Stepping Out (1991 film)

Synopsis

Mavis Turner conducts instruction in tap dancing inside a Buffalo, New York church basement. Once an aspiring Broadway hoofer, Mavis is now merely trying to make ends meet, while also struggling with a personal relationship with a career-frustrated musician boyfriend.

With the glum Mrs. Fraser accompanying on piano, Mavis tries to teach tap to a class of colorful women and a solitary man, the bashful Geoffrey. Few are aware at first that one woman, Andi, is seeking a form of escape from a physically abusive husband. Others with a variety of extroverted personalities attend class simply for their own amusement, occasionally getting on each other's nerves.

Concerned about money and keeping the class going, Mavis learns of a talent competition and persuades the group that it can compete. While dealing with their personal issues, the "Mavis Turner Tappers" end up performing a glamorous, glitzy number on stage, flawed but rewarding to all.

Cast

Differences between play and film

In order to appeal to a broader audience, and to justify the hiring of headliner Minnelli, the setting of the play was transferred from a gritty North London suburb to gritty Buffalo, New York. Mavis's backstory was expanded to allow her a chance to sing more (in the play she has a role equal to those of the students).

The students' personalities are generally the same on stage and screen, although minor plot strands have been omitted. For example, Rose was initially a Trinidadian, a significant immigrant population in London. Any character outside the class is an addition for the film, as well as any scene outside the classroom plus the final production number.

John Kander and Fred Ebb wrote a new song for the film, the title number, which is given a rousing (and lengthy) presentation at film's end, in which the formerly awkward troupe reveal themselves to now be polished performers.

Reception

The film was designed as a motion picture comeback for Liza Minnelli. In the 1970s, after the great success of her film, Cabaret, for which she won the Oscar for Best Actress, Minnelli starred in three films, Lucky Lady, A Matter of Time, and New York, New York, all of which failed at the box office. In 1981, she co-starred with Dudley Moore in the hit comedy film Arthur. After that, however, in 1988, she teamed with Burt Reynolds in the film Rent-a-Cop and again with Moore in the comedy Arthur 2: On the Rocks. Both films were financial flops.

There was anticipation that Stepping Out would re-establish Minnelli's film career. Originally Stepping Out was to be released in the spring of 1991 to coincide with her New York concert stage show Live from Radio City Music Hall, but because of a corporate restructuring at Paramount Pictures, the film's opening was delayed until the fall of 1991. Nonetheless, Stepping Out received quite a bit of publicity with Minnelli being interviewed on both Donahue and The Joan Rivers Show as well as appearing with the cast of Stepping Out (minus Ellen Greene and Julie Walters) on The Sally Jessy Raphael Show to promote the film. When it was released on October 4, 1991, Stepping Out garnered decent reviews but only grossed $246,000 total in the United States and then went straight to video.

In reviewing the film for The New York Times, critic Stephen Holden had this to say: "Because the movie adaptation was conceived as a star vehicle for Ms. Minnelli, the actress is given two solo dance turns, choreographed by Danny Daniels, in addition to her acting chores. Both numbers jerk the movie, which is never particularly believable, into the realm of pure show-business fantasy, while allowing the star to demonstrate real pizzazz as a modern-day vaudevillian trouper. The final number... is an appealingly brassy, new made-to-order song by John Kander and Fred Ebb. It puts the icing on a movie that is the contemporary equivalent of a Mickey Rooney-Judy Garland 'let's put on a show' romp, seasoned with a dash of 'A Chorus Line'." (Stephen Holden, The New York Times MOVIE REVIEW: "Turning Klutzes Into Tap Dancers", October 4, 1991)

Variety, in its 1991 review, described the film thusly: "It's Liza-as-you-love-her in Stepping Out, a modest heartwarmer about a bunch of suburban left-feeters getting it together for a charity dance spot. Fragile ensemble item often creaks under the Minnelli glitz, but results are likeable enough."

Roger Ebert gave the film a moderate review stating "The [stage play] contained more dancing and was generally more engaging, maybe simply because it was on the stage. As a song-and-dance picture, it talks too much. As a drama, it's superficial and locked into a formula."

Awards

Julie Walters was nominated for a BAFTA film award in the Best Supporting Actress category.