LIke Irene Cara before her, Naturi Naughton shines in Fame/Lakeshore/MGM
At first glance, Fame, which opened in theaters across the country yesterday, might be perceived as jumping on the bandwagon of the recent resurgence of popularity focused on dancing and singing reality shows like American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance and others. Well, it's hard to jump on a bandwagon when your own origins can easily be credited as bandleader. 1980's theatrical release, Fame and two later TV series, Fame: The Series and Fame LA first introduced viewers to the gritty reality of making it in the world of entertainment as seen through the eyes of students at New York's high school for the performing arts and in the second series, young adults making their way in the City of Angels.
It's no secret that as a teenager, I was a huge fan of Fame, as evidenced by my recent review of Nashville's Circle Players' production of Fame: The Musical, or my subsequent interview with actress Nia Peeples, who played Nicole Chapman in the TV series. That said, last night's viewing of the latest interpretation of Fame was approached with much trepidation.
As the movie theater went dark and the familiar, yet modernized Fame logo appeared on-screen, some of my hesitations were immediately dismissed as the voice of Debbie Allen, who starred in both the original movie and series, muttered the famous line from the opening sequence of the TV show, "You want fame, well fame costs, and right here's where you start paying...in sweat." Much like her minimal role in the original movie, Debbie Allen's role in the reinvention of Fame is little more than a cameo, as she plays the school's principal, Angela Simms. She may have only a small role in the movie, but as one of the main stars of the Fame TV series, she was a powerhouse, having not only starred as dance teacher, Lydia Grant, but also serving as choreographer on the series. It's nice that the producers cast Allen in the role, as there's nothing more insulting that to rehash an already great work and not pay homage to its beginnings. That said, it seems odd that Allen's character wasn't Lydia Simms, alluding to the fact that perhaps Ms. Grant found true love and had retired from dancing to take over the school she loved. Just last week, Allen appeared on Good Morning America promoting the film and mistakenly said, "That's right, Ms. Grant has gotten married and is now in charge."
The original film and series featured a streetwise dancer named LeRoy (played in both by the late Gene Anthony Ray), Coco, a singer and dancer who's tough exterior hid an uncertain young woman (played by Irene Cara in the film and Erica Gimple in the series). Other original characters represented a spoiled little rich girl (Lori Singer as Julie) who dreams of being a dancer, a child star who wants to be taken seriously, a classically trained musician who dreams of composing his own modern work (Bruno/Lee Curreri), a sexually confused young man (Montgomery/PR Paul) and a boisterous girl who only wants to fit in (Doris/Val Landsburg). As for the teachers, Allen was joined in the series by Carol Mayo Jenkins as the stern but caring English teacher, Mrs. Sherwood and Al Hague as classical piano teacher, Mr. Shorofsky. For the new class, audiences get several amalgamations of both the student and faculty characters.
Naturi Naughton as Denise Dupree is a combo of Coco, Bruno and Julie. While the character of Coco was both a singer and dancer, Denise hales from a rich family and has spent her life studying classical piano, but she dreams of being a singer and doing her own thing. Naughton, who reminds me so much of my friend Ruby Amanfu of the Nashville based duo Sam & Ruby, shines in the role as she takes on the only two songs revived from the original film, Out Here On My Own and Fame.
Naturi Naughton reinvents Fame
Collins Pennie stars as Malik Washburn, a hybrid of LeRoy. While LeRoy was a dancer from a poor New York neighborhood, Malik dreams of being a rapper, but like LeRoy, who's only passion was dance, and therefore didn't care for other classes, Malik must also comply with the rigors of all the course work at the school. He reveals to Denise that he is attending the performing arts school on the down-low, keeping it secret from his overworked mother who wants him to take a more traditional approach to his future. Naughton and Pennie show their versatility as performers together in two numbers, Can't Hide from Love and Get On the Floor.
Kay Panabaker, real-life sister of Disney star, Danielle Panabaker, portrays Jenny Garrison. Jenny merges aspects of Coco with Doris. In the original Fame movie, one of the most talked about scenes comes when Coco naively auditions for a sleaze ball director and is sexually assaulted. Jenny has a similar if not toned-down run-in with a former classmate who has gone on to become a big star. Panabaker's natural vocal talents are played down for the role, but her contributions to Hold Your Dream prove she's got talent.
Jenny's love interest comes in the form of Marco Ramone, played by Asher Book. Book, best known as lead singer for the not-so-successful Pop/R&B boy band, V Factory, produced by Tommy Page, needn't worry about the boy band. His boyish good looks and perfect-pitched falsetto, reminiscent of Jason Mraz, showcased by a cover of John Legend's Ordinary People, the new song, Try, and the standard, Someone To Watch Over Me, put Book at the front of the class and squarely in line to dethrone current high school hottie, Zac Effron as the next big thing.
Kherrington Payne as Alice Ellerton most closely resembles the character Julie, being an amazing dancer from a very affluent family, as evidenced by a scene in which her boyfriend Victor (played by Walter Perez) receives a cold reception when he joins Alice and her parents for dinner out. Kherrington herself gained national recognition as a finalist on season four of reality dance show, So You Think You Can Dance.
If Kherrington's Alice is the reincarnation of Julie, her on-screen love, Victor is certainly Bruno. Walter Perez is no stranger to remakes, as he is best known for his recurring role on television incarnation of Friday Night Lights. It would have been nice to have seen Victor's story fleshed out, considering the Bruno role in the original and series were a major part of the storyline.
The other young actors not only share scenes with the more major roles, but they all possess a subtle brilliance that allows them to shine, albeit not as brightly as those in the forefront. Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, best know for roles on Hannah Montana and Camp Rock, plays Joy Moy. Her scene in the principal's office is moving in its simplicity as she must decide between a burgeoning career and her education.
Paul Iacono plays Neil Baczynsky. Iacono as filmmaker wannabe Baczynsky gets a little of the Bruno storyline, as he turns to his father for support, but in a decidedly Coco twist, he gets ripped off by a seedy producer. Iacono is fun to watch as the hyper, enthusiastic and dedicated auteur of the bunch.
Paul McGill plays Kevin Barrett, a quiet unassuming young man who wants to be a dancer, but sadly doesn't have what it takes. While the original version of Fame shocked audiences by delving into the sexuality of a similar character, Montgomery, McGill is relegated primarily to background story. Nonetheless, McGill, like Perez de Tagle, takes his one pivotal scene on the deck of the subway train as far as he can, given the material. Again, it's the subtlety of his performance that commands the scene. Kristy Flores as Rosie provides some great dance moves throughout the film, in particular in the Moulin Rouge-inspired CarnEvil sequence.
That brings us to the faculty. In addition to Allen as Principal Simms, Charles Dutton plays the drama teacher, Alvin Dowd. As is often the case in a large cast, Dutton, and the faculty are secondary to the teen cast, and for the most part, underused. Kelsey Grammer as piano teacher, Joel Cranston, Bebe Neuwirth as dance teacher Lynn Kraft and Megan Mullally as voice teacher Fran Rowan fare only slightly better, as they are featured a little more prominently in the film than Dutton and Allen. In the scene where Fran Rowan (Mullally) takes the kids out to New York's famous drag bar/karaoke dinner theatre, Lucky Chang's, she belts out the standard You Took Advantage of Me like no one else can. In the following scene, when the students are going on about her talent, you almost expect her to revert to her Will & Grace Karen Walker persona and let out a shrill but insincere, "Oh, honey it was nothing."
All in all, the latest reincarnation of Fame, while sure to be panned by more cynical critics, gets a passing grade thanks to the immense pool of talent from both the younger and more seasoned actors involved. The familiar theme song says, "Fame, I'm gonna live forever" so don't be surprised when a new TV series pops up on the small screen next year.
In my never-ending obsession with all things Fame, be sure and check back next week, as I will interviewing original series faculty member, Carol Mayo Jenkins, who played Mrs. Elizabeth Sherwood!
Comments