Scenes We Love: Xanadu
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Fandom, Scenes We Love
I think we can all agree that the 1980 roller-disco romance Xanadu isn't exactly what most people would call the height of film making achievement. But as a 5-year-old girl (yeah, I watched movies at a really young age -- strange, I know), it was possibly the best thing I had ever seen. The story of a young artist named Sonny (played by Michael Beck) slaving away recreating album covers (is that even a job?) and the muse who inspires him to pack it in to start the roller disco of his dreams may have been a huge success on the Billboard charts, but the film barely broke even at the box-office -- my god, the spandex budget alone would have bankrupted the production. Of course, none of that mattered to me as I watched Olivia Newton-John glide across the floor to the tunes of E.L.O.
So in a movie chock full of guilty pleasures, the scene in which Gene Kelly and Beck envision their perfect club is by far my favorite. Combining a big band sound with the new wave rock of The Tubes may sound like a horrible idea on paper, but when you watched those worlds collide on stage it took two great songs and turned them into one. guess you could say this was my introduction to the mash-up.
Xanadu Fun Facts:
- The film was an unofficial remake of the 1947 film Down to Earth starring Rita Hayworth.
- John Wilson was inspired to create the Razzie Awards after catching Xanadu playing on a 99-cent double-feature with Can't Stop the Music.
- Andy Gibb was originally cast to play Sonny.
- Xanadu was Gene Kelly's last musical performance.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-08-2009 @ 9:23PM
Argent said...
4 things about 'xanadu' have stuck with me always:
1. michael beck was awful. pretty much just wrecked most of the movie for me. wooden, uninspired, flat -- all terms that would describe his performance and still be understated.
2. gene kelly. he almost effortlessly dominates every scene he was in. the first time you see him, he's playing his clarinet on the beach and while some people would seem pretentious doing that, he was just effortlessly cool. even in silly frippery like the 'dress-up' montage, you just can't deny that he looks like he's having a gas. the man was a treasure, imo.
3. the don bluth animation sequence. like the original poster, my favorite sequence was the 'merger of ideas' that beck and kelly have midway through the movie -- it's a simply spectacular scene in composition and orrganization, but rather than to highlight it further, i'll mention my 2nd favorite sequence instead -- the animated scene set to 'don't walk away' by ELO (imo, their best song on the soundtrack.) it's typical bluth animation of that period (which is to say it was quite good, but the visual style used on the characters is quite obviously bluth.) it's like a music video in it's own weird way...wonder if it's on youtube....ayup: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRTVi7rH_zs
4. the soundtrack as a whole is quite good. really curious how they staged it all in the broadway play (no gene kelly, though...)
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4-09-2009 @ 6:15AM
MCW said...
Funny that you mention the album cover job Jessica... so many things about this movie were ridiculous and stupid... that one was definitely one of them.
Also, Gene Kelly SUCKED in this movie. Anytime he was onscreen, I was waiting for more Olivia... his backstory had no place in the "movie". He and Michael Beck are two of the worst actors I've ever seen. Possibly the worst.
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4-09-2009 @ 10:08PM
Liz said...
I was 11 when this movie came out so must have been 12 or so when it played endless times on HBO, and I probably watched every single showing. Even today, the listening to the soundtrack brings a goofy smile to my face. I agree that Gene Kelly brought class to the film, as he did to every one he made. I didn't know Andy Gibb was supposed to play the male lead! I would have enjoyed watching him in it, though I doubt he would have been a better actor than Michael Beck.
Thinking about this movie makes me want to see it again!
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