Cinema: A Mid-'60s Night's Dream

HAIR Directed by Milos Forman; Screenplay by Michael Weller

The film version of Hair is proof that real miracles can happen in show business. If ever a project looked doomed, it was this one. Hair's source, the 1968 Broadway hit, was a largely plotless, if tuneful, show that homogenized the '60s for theater audiences; even at the time, it was dated. The movie's creators —Czech-born Director Milos Forman, Playwright Michael Weller, Choreographer Twyla Tharp—have never previously negotiated the perilous tides of movie musicals. Add a largely unproven cast and a grand budget, and you...