Tap

It's strange and a bit sad to watch this movie now. Earlier this week the world heard that dancer/singer/actor Gregory Hines had passed on at the age of 57. In his obituary there was a comment that, while multi- talented, Hines always considered himself first and foremost, a dancer. This movie from the late 80s shows that to be true in all it's wonderful glory.Possible Spoilers.....The movie opens on a man in a cell. The darkness surrounds him and he looks pained. Slowly he begins to listen to the noise around him. Before you know it the man in on his feet and dancing to the rhythms and sounds of the life in prison. The dance is one of pain but also as it goes forth brings out relaxation as anger is spent but most importantly the man begins to feel joy. Jump forward to the man, Max Washington (Gregory Hines) being released on paroll. He has just spent a few years in Sing Sing. Originally he was sentenced for Grand Theft but time was added on for Assault & Battery of a prison guard.Max returns to his old neighborhood and takes a hotel room across from a run down building which houses the "Sunny Side of the Street" tap dance studio. As time goes on we learn that was his father's studio but first you see the various classes taught on the first two levels by an old love interest, Amy (Suzzane Douglas) and her son Lewis (Savion Glover). The true joy of the building is the third floor where the old "Hoofer's" reside. Here we find a virtual who's who of the tap dance world with many of the old masters portraying themselves and of course Sammy Davis, Jr. playing Little Mo.Max is not originally totally welcomed back by everyone except for Lewis who looks up to Max as a father, which strongly portrays some of the real life feelings that occurred between Hines and Glover, and Little Mo who has some big ideas of how to get the rock and roll world interested in the tap world. Unfortunately for Mo, Max has a chip on his shoulder regarding the life his father led and the lack of finances that he grew up with. It seems that Max has another family, one in which Max was a first rate second-story man...until the night he got caught and ended in jail.The movie is one of conflict between the worlds of the alleged easy and plentiful money and the hard work, no glory, no money world of music. As much as Max hates it this is the world that is within him and continues to draw him back time and time again.Hines was a supremely talented man. He could act, he could sing, and man he could dance like no other. He expressed himself in so many ways that it almost didn't seem fair to the rest of us. Here his character of Max is full of rage and anger. He bears a lifetime of resentment at what he perceived his father's life to have been worth and he knows what he has to do to make it better. The anger is almost palpable as it floats off his body. The look in his eyes and the set of his jaws tells people that he isn't going to take any more. That same rage appears at first in his dance. He doesn't just lightly dance on the floor a la Fred Astaire. He pounds the floor and lets it feel his frustration. He attacks it with percussive beats and syncopated rhythms that make the listeners instantly step back...but then the joy appears. First it come in the way he dives across the floor and moves free for all the world and then it reaches Hines eye's and you know at that moment that all will be well for this man.The dance sequences alone in this movie are worth sitting through. Hines has most of them starting with the dance inside the jail cell but there are also moments such as the instruction at the construction site as well as the end sequence when he is working with the rock band that are almost hard to sit through. For long time fans of the genre, the "Challenge" segment is a treat as all the old greats get out and show just why they made the business what it was. Also, there is a brief flash of the style from Savion Glover's character at one moment that shows why he was a star at such a young age and gives hints as to his future success with Bring in the Noise, Bring in the Funk!The world has lost a great talent this week. But movies like this and Bojangles will be around for years to come and will allow fans to share one last time the joy of seeing a true talent at work in his field.

Still a great movie and full of great tap dance legends and great actors.

Great

I had the privilige to see this film, soon after Gregory Hines succumbed to cancer at age 57. There is a good reason why "Tap" is considered one of the best films Hines ever starred in. It showcases his talent and innovation as a truly masterful tap dance and showman. From the very beginning of the film, where we see him dancing freestyle in his prison cell, you know that this is no ordinary dance film. The power of this film lies in one of its central themes--that music exsists all around us. Whether you are walking down the street, listening to construction workers driling holes in the concrete, or just tapping on any hard surface, rhythm is universal.This story is centered on Max Washington (Gregory Hines), a truly great tap dancer who is serving time in Sing Sing for armed robbery. In spite of his troubled past, he also left behind a tap dance community, for whom he left a great impression, and also became a family unit for him. Particularly, he left behind his former dance partner (Suzanne Douglas) and her son (a young Savion Glover--let me tell you, he could truly move even back then), for whom he was something of a surrogate father. What's more, the older dance community (which includes the late, great Sammy Davis Jr.) is still engaging in "cutting challenges," even though most of them are in their seventies. But, like fine wine, they only have improved with age.This is a great, period piece from the eighties, that combines Hines' infectious talent with a rock n' roll backdrop. Though, this might sound kind of dated, it really isn't and will leave you wanting more......This film ends way too soon, and it would be great to see what dance numbers were left on the cutting room floor.

Great fast transaction. Good movie. Sharp sound.

II saw this movie many years ago and realized if these old guys could still tap than I probably could too and went back to tap class after 35 years. I bought this movie to show my senior tap class and the inspiration that started me tap dancing again.

Totally sappy plot line. The entire Act 1 was devoted to "poor me" Max (Gregory Hines).His situation was all of his own making. As he refused to address it, it was hard to root for him.Anyway, the real purpose of the movie was to get the great, old men of the tap dancing world, together and have them show their stuff.Which was awesome.It's also exciting to watch Gregory dance; his advanced tap skills are stunning.It looks like he slouches a lot, or maybe it's an echo of the off-handed way Fred Astaire often made his routines look improvised.Wish Savion Glover got more screen time than just the brief scene of him teaching a tap dance class, and the few other bits he got to do.I couldn't get enough of Sammy Davis Jr's acting, and doing a little bit of tap.DemianSweet Corn Productions

I liked the fact that the item was in very good condition and the price was very reasonable