Dirty Dancing is typical of many of the 80's megahits. Like earlier films of its ilk, including Fame, Flashdance, Top Gun, Cocktail, Footloose, Purple Rain (ad nauseum), it's a movie built around a soundtrack, with a worthless plot that exists mainly to string together musical montages and/or dance sequences. The fact the film takes place in 1963 is redundant...this is unequivocally an 80s film, with 80s stars, 80s music and an 80s sensibility. It's also one of the worst movies to ever win some kind of Academy Award (for Best Song). And since this is the fourth DVD version of Dirty Dancing in six years, one must cynically assume the motive for this Ultimate Edition is to drum-up interest in Artisan's upcoming sequel, Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (which looks to be as sound an executive decsion as greenlighing Grease 2). I guess the ultimate question regarding this Ultimate Edition is...is it worth it?

I'm making it sound like the film sucks. Granted, these types of movies aren't exactly my cup of tea, but Dirty Dancing is one of the better high-concept musical products to ooze out of Hollywood in the 80s. Its plot, however unoriginal, is one of those timeless stories that still works if placed in the right hands. It's 1963, and the Houseman family is on vacation at a resort in the Catskill Mountains. Babe Houseman (Jennifer Grey) is bored out of her mind, until she discovers that the hotel help enjoy rubbing pelvises to music during their off hours. She's particularly enamored with Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze), the resort's dance instructor, and when his regular partner turns up conveniently pregnant, Babe volunteers to take her place. All this is to the chagrin of Babe's father (Jerry Orbach), who thinks (as all movie fathers do) Johnny is nothing but trouble. Even if you've never seen Dirty Dancing, I'm sure most of you can fill in the blanks regarding what happens. Like I said, the story is superficial, but its executed pretty well here. Both Swayze and Grey are fun to watch, and give earnest performances. Orbach is also good with what he has to work with. None of that really matters, though, since the main motivation of the movie is to sell soundtrack albums (which it did...in spades). The musical scenes, featuring some admittedly well-choreographed and titillating dance numbers, are the highlights of Dirty Dancing. I suppose it's a credit to director Emile Ardolino and choreographer Kenny Ortega that we quickly overlook the fact these folks are gyrating to 80s music in 1963 (but then, no one watches movies like this expecting anything resembling realism).

The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and looks pretty damned good for a 16 year old movie. I haven't watched any of the previous DVD editions, so I can't really tell you if it's better, but the remastered picture here is as good as anything else I've watched lately. The soundtrack, though, is top-notch, offered in 6.1 DTS, 5.1 Dolby Digital and 2.0 Dolby Digital. It sounds terrific, and those who love the film for its music will definitely be pleased with this transfer.

There are abundant extras featured on this two-disc set, though most are of the fluffy variety. There are two audio commentaries; the first is by screenwriter Eleanor Bergstein, and the second features comments by choreographer Ortega, assistant choreographer Miranda Garrison, and other crew members involved in costume and production design. If the dancing is all you care about, you'll find a lot to enjoy, but fans of the filmmaking process will likely find the commentaries as superficial as the story itself. There's also a newly-filmed introduction by Jennifer Grey. Of the remaining extras, fans of the film will probably enjoy Dirty Dancing: Live in Concert the most; it's a 90 minute video from a concert tour that capitalized on the success of the film, featuring various artists who contributed to the soundtrack, including Bill Medley and Eric Carmen. Other extras include various interviews with Jennifer Grey, Kenny Ortega, Miranda Garrison and Eleanor Bergstein; they are pleasant enough, even though they talk-up Dirty Dancing like it was the Gone with the Wind of the 80s. There are also music videos of the soundtrack's numerous hit songs, theatrical trailers, a brief trivia track, and a tribute to director Emile Ardolino (I'm not sure he actually warrants a tribute). Swayze, however, is conspiciously missing from all the supplemntary material. All-in-all, the extras are entertaining enough; whether or not they justify this Ultimate Edition depends on how obsessed you are with the film.

Similar films: Flashdance, Footloose, Fame, Saturday Night Fever, Breakin', A Chorus Line Summary: I'll be the first to admit that any comments I've made will mean nothing to those in love with this movie. And maybe I'm not the right person to decide whether or not a fourth edition of this film is worth the price. In my humble opinion, if you've always wanted Dirty Dancing in Concert on disc, the answer is yes. I think most other folks could live without a lot of the additional extras, so if you already own a previous edition, my advice would be to pass on this one.