An insurance check can allow the Youngers to escape their frustrating life in a crowded Chicago apartment, but escape means different things to each family member.

In racially charged 1962 Baltimore there are changes in the air. Plus-sized teen Tracy Turnblad, with big hair and even bigger heart, has only one passion, to dance. She wins a spot on the local TV dance program, "The Corney Collins Show" and is transformed overnight from outsider to irrepressible teen celebrity. The trendsetting Tracy aims to win the heart of teen-dream Link Larkin and stand up for what she believes in.

Based on the true story of Clyde Barrow, a charismatic convicted armed robber who sweeps Bonnie Parker, an impressionable, petite, small-town waitress, off her feet. The two embark on one of the most infamous bank-robbing sprees in history.