Frances “Baby” Houseman & Johnny Castle | Dirty Dancing

Dirty Dancing was released in the summer of 1987, and it led to Jennifer Grey being dubbed “Baby” by everyone, which she didn’t seem to mind. With a $6 million investment budget, the film danced its way into the hearts of many moviegoers, becoming one of the decade’s classic romantic films and a dance-focused love tale that many dance films after it would definitely strive to be.

This film, directed by Emile Ardolino and written by Eleanor Bergstein, begins with a child. As she travels to Kellerman’s resort for a Catskills retreat, she meets a college-bound teenager who is on the brink of maturity and ready to fall in love. Dirty Dancing is a dream as well as a love tale in many respects. Most girls’ first boyfriends probably didn’t sweep them off their feet as Johnny Castle did for Frances “Baby” Houseman, but it wasn’t difficult to be swept away by the plot. The film’s popularity can be attributed to the simplicity of the love story, the classic soundtrack, the chemistry of the cast, and the time period in which it is set.