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GREASE
Rockin' Rydell Edition
Review by Michael Jacobson
Stars:
John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing, Jeff Conaway, Didi
Conn
Director: Randal Kleiser
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby
Surround
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1
Studio: Paramount
Features: See Review
Length: 110 Minutes
Release Date: September 19, 2006
“Danny…is
this the end?”
“Of
course not. It’s only the
beginning.”
It’s
almost thirty years later, and Grease is still the word.
When
my contemporaries and I were kids, we had Jaws, we had Star Wars…but
really, there was no event picture like Grease. We knew nothing about the 50s, but we knew we liked the
music. We knew nothing about high
school, but we knew we liked the people in it.
And we knew nothing about romance, but I’ll be damned if every girl I
knew didn’t have as big a crush on John Travolta as the guys did on Olivia
Newton-John. I’m not ashamed to
say, I was (and still am) one of the latter.
Saturday
Night Fever may
have been a little out of our league at that age, but Grease was right up
our alley. In those days, the radio
pumped out song after song from the double-album soundtrack, and we spent our
summer nights singing “Summer Nights”, “You’re the One That I
Want”, and even “Greased Lightning”, though we didn’t realize what words
we were singing and surprisingly, never got in trouble for singing them…
Looking
back at Grease through grown up eyes, I could say that no, it’s not a
perfect film. What we didn’t
realize as kids is painfully obvious now…everyone in the movie is too damn old
to be a high school student! The
plot is thin and contrived, and the final message debatable…is it necessary
for a good girl to turn bad to get her man?
But
what I’d really rather say is that no matter how old I get, this is a movie
that still enthralls me. It has an
energy and a vitality that leaps off the screen. The cast, though a bit too old, is still perfection in the
way they work together and elevate one another to better heights.
No moment that could be REALLY funny was left at “sort of” funny, and
no moment that could explode was left to just sizzle.
With
John Travolta’s resurgence in the 90s, it’s hard to imagine there was a
lengthy lull between heydays for him. Grease
was always a reminder, even in his drier spells, of what a tremendous star
he was. He sings, he dances, he
invests Danny Zuko with charisma and charm, making him an all-time standard for
bad boys with good hearts.
But
Olivia Newton-John was just as luminous in her first major role.
Every guy I knew wanted Sandy Olsen for his girlfriend, and her
leather-clad finale just might have been our first indication that there were
hormones raging in our bodies that we never knew about!
The Aussie pop star was the equal of her more experienced co-stars in
every way…and man, oh, man…that voice…
Coming
from one of the most successful shows ever to run on Broadway, producers Robert
Stigwood and Allan Carr, along with director Randal Kleiser weren’t shy about
taking stage material and making it cinematic.
Some new and unforgettable songs were even injected into the catalog,
from Olivia’s heartbreaking “Hopelessly Devoted to You” to the dynamic
duet of “You’re the One That I Want”.
Oh, and how could we forget the brand new theme song crooned by Frankie
Valli and penned by Barry Gibb?
The
music made it fun, but the cast made it energetic. From the aforementioned stars to the smaller roles, like Jeff
Conaway as Kenicke and Stockard Channing as Rizzo (who could ever forget her
“Sandra Dee” number?), to the seasoned veterans like Sid Caesar and Eve
Arden, they made Rydell come alive. And
it’s stayed alive for more than a quarter of a century.
It
was the time, it was the place, it was the motion.
And Grease is still the way we are feeling.
Video
****
“It’s
ELECTRIFYING!”
What a fantastic anamorphic transfer! Fans can rejoice…Grease looks better than ever on DVD. The colors are rich, pure and plentiful, images are sharp, crisp and clear, and the print itself is in top condition. You’ll have to look hard in Danny and Sandy’s pullback shot after “Summer Nights” to see the only noticeable bit of age-related dinginess, but that’s about it. Light scenes look great, dark scenes look great…the youth of the cast is really the only indication of how old the film really is.
Audio
***
“Rock
and roll is here to stay!”
The
foremost comment on this 5.1 mix? The
songs sound FANTASTIC. Some
dialogue oriented scenes may come across a trifle thin now and again, but when
those musical numbers kick in, it’s sonic heaven.
The rear stage, though not getting much discreet use, fills out the tunes
for an enveloping listening experience. The
.1 channel is limited…I think it only kicked on when the Scorpions’ car lit
up and during Sha-Na-Na’s first song, but the open orchestration of the songs
are the real treat…drums, bass, horns, piano and vocals will fill your home
theatre. High marks.
Features ****
“How
low can you go?”
A lot of extras this time around, friends...some of them aren't even listed on the box!
I have to start with the packaging...can you believe the DVD is dressed in a black T-Birds jacket? Too cool, and too funny. But that's just the beginning. You can watch the movie with a commentary track by director Randall Kleiser and choreographer Patricia Birch, or you can choose to sing-along: pick one of 11 songs to sing along to, or activate the feature and just sing along when your favorite tune comes up in the movie!
There are also 11 deleted/extended scenes with an optional introduction by Kleiser. There are featurettes on the cars of the movie and the dancing. There's a featurette on the 25th anniversary of the movie, and a new "The Time, The Place, The Feeling" retrospective, featuring interviews with Travolta, Newton-John and more, plus even cooler: some then-current interviews with both of the young stars!
Rounding out is a trailer and photo gallery.
Summary:
