Best Movie of the Summer?

Hairspray - Hairspray accomplishes what too few summer movies do - namely entertain while sending a message. This remake of the 1988 film and the 2003 Broadway musical is quite simply fun and uplifting. Admittedly, I have a long built-in bias for musicals (there is just something about the ability of any crowd to burst into coordinated song and dance). The appeal is clear, there are many things that are said better with song. However, what marks Hairspray's success is its balancing act. Within the context of bubble-gum songs and the angst of teenage actors the movie addresses the pure racism of the 1960s and the purity of youth to save society. As revisionists attempt to paint this era as one of innocence and prosperity, we are reminded it was a fictional innocence that masked the ugly nature of racism. The message is simple - and sadly still needed - acceptance and tolerance. And who leads this crusade? Teenagers. Why? Because they still possess a combination of naivete and idealism. Hairspray succeeds where Dreamgirls and Chicago failed by simply sending a serious message while not taking itself too seriously. Grade: A-