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| Hairspray (Widescreen Edition) | 
 enlarge | Director: Adam Shankman
Actors: John Travolta, Michelle Pffeifer, Queen Latifah, Zac Efron, Christopher Walken
Studio: New Line Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.98
Buy Used: $2.85
You Save: $17.13 (86%)
New (65) Used (81) Collectible (2) from $2.85
Avg. Customer Rating:  273 reviews
Sales Rank: 732
Format: Ac-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dvd-video, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 117
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: TRNDN11212D
UPC: 794043112126
EAN: 0794043112126
ASIN: B000W4KT6E
Theatrical Release Date: July 20, 2007
Release Date: November 20, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 It left me smiling! September 23, 2007
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
I'm 63...and my 14 year old granddaughter told me Thursday night to see this movie. I'm sorry I waited so long. I smiled all the way through the movie and can't wait for it to come out on DVD. The nonstop, upbeat music and talented stars took me back to the 60's...and Grease! (I smiled all the way through it, too!) Travolta has always been a great dancer, but to do it gracefully hauling around Edna's extra weight was a sight to see. The fresh new faces were fun and Pfeiffer's thin frame was an excellent spoil for Blonski and a surprisngly svelte Queen Latifah. All I can say is Fun, Fun, Fun!!!
A fun musical everyone will love September 14, 2007
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
When I first heard that Hairspray was going to be made into a movie, I must admit that I was not sure if it would do very well. I am SO glad that I was wrong.
First off, the casting is amazing! Newcomer Nikki Blonsky (Tracy) completely steals the show with her amazing voice and dancing. She is going to go far! I love how she portrayed the character of Tracy in every aspect.
I was beyond shocked when I heard that Christopher Walken...the same actor that was in Sleepy Hollow, was in this. I had no idea that he was a triple threat! But he really does a great job as Tracy's father Wilber. He's so funny and sweet...a complete 180 from the characters he normally plays.
Michelle Pheiffer (Velma von Tussle) was wonderful as the 'villain.' She normally does not play the "mean" person in movies yet like Walken, she pulled it off really well. I knew that she would be able to sing and dance, having seen the movie Grease 2. Brittany Snow (Amber von Tussle) was wonderful as well; she fit the role to a "T"!
Current teen idol Zac Efron (Link Larken) surprised me here. I knew he could dance since I saw High School Musical, but I know he didn't sing (in the first movie anyway). Yet he sang here and in my opinion, did an outstanding job. I think his hair was a bit overdone though...he looked like he had just come out of Grease, haha. But overall, he was a good choice for the part.
Queen Latifah...well she's fabulous, as ususal. After seeing Chicago, I knew that she was the only person who could play Motormouth Maybelle as she did.
All right, I saved the best for last...John Travolta. Oh my goodness!!! He was absolutely AMAZING!!!! Nearly everyone knows that he can sing, dance and of course act, but who knew that he could pull off playing a 300 pound woman so darn well? I sure didn't expect him to. Again, I'm glad I was wrong. As Edna, he's (she's) so sweet and really makes you believe that he's a woman. Very well done.
I love the general theme of the movie as well. It was very well structured and portrays 1962 Baltimore quite well. I like how it touched on the subject of racism and segregation but at the same time the director and producers didn't over do it and make it the MAIN theme of the movie. The message of the movie was still there: that you can do anything if you try.
This is definitely a movie musical that I am going to purchase when it becomes available. Anyone who loves musicals will love this movie.
Good Hair September 4, 2007
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
Having not watched either the 1988 original or the Broadway version of Hairspray, I am enthralled by the 2007 update. The casting was excellent.
Michelle Pfeiffer is the evil station manager Velma Von Tussle whose only intention is to keep her teenage daughter in the limelight as the ultimate Miss Teenage Hairspray. Her foxy sultriness and impeccable aura makes her role shine. John Travolta in his fat suit and much hyped about gender-bending role as Edna Turnblad is anything but hilarious. While he tries to mimic the voice of a middle-aged obese woman who is disconnected from society, it's really his (or her) antics that lights up the screen. Christopher Walken as Wilbur Turnblad is incredibly affectionate yet deadpan at times though he delivers that fatherly and husband instincts with great aplomb. Queen Latifah as the over-the-top Motormouth Maybelle fights to keep her black cast on the show with excellent rendition of songs especially the tearjerker I Know Where I've Been.
In the end, the two unbelievable stars of Hairspray must be newcomer Nikki Blonsky and High School Musical Zac Efron who play Tracy Wilbur and Link Larkin respectively. Blonsky plays the fervent show chaser who aspires to be part of the cast with great fervor and becomes an accidental anti-racism activist while Efron shakes off his childish shadow by playing a charming TV character. The unlikely romance between Tracy and Link unfolds with much realism onscreen as their chemistry is unmistakable.
In Hairspray, the acting is great and the music is good. The New Girl in Town", "Big, Blonde and Beautiful" (Reprise), and "Come So Far (Got So Far to Go)" are the three songs new to this version of Hairspray.
The musical is highly entertaining and celebratory despite some minor flaws. (A)
A wire-to-wire, upbeat, marathon that leaves you smiles from start to finish... September 2, 2007
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
Despite being relatively new to the musicals, I found the 1960's integration themed Hairspray to be quite enjoyable and entertaining. A wire-to-wire, upbeat, marathon that leaves you smiles from start to finish. Hairspray's sets, transition, and cinematography were all top notch.
The casting crew of Tina Gerussi, Richard Hicks, and David Rubin also did a magnificent job signing up John Travolta (as the recluse mother Edna Turnblad); Christopher Walken (as the naive Wilbur Turnblad); Michelle Pfeiffer (as the ruthless and cunning Station Manager); James Marsden (as the colorful TV Host Corny Collins); Queen Latifah (as Motormouth Maybelle); and newcomer Nikki Blonsky (as the lead, Tracy Turnblad) in their respective roles.
If you were a big fan of the 2002 Hairspray Broadway Musical, you wouldn't want to miss its most recently cinematic interpretation to date!
"You can't stop the beat." August 31, 2007
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Most of us past a certain age remember the great musical comedies of yesteryear. They were tuneful and amusing, and moviegoers would leave the theater with smiles on their faces. For a brief moment, that era has returned with the opening of "Hairspray," directed by Adam Shankman. The story centers on pretty, plus-sized Tracy Turnblad, played with delightful elan by the effervescent Nikki Blonsky. Tracy, who lives in Baltimore in 1962, has an impossible dream. She wants to dance on the Corny Collins show, a schlock American Bandstand clone. Although Tracy has talent, she is not as photogenic as the plastic blondes and brunettes with hourglass figures who cavort across the stage on Corny's show. There is also a subplot dealing with the shunting aside of African-Americans in the media and in American society as a whole. When Tracy is repeatedly sent to detention, she befriends a lively group of African-American teenagers who teach her some new moves and open her eyes to a world she scarcely knew existed. Tracy eventually lends her support to a grass-roots movement to make the public aware that times are changing and integration is the wave of the future.
Shankman handles his lively and energetic cast perfectly and the actors work together seamlessly. John Travolta stands out in more ways than one. He portrays Tracy's very large mother, Edna Turnblad, a shy laundress who has not left her home in years. She is deeply ashamed of her appearance and she wants to keep Tracy from suffering as she has for so long. Travolta inhabits the role completely; he is convincing and poignant, and he sings and dances up a storm. Christopher Walken is Tracy's dad, Wilbur, an unassuming gag shop owner who wants his beloved only child to follow her dreams. Michelle Pfeiffer plays a stock villainess, Velma Von Tussle, with appropriate nastiness, and Queen Latifah, as always, is saucy and sassy as the outspoken Motormouth Maybelle. Allison Janney is a hoot in a cameo rule as Prudy Pingleton, a repressed religious fanatic who wants her daughter to stay away from hooligans (that includes almost everyone of her daughter's age).
The movie looks good, it is well-paced and nicely edited, and the musical numbers are tuneful, expertly choreographed, and beautifully executed. The underlying social message is delivered without subtlety, but it is effective nevertheless. "Hairspray" is about inclusion, the value of a loving and supportive family, and the importance of ethnic pride and self-acceptance. It is hilarious and good-hearted entertainment and easily one of the most enjoyable films of the year.
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