Body Rock

Body Rock is a 1984 American dance drama film directed by Marcelo Epstein, and written by Desmond Nakano and Kimberly Lynn White. It stars Lorenzo Lamas as Chilly D, a young man "from the streets" with a talent for break-dancing, and co-stars Vicki Frederick, Cameron Dye, Michelle Nicastro and Ray Sharkey.

The film received mostly negative reviews from critics, but the title song, performed by Maria Vidal, became a chart success worldwide.

Plot

Chilly is just a guy from the streets with a talent for break-dancing. When his wicked moves catch the eye of industry professional Terrence Mitchell, Chilly finds his dreams of fame and fortune coming true, for better or for worse.

Cast

• Lorenzo Lamas as Chester "Chilly D"
• Vicki Frederick as Claire
• Cameron Dye as "E-Z"
• Michelle Nicastro as Darlene
• Ray Sharkey as Terrence Mitchell
• Seth Kaufman as Jama
• Rene Elizondo as "Snake"
• Joseph Whipp as Donald
• Grace Zabriskie as Chilly's Mother
• Tony Ganios as Big Mac
• Carole Ita White as Unemployment Lady
• Ellen Gerstein as Secretary
• James Greene as Chilly's Friend

Production

After production had wrapped, landlords of a building at 5504 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, used for the shoot sued Body Rock Productions and producer Jeff Schechtman of New World Pictures for $21,810 in damages after the production had allegedly "practically demolished the premises." with the plaintiffs citing repairs plus lost rent.

Reception

Body Rock received negative reviews from critics and was a failure at the box office. Lorenzo Lamas' performance was nominated for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor at the 5th Golden Raspberry Awards, but lost to Sylvester Stallone in Rhinestone. Also nominated was the song "Smooth Talker", one of two songs in the film performed by Lamas, for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Original Song. The other, "Fools Like Me", remains Lamas' one single to date to crack the Billboard Hot 100 chart; it peaked at number 85 in January 1985.

In his book The Official Razzie Movie Guide, John J. B. Wilson, founder of the Golden Raspberry Awards, listed the film as one of The 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever Made.

Music

The soundtrack, issued on LP in 1984, features Laura Branigan, Roberta Flack, Ashford & Simpson and others. The theme song "Body Rock", performed by Maria Vidal, peaked at number 48 on the Hot 100 in October 1984 and reached number eight on the US dance chart. The same month, Branigan's "Sharpshooter" hit #12 on Record Mirror's Hi-NRG Disco charts. A year later, in the autumn of 1985, "Body Rock" reached number 11 on the UK singles chart.

Chart performance for "Body Rock"

External links

• atIMDb
• atRotten Tomatoes
• at theAFI Catalog of Feature Films