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    The Arthropologist

    Flashdance meets Frances Ha: Weirdest dance movie ever hits the stage while indie darling shows moves

    Nancy Wozny
    Jun 4, 2013 | 3:01 pm

    Alex welds by day, dances at a strip club by night, meets a powerful guy and longs to be in a ballet company in Adrian Lyne's vintage 1983 dance movie, Flashdance, now a musical on the Theatre Under the Stars stage, Tuesday through June 16.

     

    Frances bounces around apartments in New York looking hipster adorable, while longing to be in the company in Noah Baumbach's charming new sorta kinda dance film Frances Ha, now screening at Sundance Cinemas.

     

    I'm so happy that Frances Ha came along, just in time for me to revisit the Flashdance era. Alex and Frances are such noble dance heroines. We feel for them, root for them and hope they get the job, the guy, or at least a better apartment. They both have big dreams, boyfriend problems and that pie in sky goal to "make the company."

     

     She's a maniac, alright

     

     Flashdance occupies a special place in our hearts as the weirdest dance movie ever. It basically makes no sense, but does that matter when a movie made leg warmers and ripped T-shirts things dancers would never put on again? (That's how it works, if you are wearing it, dancers have moved on.) It's set in Pittsburgh of all places, a former steel hub rather than dance hub.

     

    Jillian Mueller plays Alex in the TUTS production, a role she was born to play. She does all her own dancing, unlike Jennifer Beals, who had the magnificent Marine Jahan as her dancer double.

     
     

      "All the iconic dances from the film are in there, and then some. And, at one point, a bucket of water falls on me." 

     

     

    "I got Flashdance as a gift when I was 7," says Mueller. "I've been obsessed with this movie ever since."

     

    Mueller started working professionally on Broadway at age 12. Her resume includes national tours of Memphis and American Idiot, Bye Bye Birdie, How the Grinch Stole Christmas on Broadway and A Gifted Man on CBS. Although she has some terrific credits, she will be the first to say that there have been slow times in her career.

     

     "Flashdance is partly telling my story," she says.

     

    Mueller has her own ideas on why Flashdance made such a dent in our collective dance film consciousness. "Alex is such an underdog," she says. "That's what makes it a memorable film." As for the film being turned into a musical, Mueller sets me straight. "It was originally written as a musical but then Hollywood swooped in."

     

     Flashdance, The Musical, is as dansical as it gets, all of which makes it great for dance fans and exhausting for Mueller. "I never leave the stage," says Mueller. "All the iconic dances from the film are in there, and then some. And, at one point, a bucket of water falls on me."

     

     Frances tapdances, pirouettes on cue and still doesn't make the ranks

     

    Greta Gerwig charms us from her first endearing, bordering on lame, sidewalk tap dance. OK, so we cringe a little when she performs a wobbly pirouette on demand at a party. And maybe we sigh when we find out she's an still apprentice at 27 (ancient in dancer years). The worry really sets in when she heads back to her alma mater, SUNY Purchase, to be an RA for a summer intensive. Her prospects are slim. Gerwig's "Oh what a feeling" moments happen mostly outside of the dance studio, when she's hanging out with Sophie, her ex-roomie.

     

    That said, I have to appreciate that she's a dancer of the post-modern variety, the least represented genre of dance in pop culture. It's going to be a long haul before we see a SYTYCD couple pick "post modern" out of their dance hat, which is why it's so cool to see her world, and even the beloved New York hub, Dance New Amsterdam, in the film.

     
     

      "The fact that Frances Ha has made modern dance somewhat visible to the mainstream movie market is extremely encouraging." 

     
     

    Max Stone, artistic director of Sexy Beast, choreographed the company’s rehearsal scene near the beginning of the film and the concert. "The fact that Frances Ha has made modern dance somewhat visible to the mainstream movie market is extremely encouraging," says Stone. "This form of dance is virtually unknown outside of live performance and documentary film formats."

     

    Stone feels the film is spot on in getting the scene right. "The struggling dance apprentice is portrayed pretty accurately, along with the accompanying doubts and frustrations," he says. "It’s such an uncertain position and of course there’s usually no pay." He considers Baumbach's movie larger than a dance story. "It’s mainly a coming of age story about a young friendship that must ultimately evolve into adulthood," says Stone. "The fact that Frances is an individual with an artistic sensibility doesn’t help her situation. All artists retain a sense of innocence and wonder within them."

     

     Alex and Frances probably would not be BFFs

     

    Alex's dancing is way more sex charged than Frances' gender neutral dance world. There is way less dance in Frances Ha, and once you see her dance, you are OK with that. Trust me, way more people would be cringing with a less talented actor in the part. Honestly, she seems more about having fun with her friends than our dance-aholic Alex.

     

    Toward the end, Frances comes into her strength as a choreographer, making a dance that just oozes her bumbling through life quirkiness. Although another choreographer worked on that piece, Stone loves it. " It truly looks like a piece that Frances would have created."

     

    There is one odd thing that both Frances and Alex share, they never seem to take class. "For a dancer, taking class on a daily basis is fundamental to who we are," says Stone. "Possibly, this is why she’s not the best dancer in the company."

     

    Alex makes the company, Frances does not; she gets a desk job and a chance at making it as rising choreographer. Sequel please Mr. Baumbach. Alex gets the guy, while the possibility of love for the "undateable" Frances is left wide open.

     

    Here's to dance heroines. I love them all.

     

     Check out the Flashdance The Musical trailer, it's a lot like the movie, but more dancing:

     

     

     

     You can see Greta Gerwig's embodied charm in the Frances Ha trailer:

     

     

    Jillian Mueller plays the lead role in Flashdance: The Musical.

    Flashdance The Musical Houston May 2013 Jillian Mueller as Alex
      
    Photo by Jeremy Daniel
    Jillian Mueller plays the lead role in Flashdance: The Musical.
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    Movie Review

    New Superman movie forges into the future while honoring the past

    Alex Bentley
    Jul 11, 2025 | 3:30 pm
    David Corenswet in Superman
    Photo by Jessica Miglio
    David Corenswet in Superman.

    When the character of Superman was invented in 1938, it was perhaps easier to see the world in good and bad terms. Fascism was already on the rise in Germany under Adolf Hitler, and the idea of an all-powerful superhero who stood up for people in need was a welcome one. In the nearly 90 years since, though, the world and the character have undergone multiple evolutions, and the thought of someone who is purely good is often met with cynicism or worse.

    The new Superman, written and directed by James Gunn, puts the superhero (or metahuman, as the film calls him and similar creatures) squarely in the midst of the modern world, with geopolitical conflicts, mega-corporations, and social media all combining to make the altruism of Superman/Clark Kent (David Corenswet) questionable. That skepticism even extends to his coworker/girlfriend Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), whose knowledge of his exploits puts her in a tricky position personally and professionally.

    Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) is out to dominate the world and take down Superman, with his eponymous corporation and vast group of underlings dedicated to doing both. Superman is generally a one-man fighting crew, but he’s occasionally aided by a group calling themselves the Justice Gang, comprised of heroes many have never heard of like Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), a version of Green Lantern; Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), a flying metahuman; and Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi), who knows all kinds of technology.

    One of the best things about this new version of Superman is that it mostly dispenses with introductions, putting the audience in a world where Superman is already a well-known quantity who’s adored by many and hated by some. Gunn has used his new position as co-CEO of DC Studios to honor the past of the hero and take him into the future. With the 1978 John Williams theme song echoing throughout and Corenswet giving off Christopher Reeve vibes, it’s clear Gunn wants audiences to feel nostalgia while still getting something new.

    He also appears to want viewers to fight against the negativity that the modern world can bring. The plot involves manipulation of the public, usually at the hands of Luthor, through bombastic talk shows, political theater, and social media, the latter of which — in a great joke — comes to involve hundreds of typing monkeys. The film could be read as a rebuttal of many real-world ills as, despite Luthor’s machinations, many choose to continue to believe in the goodness of Superman.

    There is a lot going on in the film, but somehow it never comes off as overly complicated. Superman’s relationship with Lois Lane and Luthor’s attempts at taking him down are given the most prominence, with everything else supporting those two main things. The Justice Gang is a fun addition, with Mr. Terrific becoming the breakout hero of the group. The addition of the (CGI) dog Krypto provides levity, poignant moments, and unexpectedly great action scenes. The only part that gets somewhat short shrift is the crew of The Daily Planet, with everyone besides Lois and Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) getting little more than face time.

    Being the new Superman is a lot to live up to, but Corenswet is completely up to the job. He, like Reeve, plays the character as someone who is earnest but not naive, a quality that comes through even when he’s in the middle of fight scenes. Brosnahan is also fantastic, providing a nice balance to the relationship while also proving the character’s own worth. Hoult makes for a great new version of Luthor, and Gathegi nearly makes the case that Mr. Terrific should get a starring film of his own.

    Just as he did with the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, Gunn has shown that success can be found through making characters people want to see. Not everyone in this Superman will be familiar to viewers, but in the end a group of people working together toward a goal that serves the common good is one worth watching and cheering for.

    ---

    Superman is now playing in theaters.

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