Strictly Ballroom is a classic Romance. It can be compared to a Jane Austen novel in terms of the smallness of the world that is depicted and the way the final coming together of the hero and heroine is delayed.

Delay is a crucial element of the romance story. The first time Fran and Scott meet, an audience may suspect that they will get together eventually. The interest lies in watching how they overcome a series of inner and outer obstacles to achieve love. The skill of the writer and film-maker consists in creating a complex structure of barriers in front of the romantic leads and then surprising us by dextrously removing them.

After you have watched Strictly Ballroom, analyse the film for the ways in which the central love story is structured around a series of delays, interruptions and obstacles. (One of the first is Fran’s shyness which almost stops her approaching Scott with her proposal of partnering him.)

Another threat in classic romantic texts is the slow education of the central couple so that when they come together they are likely to make good partners. Of course, this is doubly underlined in Strictly Ballroom by having this final unity expressed by the lovers in a dance in which they partner each other. A typical part of this process usually involves either the hero or heroine or both being humbled in some way. They emerge stronger and more resolved.

Look back at the depictions of Fran and Scott in Strictly Ballroom. Can you find anything that might correspond to this moment of humbling in the narrative? What, if anything, do the characters gain or lose as a result of this process?

Historically, the comedy is closely related to the romance. In Shakespeare’s time, a ‘comedy’ meant a play in which the pursuit of love was central and which ended with a general coming together of characters in a wedding dance. Of course, there were also comic characters who could be relied upon to amuse with their antics and wit.

One of the factors in Strictly Ballroom’s success is its rich comic content. Baz Luhrmann uses a wide range of comic styles in the film, and it would be worthwhile analysing these.

Comedy often revolves around the question of status. Reversals in a character’s status can be hilarious. Part of the fun of watching Charlie Chaplin hitting a policemen on the head by mistake and knocking him to the floor is the sight of someone who should have high status being laid low. It is also important that the policeman is not seen to sustain any harm.

What examples can you find in Strictly Ballroom of the high being laid low? For example, look at how Fran’s first appearance involves tipping Liz Holt (Scott’s original partner) onto the floor. In what other ways is the status of characters disrupted or reversed as the narrative unfolds?

In many ways the film represents the whole world of ballroom dancing as being ripe for a reversal. Strictly Ballroom culminates in a scene of spontaneous steps and spontaneous participation. All rivalries seem to have been forgotten in the face of Scott and Fran’s triumph. But before this, the film dwells with almost clinical attention on all that is false and insincere about this world.

Strictly Ballroom has been described as a satire. A satirical film invites the audience to adopt a position of superiority in face of the absurdities and hypocrisies that are depicted.

After you have watched Strictly Ballroom, analyse the aspects of ballroom dancing that are exposed and ridiculed. Or do you feel the film is genuinely affectionate about its subject? Is the success of the film as an entertainment partly due to the way the audience is drawn into the story rather than remaining on the outside to sneer at the antics of the ballroom dancing world?

Before you read this section, list what you feel are the essential ingredients of a musical. Consider the kinds of events, the kinds of dress and the kinds of story a musical might contain.

Musicals have been described as the ultimate form of screen escapism. As the song goes in the musical ‘Bandwagon’:

Traditionally, Hollywood has been the home of the musical; but in recent years Hollywood musicals have been few and far between. One reason why Baz Luhrmann had trouble raising money for Strictly Ballroom was that in 1992 the musical genre was considered obsolete. The success of the film proves that there is still mileage in the genre. Since it was released, a number of prestigious directors including Woody Allen and Kenneth Branagh have tried their hand at musicals.

Although there is no actual ‘singing and dancing’ in Strictly Ballroom, the songs on the soundtrack often occur during important dance sequences. ‘Time After Time’ was sung by Tara Morice, the actress who plays Fran.

One of the most influential producers of Hollywood musicals for Metro Goldwyn Meyer (MGM) was Arthur Freed. His name is associated with many famous musicals including The Wizard of Oz and Singing In the Rain. Freed had a very clear idea of how a musical should be structured; and he formulated a number of essential characteristics:

• The music and the story must form an organic whole: the story, songs and dance sequences should be integrated. They should all be part of a strong plot line.
• Songs and dances must flow out of the dramatic material. A song or dance should not be just an interlude: songs should advance the story. ‘We’re Off to See the Wizard’ was thus sure to be included in the Wizard of Oz because it went with the journey Dorothy was making. On the other hand, her song ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ was nearly scrapped because it was judged to be too much of an interruption in the film.
• Transition from dialogue to music should be as smooth as possible — triggered by emotion — the dance or song being seen then as an expression of the characters’ emotion.

Which of Freed’s formulae do you think apply to Strictly Ballroom?

In the programme Jill Bilcock tells us how she used the song ‘Time After Time’ as a way of binding the montage sequence together. She reveals that music in a musical can express a much wider range of functions than simply contributing to the story.

Make a list of the key songs in the film and analyse them in terms of the following questions:

• Do they fit into the narrative, suggesting a new element of the story, or do they rather confirm something that has already happened?
• Do they reflect on the story or the characters being depicted? For example, the use of the song ‘Yesterday’s Hero’ during the montage sequence is a comment on the activities of Scott’s father as he dances — or at least it suggests something of Barry Fife’s version of history which he is using to try and persuade Scott to dance ‘normally’.
• Do they reflect the emotions of the characters being depicted?
• Do they provide a contrast with the mood of the preceding part of the film, changing the mood in a way that keeps the film from being dull?
• Is it used as a motif in the film — returning to suggest a particular mood, event or person?
• Do the songs knit the film together, as in the montage sequence?