Twenty-five years ago this month the film Dirty Dancing was released in cinemas. A low-budget movie made by a new studio and with no stars in the lead roles (hard to believe now, but Jennifer Gray and Patrick Swayze were relatively unknown before the film), it has gone on to earn over $214 million, has inspired other films and a theatre show, and has been named the film most watched by women, ever.

What is it about this film that so draws us in? The music is wonderful, of course, and evocative of the era. The dancing is superbly choreographed – especially the final sequence. The plot is engaging, the acting excellent. But it is the love story that most engages us. What teenage girl did not dream of being swept away by a handsome, strong, virile man such as Johnny Castle? The class divide is of no importance; this film is all about breaking down barriers, about chemistry, connection and freedom.

I think, perhaps, the reason why female viewers connect so well to this film comes down to a clever positioning of point of view. Writers know well that point of view matters – you write from a character’s point of view in order to enable the reader to understand and identify with that character and to see the world through his/her eyes. The camera in a movie is the narrator in many senses, controlling what you see and how, and so by considering the camera as a person, you can engage the audience better. Steven Spielberg used point-of-view camera work to great effect in Jaws, which was the first film to have shots from the point of view of the killer (the shark). And the director of Dirty Dancing, Emile Ardolino, broke new ground by using a female point of view for camera work. So we have long up-and-down shots of Johnny’s physique, which of course engage the female viewer. Next time you watch the film, think about the camera as a narrator and see for yourself how feminine it is.

Here are some facts about the film you may not know:

• The film is based on a true story – the teenage experiences of the screenwriter, Eleanor Bergstein.
• The choreographer for the film, Kenny Ortega, was trained by Gene Kelly.
• Actor Billy Zane was considered for the role of Johnny.
• Temperatures were so hot during filming (sometimes 120 degrees) that on one day ten actors fainted.
• The actors were encouraged to improvised, and the scene in which Baby keeps laughing as Johnny moves his hand down her body was not scripted.
• Swayze’s song ‘She’s Like the Wind’ was co-written by him years earlier.
• Swayze was paid $5 million to appear in a cameo role as a dance teacher in a prequel to the film released in 2004 (impressive considering he earned just $200,000 for the original!).

If all this talk of Dirty Dancing has piqued your interest, you may be interested to know that a remake is in production. But for me, nothing will beat the original, and especially the romance of ‘She’s Like the Wind’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU9p1WRfA9w.