Twist
by Ron Mann
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DVD details
Actor: Cholly Atkins, Chubby Checker, Frankie Avalon, Gary U.S. Bonds, Hank BallardDirector: Ron Mann
Brand: MANN,RON
Cinematographer: Robert Fresco
Producer: Ron Mann
Editor: Robert Kennedy
Producer: Ann Mayall
Producer: Don Haig
Producer: Sue Len Quon
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Black & White, Color, DVD, Letterboxed, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 74 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-07-23
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Home Vision Entertainment
DVD Reviews of Twist
DVD Review: Do the Elephant!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
Like Ron Mann's other films ("Grass", "Comic Book Confidential", etc), "Twist" is full of much more fun, colour, movement and wit than the average documentary, and provides an equally entertaining and educational look at 20th century pop history. And, as in his other documentaries, he looks at the broader background and sociological implications behind the main subject matter.One of the more interesting historical aspects explored in this film is the politics and social engineering behind the '50's dance crazes. The twist itself grew out of the more blatantly sexual, bump and grind dances popular in black music halls. Knowing that it was impossible to wipe out their children's interests in black culture (let's face it, African Americans not only invented rock and roll, but put out far superior music to the watered-down white artists who were more radio-friendly), white adults decided to instead try to replace the dances their children were imitating with something "safer" and more "wholesome" by doing for dance what Pat Boone and company did for rock. Funny clips are shown of whites demonstrating the "proper" technique for twisting with absolutely no hip movement! But they only partially succeeded.
The Twist is not the only dance examined. Mann shows how it evolved from other dances, and how others later tried to cash in on its success by releasing songs with built-in new dances. Witness such Macarenas of the past as the hilarious The Elephant where kids use their arms to imitate an elephant's trunk! (Unfortunately, Mann does not include footage of the Neil Sadaka non-craze, The Jellyfish!!)
All the people most instrumental in creating the dance craze who were alive at the time of filming are interviewed, many of them demonstrating their own twist (pun intended) on the dance. And the music and dancing is absolutely exhilarating.
Sadly, Lulu's (former home of the world's largest stage) in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada where the interviews and new dance sequences were filmed has long since closed down, so this film is also a good nostalgia trip for those who miss the legendary club.
1
Description of Twist
Documents the increasing popularity of rock and roll music in the late 1950s and early 1960s and includes interviews with and performances by rock pioneers such as Chubby Checker, Hank Ballard, Smokey Robinson, Joey Dee, and the Isley Brothers.Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Release Date: 1-FEB-2005
Media Type: DVD
Non-enthusiasts may wonder how a documentary on a single outmoded dance might hold a viewer's attention for an entire 78 minutes, but Twist is really about the birth of freestyle dancing. Director Ron Mann (Grass, Comic Book Confidential), who could probably make a fascinating documentary on fingernail clippings, creates a sense of fun by dividing his film into dance "lessons," using actual instruction tapes. He sprinkles each section with vintage clips, overwrought headlines from the '60s, and interviews with the songwriters, singers, and American Bandstand dancers who started the craze. "Twist" songwriter Hank Ballard's version of the dance was considered too risqué for TV, but when Chubby Checker "made it nice" on American Bandstand, the move swept the nation, leading to other steps like "The Monkey," "The Potato," and eventually the do-your-own-thing of today. All of this is recorded with plenty of music, dancing, and fond testimonials, making it as fun a documentary as you'll ever see. --Kimberly Heinrichs
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