Nothing Dirty About this Dancing ****

Rating: 9/10 (22 February 2007)

A fabulous film capturing life in the Catskills for Jewish people years ago.
Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey were perfectly cast as the lovers who meet by chance in the summer of 1963. Jennifer's doctor father, played to the hilt by Jerry Orbach, takes the family on a summer vacation and Grey is immediately attracted to dancer Swayze along with his group of dancers.
Besides the terrific dancing and music, the acting is terrific. Yes, there is plenty of stereotyping but it's well worth it.
Max, the owner of the hotel, played to perfection by Jack Weston, conveys the spirit that existed at these hotels in the 1950s and beyond.
There are certainly exceptions to the usual stereotyping. The prospective doctor, who is a summer waiter, gets a girl into trouble and it is immediately assumed that the swinger Swayze is the father. Wait to you see who has committed all those robberies at the hotel. You'll laugh out loud.
This is a rare gem of a film since it so beautifully captured the period of time as we discovered and evaluated our youth.
You will want to dance up a storm when you see this one. Hard to believe that 20 years has gone by since the film was made. Jennifer Grey, daughter of Oscar winner Joel Grey, had such talent and potential What became of her?