Footloose

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1:26

Footloose

PG

Released Feb 17, 1984

1h 47m

Drama

Music

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

55%

Tomatometer

47 Reviews

71%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Moving in from Chicago, newcomer Ren McCormack (Kevin Bacon) is in shock when he discovers the small Midwestern town he now calls home has made dancing and rock music illegal. As he struggles to fit in, Ren faces an uphill battle to change things. With the help of his new friend, Willard Hewitt (Christopher Penn), and defiant teen Ariel Moore (Lori Singer), he might loosen up this conservative town. But Ariel's influential father, Reverend Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), stands in the way.

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Critics Consensus

There's not much dancing, but what's there is great. The rest of the time, Footloose is a nice hunk of trashy teenage cheese.

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Wendy Ide

Times (UK)

It’s very, very silly, but, ahem, kind of fun.

Jun 30, 2023

Full Review

Kathleen Carroll

New York Daily News

"Footloose" turns out to be a sort of Boy Scout version of "Flashdance," a carefully toned-down, overly respectable piece of schmaltz ...

Rated: 2.5/4

Feb 17, 2016

Full Review

Variety Staff

Variety

Essential to the result is young Kevin Bacon, superb in the lead part.

Feb 12, 2008

Full Review

Douglas Davidson

Elements of Madness

One of the great things about revisiting a film after any period of time is discovery: new details, new concepts, even new theories. In the case of FOOTLOOSE ... there comes multiple discoveries ...

Feb 13, 2024

Full Review

Allison Rose

FlickDirect

For those of us that remember when Footloose came out, this release is a walk down memory lane and offers a slight improvement from previously released version.

Rated: 4/5

Feb 12, 2024

Full Review

Sean Collier

Box Office Prophets

While Footloose is fun, it's not very good. Its story is a dud

Rated: 5/10

Aug 13, 2021

Full Review

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RICHARD H

i saw it years ago and wanted to compare it to the newer version

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

08/19/24

Full Review

Paul Aaron

Always loved the original. Made me feel like a teen again.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/25/23

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Joshua Coleman

This movie still holds up 40 years later. Only annoying thing is that Fathom films start exactly on time and most people anticipate trailers so more then half the audience walked in late to the movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/13/23

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mark g

Yikes, this was terrible. So corny and unrealistic. Seriously, one of the most painfully bad movies ever.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

10/01/24

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Filip S

I always wanted to see this classic, and when I finally did, it did not disappoint. It's a classic feel good film with likeable characters and has this great 1980's soundtrack with all the well-known hits you expect from a film like this. Kevin Bacon was probably my reason for watching it, although the other characters are very intruiging as well. If you want to escape the daily misery of life for an hour or two, than this will be your ultimate cheesy way of doing so! Impossible keeping your feet still with this one, but yet, that's probably why it's called "Footloose"!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

09/02/24

Full Review

Terry M

Completely overrated. Interesting only because it reflects the year 1984. It is so old and recognizable. The music is horrible and the dancing is so cheesy it's embarrassing. Kevin Bacon's hair and Chris Penn's performance are the best parts of the film. That's kind of sad. I can see why Kevin Bacon became a big star though because he's really magnetic and macho. I thought the lead actress was too rebellious to be likeable and she had no real chemistry with Kevin Bacon. Also she was so flat chested that she's not attractive. The filmmaker should have hid her breasts better and should not have exposed this fact. The best part of the movie is when Kevin Bacon's character is dancing by himself in the middle of the night outside of his car and he's doing all these grandiose gymnastic moves. That's the only scene that was exciting and really cool. John Lithgow's performance is good as always though. He never fails to deliver.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

08/26/24

Full Review

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Herbert Ross

Director

Kevin Bacon

Ren McCormack

Lori Singer

Ariel Moore

John Lithgow

Reverend Shaw Moore

Dianne Wiest

Vi Moore

Chris Penn

Willard Hewitt

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Footloose: Official Clip - Dancing At The Mill

2:45

Footloose: Official Clip - Let's Dance!

2:48

Footloose: Official Clip - Screaming at the Train

1:50

Footloose: Official Clip - Footloose Fight

2:32

Footloose: Official Clip - Let’s Hear It For the Boy

3:00

Footloose: Official Clip - Ren & Ariel Kiss

2:31

Footloose: Official Clip - The Parking Lot Fight

1:58

Footloose: Official Clip - A Time to Dance

2:51

Footloose: Official Clip - Hero Tractor Chicken

2:38

Footloose: Official Clip - Dancing at the Drive-in

2:17

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Footloose: Trailer 1

1:26

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Synopsis

Moving in from Chicago, newcomer Ren McCormack (Kevin Bacon) is in shock when he discovers the small Midwestern town he now calls home has made dancing and rock music illegal. As he struggles to fit in, Ren faces an uphill battle to change things. With the help of his new friend, Willard Hewitt (Christopher Penn), and defiant teen Ariel Moore (Lori Singer), he might loosen up this conservative town. But Ariel's influential father, Reverend Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), stands in the way.

Director: Herbert Ross
Producer: Lewis J. Rachmil, Craig Zadan
Screenwriter: Dean Pitchford
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures, IndieProd, Phoenix Pictures
Rating: PG
Genre: Drama, Music, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 17, 1984, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2013
Runtime: 1h 47m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Flat (1.85:1)

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