Author Topic: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Moulin Rouge" (2001)
Zaz 
Title: Manager:
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Registered: Oct '98
40038_Jawa
Date Posted: 6/16 5:09pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Flashdance" (1983)
All I remember is the laid-off steelworkers in "The Full Monty" critiquing her welding style. mischief

 

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Darth_Maul_Sith_Lord 
Registered: Mar '04
22834_Darth Maul
Date Posted: 6/16 5:42pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Flashdance" (1983)
I wouldn't call Flashdance a musical. There isn't one person in it that actually sings or breaks into song. It just had, what some consider, a great soundtrack. It's full of music, but then again so is Top Gun, and I wouldn't call that a musical either.

Just puttin' that out there. You may proceed.

Good flick by the way and JB was smokin' hot in it.

D_M_S_L

 

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RX_Sith 
Registered: Mar '06
42342_Star Wars Monopoly
Date Posted: 6/28 9:56am Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Yentl" (1983)
Yentl (1983).

(from wiki)

Screen adaptation

As early as 1968, Barbra Streisand had expressed interest in a film adaption of Singer's short story. In 1971, First Artists announced Masquerade, written by Jerome Kass and directed by Ivan Passer, would be her next project, but nothing came of it. Eight years later, using the Napolin/Singer play as her source material, she wrote a detailed forty-two page treatment, the first to conceive of the movie version as a musical. A year later, Orion Pictures greenlighted the project, with Jon Peters co-producing and Streisand starring and directing, but soon the studio lost interest.

In 1981, United Artists (currently owned by MGM, which also purchased Orion in 1997) agreed to a $14.5 million budget, with the studio getting final cut approval. British screenwriter Jack Rosenthal and Streisand completed the script, Michel Legrand and Alan and Marilyn Bergman composed the score, and principal photography began in April the following year, with a cast including Mandy Patinkin and Amy Irving. The production wrapped six months later, only 11% over budget.

The following July, United Artists approved the director's cut and, fifteen years after Streisand first contemplated the film, it premiered on November 16, 1983 in New York City and Los Angeles, opened in thirteen theaters in those cities and Toronto two days later, and went into wide release the following month. The film's domestic gross was $39.3 million, with foreign box office adding an additional $22.8 million to the till.

The film veered dramatically from the original short story and play by allowing Yentl to reveal her true feelings for Avigdor and having her return to her female self and sail for the United States at the end.

Except for an incidental melody hummed by Irving during one scene, the solo vocals for all the songs in the film are performed by Streisand in the form of soliloquies. Perhaps the best known of these are "The Way He Makes Me Feel" and "Papa, Can You Hear Me?." Some numbers, such as "This is One of Those Moments" and "Tomorrow Night," are woven intricately into the dialogue and action of their respective scenes. Two of the songs - "The Way He Makes Me Feel" and "No Matter What Happens" - were recorded in studio versions by Streisand and released prior to the film's opening as a form of promotion. Remarkably, Patinkin has sung extensively on stage and made numerous recordings, but Streisand failed to provide a song for him in the film.

The film received a scathing review from Singer. It was subsequently heavily edited to tighten the story; this version has been shown on television and home video.

Film awards and nominations

* Academy Award for Best Original Score (winner)
* Academy Award for Best Art Direction (nominee)
* Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress (Irving, nominee)
* Academy Award for Best Song ("The Way He Makes Me Feel" and "Papa, Can You Hear Me?," nominees)
* Academy Award for Best Costume Design (nominee)
* Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy (winner)
* Golden Globe Award for Best Director (winner)
* Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score (nominee)
* Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Patinkin, nominee)
* Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Streisand, nominee)
* Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song ("The Way He Makes Me Feel," nominee)
* Grammy Award for Best Album of an Original Score Written for A Motion Picture or a Television Special (nominee)
* Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Musical Score (nominee)
* Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor (Streisand, nominee)
* Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress (Irving, nominee)
* Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Special Silver Ribbon for Best New Director of a Foreign Film (winner)

Trivia

* As of June 2006, Yentl remains the only movie to have been nominated for both Best Musical Score at the AMPAS and Worst Musical Score at the Golden Raspberry Awards. In addition, Amy Irving became the first actress to be nominated for an Oscar and a Razzie as Best and Worst Supporting Actress (respectively) for her performance in the same film (The first double nods came to James Coco for Best and Worst Supporting Actor for the movie Only When I Laugh; to this day, Irving and Coco are the only actors to receive both nods for the same performance).
* Yentl was mentioned in the South Park first season episode "Mecha-Streisand". When Leonard Maltin picks up Chef to help track down Barbra Streisand he asks him whether or not he has seen her and Chef replies, "No, not since Yentl."
* Yentl also was referenced in the Drawn Together episode Terms of Endearment when the housemates are playing Pictionary. Spanky Ham has drawn the movie poster for Jaws, and describes the movie as being about "a horrible, violent monster." When the time is up, Spanky claims he was talking about Yentl.
* There is another reference of Yentl in In & Out, during Howard Brackett's (Kevin Kline) bachelor party. One of his friends exclaims: "She (Barbara Streisand) was too old for Yentl!".
* In The Simpsons, Bart hears Nelson sing "Papa, can you hear me?" as he wonders where his father is. He later comments about Lisa (who madly starts swimming in a cake), "Well, at least she's not singing Streisand." Also in the episode "Girls Just Want To Have Sums" when Lisa reveals at the award ceremony that she is a girl one of the students in the audience, more specifically Dolph, one of the three bullies, shouts out "We've been Yentled."
* Yentl is also briefly mentioned in the book 'The Devil's Arithmetic'.

Review (from IMDb.com)

I think this was may be Barbra's best work. The complex social structure of the Jewish religious family is very strict indeed. She wanted to become a person that was recognized for her intelligence and knowledge of the scriptures.This is not allowed as a woman in the orthodox Jewish community at least of that time period. A lot of character interaction and a very good study of human nature. I was both impressed and moved by this work. The only reason I gave it a 9 was the very long length of the film. However I could not pull myself away. The interaction of the characters was done very well. The family sitting at the dinner table speaking of the day's events and the progress of her/his studies of Holy Scripture were dissected talked about and learned at the table. What a paradox from the current day's common house hold with the Television on or near the dinner table. We are entertained instead of interacting with our family.Restricted from possible learning and potential closer relationships with family members,that could play an important role in our future, especially if one of the children of the family.The movie is somewhat deep and very emotional. Get a copy and take an afternoon without interruption, and you will be drawn into it like I was.




Discuss.

 

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JohnWesleyDowney 
Registered: Jan '04
8081_ILM
Date Posted: 6/29 2:26am Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Yentl" (1983) - Date Edited: 6/29 2:32am (3 edits total) Edited By: JohnWesleyDowney
Darth_Maul_Sith_Lord posted:
I wouldn't call Flashdance a musical. There isn't one person in it that actually sings or breaks into song. It just had, what some consider, a great soundtrack. It's full of music, but then again so is Top Gun, and I wouldn't call that a musical either.

Just puttin' that out there. You may proceed.

Good flick by the way and JB was smokin' hot in it.

D_M_S_L



The advertising slogan for FLASHDANCE:

By day, she's a welder.
By night, she's a dancer.

A FRIEND OF MINE WANTED TO KNOW: Really, when does she sleep?

Yentl? Gutsy move by Streisand but I never bought the conceit that anyone could possibly believe she was a young boy. Come on Babs! rolling_eyes

IIRC, SCTV once made fun of Yentl. I think they were holding a fundraising telethon to get donations for the TV station and the phones weren't ringing. The General Manager then threatened that if people didn't call and donate money to the station, he was going run Yentl on the station and the viewers would have to watch Yentl all the time. The phones then starting ringing off the wall and the donations poured in! laugh

 

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Zaz 
Title: Manager:
The Amphitheatre

Registered: Oct '98
40038_Jawa
Date Posted: 6/29 4:38pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Yentl" (1983)
An example of 'star ego obsession', I suppose. Sometimes this turns out at the box office: "The Passion of the Christ" for one; but usually it doesn't: "The Postman" et al.

 

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quiller 
Registered: Jun '05
6290_Air Speeder
Date Posted: 6/30 12:01am Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Yentl" (1983)
Darth_Maul_Sith_Lord posted:
I wouldn't call Flashdance a musical. There isn't one person in it that actually sings or breaks into song. It just had, what some consider, a great soundtrack. It's full of music, but then again so is Top Gun, and I wouldn't call that a musical either.

Just puttin' that out there. You may proceed.

Good flick by the way and JB was smokin' hot in it.

D_M_S_L


One difference though for the most part in this film the actors in character are reacting to the music playing, it is not just soundtrack noise added to enhance our viewing pleasure.

 

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RX_Sith 
Registered: Mar '06
42342_Star Wars Monopoly
Date Posted: 7/14 6:33am Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Footloose" (1984)
Footloose (1984).

(from wiki)



Footloose is a 1984 film that tells the story of Ren McCormack (played by Kevin Bacon), a teenager who was raised in Chicago. McCormack moves to a small town where the town government has banned dancing and rock music. Ren and his classmates want to have a senior prom with music and dancing. They must figure out a way to get around the law and Reverend Shaw Moore (played by John Lithgow) who makes it his mission in life to keep the town free from dancing and rock music.

The movie was loosely based on events that took place in the tiny, rural farming community of Elmore City, Oklahoma. Much of the film was filmed in Utah County.

Taglines

* The music's on his side.
* He's a big city kid in a small town. They said he'd never win. He knew he had to.
* One kid. One town. One chance.
* All he wanted to do was dance.

Production details

Dean Pitchford wrote the screenplay (and most of the music) for Footloose, Herbert Ross directed the movie, and Paramount Pictures co-produced and distributed it.

Oscar winning director Michael Cimino was hired by Paramount to direct the movie when negotiations with Ross initially stalled. After four months working on the film, the studio fired Cimino, who was making extravagant demands for the production, and ended up hiring Ross.

Casting

Footloose also starred Lori Singer as Reverend Moore's independent daughter Ariel, a role Madonna also auditioned for. Dianne Wiest appeared as Vi, the Reverend's devoted yet sympathetic wife.

Footloose is one of the earliest film appearances of Square Pegs star Sarah Jessica Parker as Ariel's friend Rusty, a role for which she was nominated for Best Young Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama at the Sixth Annual Youth in Film Awards. It was also an early role for Chris Penn as Willard Hewitt, Ren's best friend, who doesn't know how to dance until Ren teaches him.

Filming

The film was made at various locations in Utah County. The high school and tractor scenes were filmed in and around Payson, Utah. The church scenes were filmed in American Fork, Utah. The steel mill was the Geneva Steel mill. The final sequence is filmed in Lehi, Utah, with the Lehi Roller Mills featured in the final sequence.

Cast

* Kevin Bacon as Ren McCormack
* Lori Singer as Ariel Moore
* John Lithgow as Reverend Shaw Moore
* Dianne Wiest as Vi Moore
* Chris Penn as Willard Hewitt III
* Sarah Jessica Parker as Rusty
* John Laughlin as Woody
* Elizabeth Gorcey as Wendy Jo
* Frances Lee McCain as Ethel McCormack
* Jim Youngs as Chuck Cranston

Soundtrack

* 01. " Footloose" - Kenny Loggins
* 02. "Let's Hear It for the Boy" - Deneice Williams
* 03. "Almost Paradise" (Love Theme) - Mike Reno (Loverboy) & Ann Wilson (Heart)
* 04. "Holding Out for a Hero" - Bonnie Tyler
* 05. "Dancing In The Sheets" - Shalamar
* 06. "I'm Free (Heaven Helps the Man)" - Kenny Loggins
* 07. "Somebody's Eyes" - Karla Bonoff
* 08. "The Girl Gets Around" - Sammy Hagar
* 09. "Never" - Moving Pictures

Two songs from the movie, "Footloose" by Kenny Loggins and "Let's Hear It for the Boy" by Deniece Williams both hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and received 1985 Academy Award nominations for Best Music (Original Song). The song "Footloose" also received a 1985 Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Original Song – Motion Picture.

The movie's soundtrack was released in compact cassette, gramophone record, and compact disc format. The soundtrack was also re-released on compact disc for the 15th anniversary of the film. The re-release included four new songs: "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" by Quiet Riot, "Hurts So Good" by John Cougar Mellencamp, "Waiting for a Girl Like You" by Foreigner, and the extended 12" remix of "Dancing in the Sheets". The soundtrack includes two rock singles, the title song by Kenny Loggins and "Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler, three R&B singles, "Let's Hear It For the Boy" by Deniece Williams, "Somebody's Eyes" by Karla Bonoff, and "Dancing In the Sheets" by Shalamar and the love theme "Almost Paradise" by Mike Reno from Loverboy and Ann Wilson from Heart. The film was later released in VHS, Laserdisc and DVD formats, Some of the music for the songs where composed by people such as Sammy Hagar, Eric Carmen, Jim Steinman and Kenny Loggins and the soundtrack went on to sell over 9 million copies in the USA.

The entire soundtrack was covered by indie artist Doveman, and is available for free download on his website.

Reception

The film, despite mixed critical reviews, nonetheless grossed approximately $80,000,000 in domestic box office.

Musical version

Main article: Footloose (musical)

A musical version of Footloose that features many of the same songs from the movie is played at the Playhouse Theatre in London's West End. The musical is generally faithful to the film version, with some slight differences in the story and characters.

Remake

Slated for a 2009 release, Paramount Pictures has announced plans to remake Footloose. Zac Efron will be the lead in the new movie.




Discuss.

 

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Zaz 
Title: Manager:
The Amphitheatre

Registered: Oct '98
40038_Jawa
Date Posted: 7/14 1:53pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Footloose" (1984)
A very silly film.

 

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The_Smirking_Revenge 
Registered: Jul '08
22677_Anakin's Lightsaber
Date Posted: 7/14 4:09pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Footloose" (1984)
I don't consider this a musical, in the traditional sense. Have to admit, I will watch it when it comes on, if the mood strikes. Guilty pleasure.

-T_S_R

 

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JohnWesleyDowney 
Registered: Jan '04
8081_ILM
Date Posted: 7/14 7:20pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Footloose" (1984)


The scenes of Kevin Bacon teaching Christopher Penn how to dance are classic.

 

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ApolloSmileGirl 
Registered: Jun '04
17655_Padme Waves Goodbye
Date Posted: 7/15 5:34am Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Footloose" (1984)
The_Smirking_Revenge posted:
I don't consider this a musical, in the traditional sense.
I don't consider it a musical period. It's one of a zillion 80s films that a ton of scenes back with music, but that's totally different than a traditional musical.

It is an enjoyable movie though, and it's fun to watch Kevin Bacon trying to play a teenager when he was a college freshman in Animal House.

 

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The_Smirking_Revenge 
Registered: Jul '08
22677_Anakin's Lightsaber
Date Posted: 7/15 1:19pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "Footloose" (1984)
ApolloSmileGirl posted:
The_Smirking_Revenge posted:
I don't consider this a musical, in the traditional sense.
I don't consider it a musical period. It's one of a zillion 80s films that a ton of scenes back with music, but that's totally different than a traditional musical.

It is an enjoyable movie though, and it's fun to watch Kevin Bacon trying to play a teenager when he was a college freshman in Animal House.


Well, then we agree. In fact the last couple of flicks posted here were not musicals. But there are sensitive ears and eyes about, so one must watch what one says. Unfortunately it's too easy to unintentionally provoke conflicts around here.

-T_S_R

 

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RX_Sith 
Registered: Mar '06
42342_Star Wars Monopoly
Date Posted: 7/29 7:14am Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "A Chorus Line" (1985)
A Chorus Line (1985).

(from wiki)



A Chorus Line is a 1985 American musical film directed by Richard Attenborough. The screenplay by Arnold Schulman is based on the Tony Award-winning book of the 1975 stage production of the same name by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante. The songs were composed by Edward Kleban (lyrics) and Marvin Hamlisch (music).

Plot synopsis

A group of dancers congregate on the stage of a Broadway theatre to audition for a new musical production directed by Zach. After the initial eliminations, seventeen hopefuls remain, among them Cassie, who once had a tempestuous romantic relationship with Zach. She is desperate enough for work to humble herself and audition for him; whether he's willing to let professionalism overcome his personal feelings about their past remains to be seen.

As the film unfolds, the back story of each of the dancers is revealed. Some are funny, some ironic, some heartbreaking. No matter what their background, however, they all have one thing in common - a passion for dance.

Production notes

Following the smash success of the Broadway production, Hollywood producers expressed interest in a motion picture version of the musical. Many directors turned down the project, insisting that not only was A Chorus Line too beloved, but it would not translate well to the screen. Even Michael Bennett, the stage musical's director, declined to participate when his proposal to present the film as an audition to cast the movie version of the stage play, instead of a literal translation of the play, was rejected. When Attenborough accepted the project, there was some apprehension as to the treatment the British director would give the musical's quintessentially American story.

The decision to tamper with the score disappointed fans of the show. "Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen, Hello Love," "Sing!," and "The Music and the Mirror" were deleted and new songs "Surprise, Surprise" and "Let Me Dance For You" were added. The show's breakout tune, "What I Did for Love," originally was performed as a paean to dancers and their dedication to their craft. In the film it becomes a love song delivered by Cassie to Zach.

The stage musical was one of the first to address the subject of homosexuality, but most overt references to it were eliminated from the film.

The dance numbers were staged by choreographer Jeffrey Hornaday.

Principal cast

* Michael Douglas ..... Zach
* Alyson Reed ..... Cassie
* Michael Blevins ..... Mark Tobori
* Yamil Borges ..... Diana Morales
* Jan Gan Boyd ..... Connie Wong
* Sharon Brown ..... Kim
* Gregg Burge ..... Richie Walters
* Cameron English ..... Paul San Marco
* Tony Fields ..... Al DeLuca
* Nicole Fosse ..... Kristine Evelyn Erlich-DeLuca
* Vicki Frederick ..... Sheila Bryant
* Michelle Johnston ..... Bebe Benson
* Janet Jones ..... Judy Monroe
* Pam Klinger ..... Maggie Winslow
* Audrey Landers ..... Val Clarke
* Terrence Mann ..... Larry
* Charles McGowan ..... Mike Cass
* Justin Ross ..... Greg Gardner
* Blane Savage ..... Don
* Matt West ..... Bobby

Soundtrack

* "I Hope I Get It" --contains new sections of music not in the original stage version
* "Who Am I Anyway?" --Paul's solo, originally part of "I Hope I Get It"
* "I Can Do That"
* "At the Ballet" --the soundtrack contains an extended version not heard in the film
* "Surprise, Surprise" --replaces "Hello 12, Hello 13, Hello Love", although one verse of the song is heard in the film. The monologues of Mark, Connie, Judy, and Greg which are part of this number are performed in other parts of the film sans music.
* "Nothing"
* "Let Me Dance for You"--replaces Cassie's "The Music and the Mirror", although part of the instrumental section remains the same
* "Dance: Ten; Looks: Three"
* "What I Did for Love" --sung counterpoint to the Tap Combination. In the stage version, the company performs the number
* "One" (Finale)

The songs "And...", "Sing!", and "The Tap Combination" from the stage version are eliminated in the film, as well as most of "The Montage" (Hello 12, Hello 13, Hello Love)

Critical reception

In his review in the New York Times, Vincent Canby observed, "Though it was generally agreed that Hair would not work as a film, Milos Forman transformed it into one of the most original pieces of musical cinema of the last 20 years. Then they said that A Chorus Line couldn't be done - and this time they were right . . . Mr. Attenborough has elected to make a more or less straightforward film version that is fatally halfhearted."

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times stated, "The result may not please purists who want a film record of what they saw on stage, but this is one of the most intelligent and compelling movie musicals in a long time - and the most grown up, since it isn't limited, as so many contemporary musicals are, to the celebration of the survival qualities of geriatric actresses."

Variety said, "Chorus often seems static and confined, rarely venturing beyond the immediate. Attenborough merely films the stage show as best he could. Nonetheless, the director and lenser Ronnie Taylor have done an excellent job working within the limitations, using every trick they could think of to keep the picture moving. More importantly, they have a fine cast, good music and a great, popular show to work with. So if all they did was get it on film, that's not so bad."

Time Out London says, "The grit and drive of the original have been dissipated into studiously unkempt glitz as empty as plasticised pop . . . It's too corny and unbelievable for words."

Nominations

* Academy Award for Best Original Song ("Surprise, Surprise")
* Academy Award for Best Film Editing
* Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing
* Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
* Golden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion Picture
* BAFTA Award for Best Sound
* BAFTA Award for Best Editing




Discuss.

 

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Zaz 
Title: Manager:
The Amphitheatre

Registered: Oct '98
40038_Jawa
Date Posted: 7/29 12:14pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "A Chorus Line" (1985)
A great hit on the stage and great flop on the screen.

Haven't seen it.

 

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Thrawn1786 
Registered: Feb '04
13894_Black Sun
Date Posted: 7/29 7:24pm Subject: RE: The Movie Musicals Thread: Now Dis. "A Chorus Line" (1985)
I have a very mixed opinion on this film. It's not bad, but there are parts that I find highly irritating, such as:

-replacing "Hello 12, Hello 13, Hello Love" with "Surprise Surprise." The former song is hilarious-every teenager in the world can identify with the lyrics-while the latter is flat out embarrassing. I skip over it every time I watch the DVD.

-putting so much emphasis on Cassie. I have yet to see it on-stage, but based on different things I've read, while she does get attention in the stage version, it's not as much as in the movie. They constantly take away from the other dancers to focus on her- "I Can Do That!" is a great opener regarding the dancers tell their story part of the plot, but in the film what do we see for a good chunk? Cassie. Also, to be really nitpicky- why why why did they change her costume? Cassie's red leotard and skirt is one of the most famous costumes in Broadway history, yet in the film she wears a plain-jane lavender leotard which makes her hard to pick out of the group. Yes, I know the film Cassie has red hair, but so what? Picturing it in my mind, honestly the real costume would not have looked bad on her.

-replacing "The Music and the Mirror" with "Let Me Dance for You." Again, the same situation as "Hello Twelve"/"Surprise Surprise".....overall, "The Music and the Mirror" is the superior of the two, and a real showstopper for any Cassie who can handle it. It just seems like a cheap cop-out to replace it.

-giving the song "What I Did for Love" to Cassie. The song was never about relationships, it was all about a love of dancing-Diana's way of addressing the question "What would you do if you couldn't dance anymore?" While normally I don't mind putting a new spin on a song, to so completely change the attitude of the song here is wrong when the whole show is supposed to be about dancing and how much these people are willing to give and do because they love it so much.

Aside from those parts, as well as the cutting of a few other songs, overall the film is not bad.....but if you have a copy of the OBCR or the recent revival recording, you will not like it too much.

 

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