Youth is fleeting and wild inRed Oaks, the 80s period comedy streaming on Prime Video.A treasure trove of nostalgia, it’s an homage to the larger-than-life decade and the dozens of films that contributed to its iconic pop culture.StarringCraig Roberts,Richard Kind,Paul Reiser, andJennifer Grey, it’s anunderrated coming-of-age seriesset in a bustling country club in the summer heat of young lust.
For those who loveDirty Dancing,Red Oaksis a must-watch. It carries the legacy of everything that made the dance romance great, from misfit teens to forbidden romances where members and staffers mingle and feud. The fact that Grey is inRed Oaksis not lost on the show, and as one of the best parts of the series, she is all the more reason to watch.Roberts plays a misguided college student trying to figure out where he belongs in the world,and he is reminiscent of the character of Baby, who is forced to grow up in one whirlwind, crazy summer.Created byGregory JacobsandJoe Gangemi,the show ran for three seasons and should be in the running for being one of the best coming-of-age series of the past decade.
A nostalgic comedy series captures the life of a young tennis instructor at a New Jersey country club during the 1980s. Amidst his evolving personal relationships and family pressures, he experiences the highs and lows of young adulthood while surrounded by quirky club members and fellow staff.
What is ‘Red Oaks’ About?
Red Oaksisset during the summer of 1985at the Red Oaks Country Club in a suburb of New Jersey. The series is executive produced bySteven SoderberghandDavid Gordon Green, who fits the series like a glove as he’s directed raunchy comedies such asPineapple ExpressandYour Highness.Packed with lots of romance and horny teenagers, the series stars Roberts as college student David Meyers, and needing some extra money, he gets hired as a tennis pro assistant at the club.JenniferGrey stars as David’s eccentric, hippie-influenced mother, Judy, and comedian Richard Kind plays his hard-edged father, Sam. Pushing David to become an accountant after graduating from New York University, David really dreams of becoming a filmmaker, which he keeps secret.
At Red Oaks, there are several colorful characters, particularly Paul Reiser as the wealthy, flamboyant president of the club, Doug Getty. Another scene stealer isOliver Cooperas valet boy Wheeler, who is pining for the club’s effortlessly cool lifeguard, Misty (Alexandra Turshen). A rock-and-roll listening stoner and philosopher, he’s David’s good friend and the class clown of the club. The series also starsEnnis Esmeras the head tennis pro, Nash, andGage Golightlyas David’s girlfriend and Red Oaks aerobics instructor, Karen. It also features a skin-crawling, hilariously cliché Josh Meyers, brother toSeth Meyers, as the creepy club videographer, Barry.As David becomes immersed in the drama and escapades within the club, he begins falling for his boss’s daughter,Skye (Alexandra Socha), which causes more pandemonium over the life-changing summer.
Similar to ‘Dirty Dancing,’ ‘Red Oaks’ Is a Touching and Funny Coming-of-Age Story
Red Oaksisfirst and foremost about growing up, andRoberts’s performance as an aimless teen trying to figure out what kind of life he wants to lead, whether it’s his parents versus his own, echoes the same sentiments fromDirty Dancing.Jennifer Grey as Baby is at a crossroads in her life, where she’s not quite a woman, but not a girl anymore, and is chained to the expectations her family has of her as the innocent daughter they’ve come to know. When she discards those expectations and decides to chase her dreams of being a ballroom dancer with her crush, Johnny Castle, played byPatrick Swayze, she finally grows up and takes her life into her own hands.
InRed Oaks, David must decide if he will become the man his father wants him to be or if he’ll do what he wants instead. David is too afraid to tell his father his real dream of making movies and taking film classes at NYU. But,similar to Baby’s dad inDirty Dancing, portrayed by the fantasticJerry Orbach, Sam isn’t a villain by any means. He just fails to understand who his son is but would do anything to love and support him.David’s relationship with his parents is where the series shines the most,especiallyas they’re played by a commanding Jennifer Grey and comedy genius Richard Kind.
Jennifer Grey is Hilarious as a Mother Experiencing a Sexual Awakening
In a full circle moment, Grey plays the mother of an adolescent staff member falling into forbidden love with a rich club member. As David begins a flirtation with the club president’s daughter, Skye, who is also an artist with aspirations of living in New York City, Grey as Judy goes on a journey of her own. Her marriage with Sam begins to flounder, andit’s revealed that she is experiencing a sexual awakening as she comes to terms with being attracted to women.
Grey has her owncoming-of-age journey as a middle-aged womanand explores falling in love again in a whole new way. It’s raunchy, touching, and funny all at once. As a woman of the 80s,coming out as a lesbian is an adventurous process for her, including kissing her yoga instructor secretly at a summer party with her husband right outside. She experiments with drugs and liberates herself after years of being defined as a mother and wife.Her character is like the feminine mystique coming alive, but in the 80s instead, with a lot more big hair, leotards, and drugs.
‘Red Oaks’ Portrays Raunchy, Summer Camp of Fun, like ‘Caddyshack’
Red Oaksshares many similarities toDirty Dancingwith its themes of young love and class status in a summer period piece. But, it is also reminiscent of the much raunchier, sexually deviant filmCaddyshack.Red Oaksdoesn’t shy away from sexor the horniness of the Red Oaks members. One of the most memorable debacles happens in Season 1, Episode 6, “Swingers.” David gets asked by a married couple at the club to film an at-home porno, and he enlists his friend Wheeler to do sound while he films. It’s one of the series' most outrageous episodes and the funniest. As David yells “Action!” every time, the scenarios only get crazier, including when a cop arrives, who turns out to be the third member of the porno. It’s just one example of howRed Oaksis never afraid to push boundaries for the sake of comedy and that the fearlessness of being raunchy pays off.
AsRed Oaksshares similarities toDirty DancingandCaddyshack, Red Oaks never becomes a satire, thanks to its big-heartedness.It’s one of Prime Video’s best and most underrated series and is bound to become a cult classic, just like so many 80s films that have grown on audiences in the years since. With lots of fumbling make-out sessions on golf courses, Pink Floyd smoking sessions, and duels between golf pros and tennis pros,Red Oaksis a worthy successor to the iconic film that made Jennifer Grey a star and isthe perfect thing to watch to kick off the summer.
Red Oaksis available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S.
