Dirty Dancing

Dirty Dancing has built a devoted following in Australia on Amazon Prime Video and Disney Plus, and in the US on Hulu and YouTube TV among viewers who want their romance taken seriously. It knows exactly what kind of film it is from the opening scene, and never loses that thread. With 6,557 viewer ratings on TMDB, this is not a title flying under the radar. Jennifer Grey carries the emotional throughline with real conviction. Put it on tonight on Amazon Prime Video and see for yourself.

There is a reason Dirty Dancing keeps coming up in conversation. Dirty Dancing treats its central relationship as something worth taking seriously. Expecting the usual tedium that accompanies a summer in the Catskills with her family, 17-year-old Frances 'Baby' Houseman is surprised to find herself stepping into the shoes of a professional hoofer—and unexpectedly falling in love. Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze lead a cast that earns the romance rather than assuming it. It hit screens in 1987. Romance lives or dies on chemistry, and Dirty Dancing has it in the cast combination that the writers chose to put at the centre of everything. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Romance fans and drama viewers alike will find something to love in Dirty Dancing. It has built its own audience without needing a direct comparison. The complete film is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. The chemistry Jennifer Grey brings to it is the engine that drives everything. A rarer quality than it sounds — earning the romantic beats rather than assuming them.