OliviaNewton-john Tagged Articles at Cinematical
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.
Quickhits: Darrell Hammond Loves Dogs, Sale for Office Girl, More for Disturbia, Xanadu Heads to the Stage
Filed under: Drama », Independent », Music & Musicals », Thrillers », Casting », Deals », Fox Searchlight », Family Films », Newsstand », Remakes and Sequels », Cinematical Indie »
Today's odds and ends:- Now that Bill Clinton is out of the public eye, Darrell Hammond is so desperate for work that he's agreed to appear in a movie in which he'll play second-fiddle to a dog. Directed by Alan Shapiro (of The Crush "fame"), the film is called Frank, and "centers on an abandoned dog who ingratiates himself with a family vacationing on an idyllic island." Poor Darrell.
- The latest movie headed to the stage is none other than Xanadu, the completely kick ass Olivia Newton-John roller-skating musical that all the cool kids try to pretend they don't like. Liars. Don't even try to tell me you can resist this movie - come on, people, that's Gene Kelly! (Unfortunately, we're going to have to wait until 2007 to see the stage version, dammit all.) Until then, we can simulate the experience by humming Magic, and trying to find a way to see the world through a thin layer of dreamy gauze.
- Great news for Shia LaBeouf: he's not going to have to act all alone in Disturbia. Carrie-Anne Moss, David Morse, and Sara Roemer have all been added to the cast of D.J. Caruso's thriller. Without reading anything more than the cast list and based entirely on how scary he is, I think it's safe to assume that Morse plays the bad guy. And yeah, he does. In case you've forgotten, the film tells the story of a troubled high school student (that's Shia) who "becomes convinced that his neighbor [Morse, of course] is a serial killer." It's scheduled to begin shooting this week.
- Playwright/The Office star Mindy Kaling recently sold a pitch - something about sororities - to Fox Searchlight's new teen division. (A teen division? Are we suffering from a shortage of teen movies, or something?) Seriously, the sorority setting is all the detail Variety has. If all you have to do to sell a pitch is name a place where young boobs often are, I'm so packing my bags. "College bar!" "Model apartment!" "Fashion show!" Hollywood, here I come.
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