePolice'' or ''Music/MenAtWork''.
85	* PosthumousCharacter: Ariel's brother Bobby. Averted in the remake, where the accident that kills him is in the first scene.
86	* ThePowerOfRock: Played straight.
87	* PreachersKid: Ariel's standing on moving pickup trucks and [[DeathSeeker answering the train]] is likely far from what her father had in mind for her. To say nothing of [[DomesticAbuser Chuck]].
88	* RealityIsUnrealistic: It's based on an actual 80's news story. The movie nods to this when Willard tells Ren about states with similar laws to Beaumont.
89	* RepeatCut: Towards the end of Ren's AngryDance, there is a take of him jumping high up in the air which is repeated five times.
90	* RepeatWhatYouJustSaid: Willard jokingly suggests starting a nightclub in the church which gives Ren his EurekaMoment about the dance.
91	* RippedFromTheHeadlines: See above.
92	* RuleAbidingRebel: Ren actually ''does'' try to follow the rules most of the time (as restrictive as they may be) but is still labeled a rebel simply because he's from out of town. The labeling eventually backfires on the town, because of the constant ostracism by the townsfolk, Ariel's suicidal obsession with his supposed wild behavior, and the actual ne'er-do-wells of the town (that have somehow been conveniently ignored by the townsfolk, especially in favor of Ren) framing him as the bad influence the town sees him as are what actually spur Ren to finally do something about it. Had he been left alone, he would have stayed out of everybody's way like he was planning to.
93	* SettingUpdate: The remake takes place in modern times, naturally. It also introduces a tiny bit of a problem that Creator/RogerEbert noted in his review. Namely, that while Moore, in 1984, could conceivably have grown up without rock music really being a part of his life (and thus scapegoat it), this would be practically impossible in 2011, other than his being raised to be ''much'' more of a religious fundamentalist than he is.
94	* ShamingTheMob: From Reverend Moore: "Satan is not in these books! He's in here! He's in your hearts. Go on home, all of you. Go and sit in judgment on yourselves."
95	* SoundtrackDissonance: The opening credits of the original film play over a montage of people's feet dancing. The opening credits of the remake play over the flashback of the events that led to the car crash that killed several teens and caused the anti-music edict to be made. The song "Footloose" plays over both of them.
96	* SpontaneousChoreography: During the climatic HighSchoolDance, where everyone can dance despite being from a town where dancing is illegal.
97	* StrictParentsMakeSneakyKids: Shaw with Ariel.
98	* SuspiciouslySpecificSermon: Two of them. One early on establishing the town elders' opposition to rock 'n' roll, and the change of heart one near the end of the film.
99	* ThereIsNoHigherCourt: The Movie would be much less entertaining if it had been about Judicial review though.
100	* TooDumbToLive: Subverted. Early on in the movie, Ariel stands in between two trucks as they speed down the highway, one foot inside each window. It's meant to paint her as wild and rebellious but looks more suicidally reckless. It's implied that it might actually be.
101	* TownWithADarkSecret: Ren doesn't get told immediately why dancing is outlawed and has to do some asking around to find out. Even then, he doesn't find out until much later that one of the car accident victims was Ariel's older brother. The remake actually tells us from the beginning.
102	* TrainingMontage: We are shown how Willard learns to dance under Ren's supervision.
103	* UntrustingCommunity: The entire town is suspicious of Ren because he's from Chicago. Many locals go out of their way to try to prove that Ren is a troublemaker despite that he has the best of intentions. In the end, he helps the town move on from the past by setting up a dance and convincing the Reverend to lighten up.
104	-->'''Ren''': It's like something's choking everybody. Only they don't know they're choking.
105	** It should be noted that had he been simply left alone, Ren would not have done anything, and would have acclimated to the town, learning how to keep his city-based habits in check. By being the UntrustingCommunity, they basically pushed Ren far enough to do something about their way of life and thinking.
106	* VillainyFreeVillain: Shaw can be considered this. Sure he's a strict father and preacher, but he does genuinely love his family and his congregation, and he is willing to hear Ren out when he is trying to make himself heard. He also draws the line at the townspeople's more extreme attitudes. By contrast, Chuck, who is a minor antagonist, is the one who gets the more despicable traits, especially toward the third act.
107	* WellIntentionedExtremist: Reverend Moore.
108	* WhamShot: During the GameOfChicken Ren keeps nearly bailing out, but stopping at the last moment as everyone watches intently. [[spoiler: then the camera shows that his shoelace is caught. He ''can't'' get out, doesn't know the tractor well enough to stop it and can't be heard over the rumbling engines as he and Chuck get closer to each other. Fortunately, Chuck panics and goes off the road first]].
109	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Amy and Sarah are in only a couple of scenes before they're completely gone for the rest of the movie.
110	* WhosOnFirst: When Ren asks Willard about his musical tastes.
111	-->'''Ren:''' You like Music/MenAtWork?\
112	'''Willard:''' Which man?\
113	'''Ren:''' Men at Work.\
114	'''Willard:''' Well where do they work?\
115	'''Ren:''' No, they don't, they're a music group.\
116	'''Willard:''' Well what do they call themselves?\
117	'''Ren:''' Oh no! What about Music/ThePolice?\
118	'''Willard:''' What about 'em?\
119	'''Ren:''' You ever heard them?\
120	'''Willard:''' No, but I seen them.\
121	'''Ren:''' Where, in concert?\
122	'''Willard:''' No, behind you.
123	* WouldHitAGirl:
124	** Chuck is quite willing to hit Ariel.
125	** Reverend Moore slaps his daughter in a rage but he later reveals it to be the first time he's ever done such a thing.
126	* WhyWeCantHaveNiceThings: Dancing is banned in town because the local preacher's son was killed in an accident coming back from a dance.
127
128	!!The Musical contains examples of:
129	* AdaptationExpansion: Understandably, the musical has about twice as many songs as the movie, along with several new characters.
130	* AndADietCoke: Verbatim when Wendy Jo orders food at the Burger Blast.
131	* BeingWatched: "Somebody's Eyes" provides this in spades.
132	--> "If you've ever had anything to hide
133	--> Think twice before you step outside."
134	* CanonForeigner: Urleen (friend of Ariel, Rusty and Wendy Jo), Jeter, Garvin, and Bickle (Willard's buddies), Lyle (a second sidekick for Chuck), a couple of named characters at the dance palace, Betty Blast...
135	* TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes: Referenced by Ren, when the Reverend comments that he's enforced a curfew for all the teenagers in town, but can't get Ariel to follow it:
136	--> "Well, you know what they say, it's always the shoemaker's kids that go barefoot."
137	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: given the nature of [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Willard's mama's]] [[CaptainObvious advice]], it's quite likely that the chorus of "Mama Says" - "once you drive up a mountain, you can't back down" - is much more literal than Willard and Ren interpret it to be.
138	* CrisisOfFaith:
139	** Reverend Moore's song "Heaven Help Me!".
140	** As well as his Act Two song, "I Confess," sadly cut from the most recent revision. The chorus does sometimes appear halfway through his sermon
141	* DecompositeCharacter: The school principal, Roger Dunbar, is split into two different characters in the musical: Principal Harry Clark and Coach Roger Dunbar.
142	* DistinctionWithoutADifference: When Willard is voicing his concerns about how Rea plans to speak on behalf of dancing.
143	--> '''Willard:''' Now Ren, we're not saying your speech is bad, it's just that it's no good."
144	* EverytownAmerica: Beaumont is just normal small Midwest town (Expect that if you play Music/HueyLewisAndTheNews in the street, prepare to be ganged on by a bunch of [[{{TheFundamentalist}} religious nuts]] and some of the [[{{PoliceBrutality}} local cops]])
145	* FunnyBackgroundEvent: During some productions, during ''Mama Says'' after Willard sings "Mama says don't use a toaster while standing in the shower. Now who can argue with that?", one of Willard' buddies [[TooDumbToLive starts to raise his hand and stand up]] before being yanked down by another buddy.
146	* GreekChorus: Rusty and her cohorts Urleen and Wendy Jo provide some observations about the town and its people in song lyrics.
147	* HehHehYouSaidX: [[ItMakesSenseInContext "Party in their pants."]]
148	* ICantDance: Willard's big secret, remedied in "Let's Hear It For the Boy!"
149	* IronicEcho: "Let the Lord hear your voices!"
150	* MundaneMadeAwesome: The Act I closer song "I'm Free/Heaven Help Me", a take on "I'm Free (Heaven Helps The Man)" from the original soundtrack. It's such an epic song of rockin' rebellion (intercut with reporting on the said rebellion by Reverend Shaw, pleading with his God to intervene) that you kind of forget that all they want to do is ''have a dance party.''
151	* SafeDrivingAesop: Averted in that the ban on dancing is because of five teenagers dying in a car accident when returning from a dance club drunk, but the message is that kids should be allowed to express themselves.
152	* ScreenToStageAdaptation: Let's face it. It was only a matter of time.
153	* SidekickSong: ''Both'' Ariel's and Ren's sidekicks get songs. Rusty has "Let's Hear It For the Boy" (and to a lesser extent "Somebody's Eyes") while Willard has "Mama Says."
154	* SmallTownBoredom: As in the film, Ariel and a lot of the other kids feel stifled in Beaumont and Ren isn't that happy to first come there from the city.
155	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Chuck, Ariel's abusive boyfriend, beats her up off-stage halfway through Act Two [[KarmaHoudini and is never seen or heard from again.]]
156	* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: "Beaumont? ''Where the hell is Beaumont?"''

Context Film / Footloose