Strictly Ballroom
Directed by	Baz Luhrmann
Written by	Baz Luhrmann Andrew Bovell Craig Pearce
Starring	Paul Mercurio Tara Morice Bill Hunter Pat Thomson
Music by	David Hirschfelder
Cinematography	Steve Mason
Distributed by	Miramax Films
Release date(s)	1992
Running time	94 minutes
Country	Australia
Language	English
IMDb profile

Strictly Ballroom is the name of a 1986 play and its 1992 film adaptation. Both play and film were written by Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce. The film was directed by Luhrmann. Image File history File links StrictlyBallroom. ... Baz Luhrmann (born Mark Anthony Luhrmann on September 17, 1962) is an Oscar-nominated Australian film director. ... Baz Luhrmann (born Mark Anthony Luhrmann on September 17, 1962) is an Oscar-nominated Australian film director. ... Craig Pearce is an Australian actor and writer, who co-wrote the play Strictly Ballroom and the screenplay of the movie adaptation with Baz Luhrmann, wrote the screenplay for the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet, and co-wrote the 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, also with Baz Luhrmann. ... Paul Joseph Mercurio (born March 31, 1963) is an Australian actor and dancer who was the star of Baz Luhrmanns, Strictly Ballroom (1992). ... Tara Morice (born in Hobart, Tasmania) is an Australian actress, singer, and dancer. ... Bill Hunter (born February 27, 1940) is one of Australias acting legends, having worked with almost every notable Australian director and actor of the last thirty years - evidence of his genuine popularity amongst the public and acting fraternity alike. ... Steve Mason (b. ... Miramax Films is a film production and distribution brand that was a Big Ten film motion picture distribution and production company headquartered in New York City before being bought out by The Walt Disney Company. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... Baz Luhrmann (born Mark Anthony Luhrmann on September 17, 1962) is an Oscar-nominated Australian film director. ... Craig Pearce is an Australian actor and writer, who co-wrote the play Strictly Ballroom and the screenplay of the movie adaptation with Baz Luhrmann, wrote the screenplay for the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet, and co-wrote the 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, also with Baz Luhrmann. ...

Plot

Strictly Ballroom is a romantic comedy telling the story of an Australian ballroom dancer, Scott Hastings. Having come from a family with a history of ballroom dancing, Scott has been training since childhood and has become very proficient. However, he encounters considerable resistance when he tries to dance his own steps in preference to the more traditional ballroom moves. His dancing partner Liz leaves him, and he eventually finds a new dancing partner, and love, with the plain and ordinary dancing student Fran, who takes lessons from Scott's mother, with an ugly duckling transformation. At the Pan-Pacific Grand Prix, it is discovered that the competition has been fixed by Barry Fife, chariman of the Australian Dancing Federation. They are disqualified, but dance anyway, and practically bring down the house dancing the Paso Doble, which they have learned from Fran's father and grandmother. In the end, it is not revealed whether Scott and Fran win or lose, as in the story, that is not an important factor. A sub-plot involves Scott's discovery of his parents' hidden past. Romantic comedy films are a sub-genre of comedy films as well as of romance films. ... Gaskell Ball Ballroom dance, refers collectively to a set of partner dances, which originated in the Western world and are now enjoyed both socially and competitively around the globe. ... Paso Doble is a lively Spanish style of dance in duple meter that was developed in France. ...

Style

The film plays with clichés and stereotypes, mocking and embracing them at the same time. Luhrmann has also commented that the film revolves around stories similar to David and Goliath, Abby the Ballerina, Cinderella and The Ugly Duckling, though whether he was merely commenting on the stories' similarities to the plotlines of the movie, or stating that the film was based on the stories, is unclear! To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... For the term used in its original printing sense, see etymology below. ... David faces Goliath in single combat. ... Gustave Dorés illustration for Cendrillon For other uses, see Cinderella (disambiguation). ... The Ugly Duckling (Danish: Den grimme ælling) is a classic-contemporary story by Hans Christian Andersen about a duckling, notably larger, clumsier and uglier than the other ducklings in his brood. ...

Original play

The film was an adaptation of an original short play of the same name created by Luhrmann and first staged in 1986. At the end of 1988, Luhrmann was approached by producer Tristram Miall to transform his play into a movie. 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Luhrmann told Playbill that he would revive the play onstage sometime in 2005, but this never happened. The cover of the Playbill issue about The Producers. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Awards

Strictly Ballroom was a huge hit at the Cannes Film Festival, winning the Prix de Jeunesse award. It was sought after by distributors from across the world. Immediately after its showing at Cannes, it was sold to 86 countries for more than $10 million. It has been placed as the film option on the British and Irish school leaving examinations^{[citation needed]} for English, alongside such classics as On the Waterfront and Ten Little Indians. Cannes Film Festival logo. ... On the Waterfront is an American 1954 film about mob violence and corruption among longshoremen, and it has become a standard of its kind. ... The 1945 film version, showing (left to right) Barry Fitzgerald, June Duprez and Walter Huston Ten Little Niggers (also known as Ten Little Indians and And Then There Were None) is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie, first published in England in 1939. ...

Cast

• Paul Mercurio — Scott Hastings
• Tara Morice — Fran
• Bill Hunter — Barry Fife
• Pat Thomson — Shirley Hastings
• Gia Carides — Liz Holt
• Peter Whitford — Les Kendall
• Barry Otto — Doug Hastings
• John Hannan — Ken Railings
• Sonia Kruger — Tina Sparkle
• Pip Mushin — Wayne Burns

Paul Joseph Mercurio (born March 31, 1963) is an Australian actor and dancer who was the star of Baz Luhrmanns, Strictly Ballroom (1992). ... Tara Morice (born in Hobart, Tasmania) is an Australian actress, singer, and dancer. ... Bill Hunter (born February 27, 1940) is one of Australias acting legends, having worked with almost every notable Australian director and actor of the last thirty years - evidence of his genuine popularity amongst the public and acting fraternity alike. ... Gia Carides (born June 7, 1964 in Sydney, Australia) is a Greek-Australian actress. ... Barry Otto is an Australian actor on both stage and film and the father of actress Miranda Otto. ... Sonia Kruger is an amazingly talented Australian television legend. ...

Music

Among the songs featured on the soundtrack are:

• "The Blue Danube" by "Johann Strauss II"
• New versions of "Love Is In The Air" (The Ballroom Mix) and "Standing In The Rain" by John Paul Young
• A cover version of John Paul Young's "Yesterday's Hero" by Ignatius Jones
• "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" by Doris Day
• A cover version of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" by Mark Williams and Tara Morice

The Blue Danube is the common English title of An der schönen blauen Donau op. ... Johann Strauss II The Waltz King coming to life in the Stadtpark, Vienna Johann Strauss II (German: Johann Strauß (Sohn), Johann Strauss (son); in English also Johann Strauss the Younger, Johann Strauss Jr. ... John Paul Young John Paul Young (June 21, 1950–) is an Australian singer. ... In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ... Ignatius Jones is an Australian actor and former lead singer of punk cabaret band Jimmy And The Boys. ... Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps is a popular song. ... Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff, known as Doris Day (born April 3, 1924), is an American singer, actress, and animal welfare advocate. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Time After Time was the second commercially released solo single by singer Cyndi Lauper. ... Tara Morice (born in Hobart, Tasmania) is an Australian actress, singer, and dancer. ...

External links

• Strictly Ballroom at the Internet Movie Database
• Narrative Structure and Social Meaning: Strictly Ballroom and Dead Heart, Academic study of the film

Cinema of Australia

Film chronology: 1890s-1930s • 1940s-1970s • 1980s • 1990s • 2000s Categories: Actors • Directors • Films A-Z • Cinematographers • Composers • Editors • Producers • Screenwriters The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about motion pictures, actors, movie stars, TV shows, TV stars, production crew personnel, movie pictures, cast, crew as well as video games. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Ned Kelly depicted in the first Australian feature-length narrative film The cinema of Australia has a long history and has produced many internationally-recognized films, actors and filmmakers. ...