Musicals & Music Films > Opera & Operetta Musicals & Music Films > 1992

Advantages: Camp and Cheesy Fun
Disadvantages: Crappy story

(film only review) On my last trip to Broadway, I was lucky enough (you may think I'm strange) to get tickets to see the stage version of 'Xanadu', lovingly ripped off from the 1980's film, starring Olivia Newton John. I hadn't seen the film before, so didn't really know what to expect, except that I knew how the main 'Xanadu' tune went. Well, I absolutely loved it, it was so bad that it was fabulous! The girl playing the ONJ character was ...
...with 80s retro gusto…anyway, that's another review altogether, what was my point? Oh yes, well, having loved that, we hopped off to Virgin megastore (they're not Zavvi stateside yet, phew) and bought the DVD…and last night we watched it…but, um, it kinda sucked! So, on with the story…Struggling Artist, Sonny (Michael Beck) from the West Coast bumps into a roller-skating girlie, Kira (Olivia Newton John), but then she vanishes. Oh no! He can't find ... Read review

Advantages: A great musical for the family
Disadvantages: Eliza's screech!!!!!!!!!

My Fair Lady is a musical that I really love to watch. It was produced in 1964 and stars Audrey Hepburn in the lead role of Eliza Doolittle but is still an enjoyable watch today. My Fair Lady is quite simply a rags to riches story whereby Eliza Doolittle, a cockney flower girl, is spotted by the supremely assured phoneticist Henry Higgins. The reason behind his noticing of her is her somewhat coarse cockney accent, which does raise quite a few laughs ...
...adds a certain something but my favourite songs simply have to be "Why can't the English?" and "Wouldn't it be Loverly", which are performed right at the beginning of the film. My reasoning for this is that these two musical performances showcase the differences between the speech of the two lead characters in a humorous and quite frankly brilliant way. Of Course the cast itself are also very important and again seem to have been superbly picked ... Read review

Advantages: Amazing music - I found myself singing along.
Disadvantages: None. Except maybe I now want one of those pedal cars

I first saw Bugsy Malone when I was in school... so many years ago now and recently had the pleasure of watching it again. And it hadn't lost any of its charm. If anything I enjoyed watching it even more as an adult as I had as a child. It works on so many levels and I think that having had exposure to more "adult" gangster movies like the Godfather and Goodfellas showed you just how perfectly they had caught the nuances of the organised crime culture ...
...run of the roost. And the musical numbers are vastly superior to most musicals I have seen. Great acting from everyone in this movie, as well as a young Jodie Foster, who does an amazing turn as the child equivalent of a gangster's moll. The use of custard pies instead of guns just highlights the absurdity of violence to a completely different level than I have ever seen before in a movie - or maybe I am reading into it too much and it was just a ... Read review

Advantages: Beautifully shot and beautifully acted... if not beautifully sung
Disadvantages: Maybe lacked depth

...of blood that erupt from Sweeney Todd's victims throats. All good fun and exectuted perfectly. It's definitely one to watch. And to watch again. Very tempted to buy the soundtrack, too. And watch out for a great cameo from Sacha Baron Cohen - who is better known for his role of Borat or Ali G. ... Read review

Advantages: GETS THE TOES TAPPING
Disadvantages: TO MUCH MESS

...cast: Scott Baio ... Bugsy Malone Florrie Dugger ... Blousey Brown Jodie Foster ... Tallulah John Cassisi ... Fat Sam Martin Lev ... Dandy Dan Paul Murphy ... Leroy Smith / Gangster Sheridan Earl Russell ... Knuckles (as Sheridan Russell) Albin 'Humpty' Jenkins ... Fizzy Paul Chirelstein ... Smolsky / Boxer Andrew Paul ... O'Dreary Davidson Knight ... Cagey Joe Michael Jackson ... Razamataz Jeffrey Stevens ... Louis Peter Holder ... Ritzy Donald ...
...ever where the main man bugsy has fallen for a dancer at fat sam's by the name of Blousey Brown but the lead lady and fats sams own gal wants bugsy for her self, bugsy is a boxer and trainer in this film songs and music; there is music all the way through this film songs included a few are Hat sams grad slam hes a siner bugsy malone So you want to be a boxer My name isTtallulah I want to be a dancer and many more my favourate secne well ... Read review