Im a lover of this movie!!!!
Added 11/13/2009
I could care less what the darn critics say about this movie!! I think it was great! I think with success of saturday night fever & then grease. They just expected too much out of hollywood?! BUt even so this was done well. I cant help but wonder two things? would it have done better as a tv release. & if its so bad why has it been rerealesed so many times?
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Xanadu - It gets better with age
Added 10/28/2009
First off, let me get this out of the way; this is not a particularly great film. The story is what we would call a mash-up today and the acting is only decent, but the music, effects and earnestness of the production make it surprisingly enjoyable. If you watch the post mortem from many of the principals in the extras on the DVD, you'll understand the "why" behind many of the issues with the film--particularly its script. For instance, one of the key things they literally accidentally left out was that the mural was actually painted by the lead character. This explains a lot and why the muses happened to focus in on him. It also explains the re-appearance of several of the muses throughout the film, which you wouldn't necessarily pick up on the first time around (and this may or may not have been intentional, i.e., they may just have used the actresses on hand, but it does work in context regardless).
The reason I say in the subject line that it gets better with age is because this is practically a snapshot of the transition of the "hip" subculture from the late 70's disco era into the early 80's punk era (and the fact that lots of those locales in Southern California no longer exist also make the outdoor scenes rather compelling). It's amazingly stylized and would certainly seem garish and too over-the-top if so much time hadn't passed. The fact that it mixes in movie musical and sound stylings from the 40's through the 60's only makes it all the better. Having a basic understanding of Greek Mythology, the concept of Xanadu and the muses, musical movies, and Gene Kelly himself, goes a long way to providing further appreciation for this very unusual film. (Yeah, it's odd you have to work a bit to really enjoy the film, but the payoff is generally worth it.) It also features a very unusual Don Bluth animation sequence, which is sort of an interesting pre-cursor to what he would do with Dragon's Lair (at least it reminded ME of the same style and theme). Again, not worth the price of admission on its own, but its yet another interesting bit of trivia attached to a film filled with such things.
As for the real reason to get this film - the soundtrack CD that is included - I paid $13.99 for this combo pack and it looks like Amazon now lists it for just $10.99, so you can think of it as getting a discounted classic soundtrack and a movie thrown in. Even if you end up hating the film (understandable), you get the wonderful soundtrack, with Olivia Newton John at her best and a suprisingly good "supporting" cast, like ELO (if you don't find "I'm Alive" kind of uplifting in a sugary kind of way, I feel sorry for you). If that's not value, I don't know what is.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Not a real popular video, more of a cult classic. But, I enjoy the feel good storyline and have enjoyed my purchase. Really love the music.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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The dvd was in great condition. I was glad to find this classic at a good price.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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I ordered this movie for non computer literate friends. I suppose sometime in the future I might sit down and watch it with them but as is I only have vague memories of watching this twenty five years ago when I was a kid.
they however love this movie and said its great their kids love the sound track and jump up dancing whenever they watch it
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Im a lover of this movie!!!!
Added 11/13/2009
I could care less what the darn critics say about this movie!! I think it was great! I think with success of saturday night fever & then grease. They just expected too much out of hollywood?! BUt even so this was done well. I cant help but wonder two things? would it have done better as a tv release. & if its so bad why has it been rerealesed so many times?
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
|
Xanadu - It gets better with age
Added 10/28/2009
First off, let me get this out of the way; this is not a particularly great film. The story is what we would call a mash-up today and the acting is only decent, but the music, effects and earnestness of the production make it surprisingly enjoyable. If you watch the post mortem from many of the principals in the extras on the DVD, you'll understand the "why" behind many of the issues with the film--particularly its script. For instance, one of the key things they literally accidentally left out was that the mural was actually painted by the lead character. This explains a lot and why the muses happened to focus in on him. It also explains the re-appearance of several of the muses throughout the film, which you wouldn't necessarily pick up on the first time around (and this may or may not have been intentional, i.e., they may just have used the actresses on hand, but it does work in context regardless).
The reason I say in the subject line that it gets better with age is because this is practically a snapshot of the transition of the "hip" subculture from the late 70's disco era into the early 80's punk era (and the fact that lots of those locales in Southern California no longer exist also make the outdoor scenes rather compelling). It's amazingly stylized and would certainly seem garish and too over-the-top if so much time hadn't passed. The fact that it mixes in movie musical and sound stylings from the 40's through the 60's only makes it all the better. Having a basic understanding of Greek Mythology, the concept of Xanadu and the muses, musical movies, and Gene Kelly himself, goes a long way to providing further appreciation for this very unusual film. (Yeah, it's odd you have to work a bit to really enjoy the film, but the payoff is generally worth it.) It also features a very unusual Don Bluth animation sequence, which is sort of an interesting pre-cursor to what he would do with Dragon's Lair (at least it reminded ME of the same style and theme). Again, not worth the price of admission on its own, but its yet another interesting bit of trivia attached to a film filled with such things.
As for the real reason to get this film - the soundtrack CD that is included - I paid $13.99 for this combo pack and it looks like Amazon now lists it for just $10.99, so you can think of it as getting a discounted classic soundtrack and a movie thrown in. Even if you end up hating the film (understandable), you get the wonderful soundtrack, with Olivia Newton John at her best and a suprisingly good "supporting" cast, like ELO (if you don't find "I'm Alive" kind of uplifting in a sugary kind of way, I feel sorry for you). If that's not value, I don't know what is.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Not a real popular video, more of a cult classic. But, I enjoy the feel good storyline and have enjoyed my purchase. Really love the music.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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