Monday At The Movies (& Theater) & Eye Candy

Monday's Movie hosted by Sheri at A Novel Menagerie

Movie: Grease (1978)
Genre: ‎Comedy, Romance, Musical
MPAA Rating: G
Directed By: Randal Kleiser
Writers: Jim Jacobs & Warren Casey (musical) & Allan Carr (adaptation) & Bronte Woodard (screenplay)
Rating: 5 Bags of Popcorn (Just Because)

I couldn't be more excited. It was my first day on campus. My first day in my dorm room. I was a freshman in college. My parents and I had just said our goodbyes, my mom and I in tears. A sudden wave of loneliness washed over me. I turned to my trusty old television set with the rabbit ears antenna and discovered the reception was horrible. Amidst all the channels I tried, I found one where the white noise was bearable even if the picture was not coming through. The sounds from the movie Grease filled the room.

A young woman heard the music coming from my doorway and stopped in to say hello. Like me, she was alone at this new school with no friends or acquaintances. At least not until that moment. We got to talking and suddenly I felt better. I am sure she did too.

I cannot remember the first time I saw the movie. I only know it has always been one of my favorite musical films. Even though I sometimes still huff about the fact that Sandy ended up having to turn into a "bad girl" to get her man, I have never lost my love for the music and story.

When I got the opportunity to see the stage production of the musical earlier this month, I was floating in the clouds. I worried that it would be a let down having grown up on the movie. Could I get past the fact that Olivia Newton John and John Travolta would not be playing Sandy and Danny? And what about Stockard Channing? No one can replace her as Betty Rizzo. Still, the opportunity to see the performance live was too good to pass up.

I had not known the history behind the musical in its original incarnation. I had not known that changes were made, songs added, when the movie version of the musical came out in 1978. Although it really should not have come as a surprise. Jim Jacobs, one of the writers, put in bits of his own life, people from his past into the musical. The T-Birds were based on the Burger Palace Boys, a real life gang in Chicago.

I wish I had been able to see the musical in its original form, although I imagine it would not be quite the same--it probably wouldn't have felt quite right to me, having only known the film version. The stage production my husband and I enjoyed the weekend before last was more closely based on the film, although it was, in some ways, still true to its roots. True to Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey's dream, the stage production is more about the gang--the group as a whole--then it is about the individuals.

My husband and I had a great time. It was hard not to sing along (silently) and smile throughout the show. The performers did a wonderful job. I wished I could be right there with them on the stage.

American Idol fans might be interested to know that American Idol Taylor Hicks played the part of the Teen Angel. I have to admit that Beauty School Drop Out is my least favorite song in the film, and even after the stage show, it is still among my least favorites, Taylor Hicks notwithstanding. He did a fine job, just the same. I missed the season of American Idol in which he won and so wasn't familiar with him all that much, other than in name. The crowd in the theater went wild when he came on stage--it's obvious he has fans out there. After the show, he came out and performed a single from his new album, From a Distance. Both my husband and I were impressed.

One of the parts of the show I enjoyed the most was when Dominic Fortuna came onto the stage 10 minutes before the start of the show. He was in his role of Vince Fontaine, radio DJ. He was a hoot. He had us all laughing, waving our arms, dancing in our seats and having a fun time. It was a fantastic way to start off the show.

Musical: Grease
Genre: ‎Comedy, Romance, Musical
Directed By: Kathleen Marshall (Director and Choreographer) & Tom Whiddon (Music)
Writers: Jim Jacobs & Warren Casey

---

The Monday Movie Meme is brought to you by The Bumbles.

This week's movie topic is all about Eye Candy . . .

We all appreciate quality filmmaking, but sometimes you just want to appreciate the image on the screen, and we're not talking about the cinematography! There are times when an actor or actress is put in the film purely for their looks and then there are times when they win the role purely on acting chops but their physical presence is distracting anyway. Here are some examples of our favorites. What about you?

Orlando Bloom as Legolas Greenleaf from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy














Viggo Mortenson as Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy














Paul Bettany (I especially liked him in Inkheart where he plays the part of Dustfinger)














Will Smith (Do I have to specify a movie? He's good to look at in anything he does!)














Johnny Depp (Even when in character, as crazy looking as can be, there's still something mesmerizing about this man in any role he plays.)







Jeffrey Dean Morgan in P.S. I Love You (Okay, so I am more a fan of his in his television appearances: Supernatural and Grey's Anatomy. But still. )














Naveen Andrews (I adore this guy on the television show Lost. But he was in The Brave One and Bride and Prejudice, both of which I saw and enjoyed, and so I'm sneaking him in on a technicality.)














Daniel Dae Kim (Same goes for Daniel Dae Kim. I don't remember him at all in Crash--although I loved the movie--or in Spiderman 2, another movie I really liked, but he was there. IMDB says so!)