Hairspray (2007)

This is a delightful, light-hearted film.
Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) is a girl with dreams as big as her hair. She wants to be famous while her mother, Edna (John Travolta) wants her to take over the laundry business from her. Luckily, her father Wilbur (Christopher Walken) encourages her. So she auditions anyway and manages to make her dream start to come true.
However, it is more than just Tracy's size standing in her way, she also is totally for integration. Negro Day on her beloved Corny Collin's Show (James Marsden is Corny) is her favorite day; she wishes that it was every day. Station Manager Velma (Michelle Pfeiffer) is against change and doesn't like Tracy. Tracy is, after all, more talented than her bland daughter, Amber (Brittany Snow). Tracy even befriends Seaweed (Elijah Kelley) and his younger sister Little Inez (Taylor Parks), hoping that Inez can join her on the show next.
When I first watched the film I thought it was pretty predictable until the end when Tracy doesn't win her coveted title of Miss Hairspray, but Inez does instead. But she gets the guy, Link Larkin (Zac Efron). He finally decides that love and doing what is right are more important than his career. He leaves the nasty Amber and gets together with Tracy. Epic win.
But this film isn't about the plot, its about the songs and they are amazing. It is also perfectly acted and casted with each actor fitting their roles beautifully. Travolta should have been Oscar nominated for this role, different from anything he had ever done before but he is spectucular. Walken is hilarious as the joke show owner and supportive husband and father. I wish that Kelley and Blonsky would be offered more great roles like these ones because they are certainly capable of much more than they are given. Even Allison Janney provides great laughs as Penny's (Amanda Bynes's) religious mother, who ties up her misbehaving daughter in her bomb shelter with the stern warning of not to touch her canned tuna. Queen Latifah is also great as the host of Negro Day and, more importantly, mom to Seaweed and Inez. Her spread encourages Edna to spice up her sagging marriage with Wilbur, though Velma tries to thwart that as well.
Despite putting a light-hearted spin on the whole matter, this film also tackles racism and problems within Hollywood. Velma is furious when the negroes perform the same song as the nicest kids in town performed on Corny's show, but Motormouth Maybelle (Latifah) says that they wrote it so of course they should perform it. Velma hates the suggestive moves that the blacks have on their show and believes that even if children like their music, they should be taught otherwise because they are children and don't know any better. Despite Tracy's dream being within grasping distance, she tosses it all away to march for equal rights because that is more important in the whole scheme of things. There is even an interracial relationship between Seaweed and the naive Penny though her mother will probably never forgive her.
It encourages those who are different to take a chance. Tracy encourages her mother to finally leave the house and Edna likes what she sees. But even leaving the house was a huge risk and adventure for her. It's a good thing that Tracy sees beyond her own front door. Grade: A-