Xanadu

'In Xanadu did Kubla Kahn a stately pleasure dome decree, where Alph, the sacred river, ran through caverns measureless to man down to a sunless sea." - Samuel Taylor Coleridge Sonny Malone (Michael Beck) is an aspiring young artist in LA stuck in a dead-end job enlarging album covers for a local record store. Danny McGuire (Gene Kelly) was a former big band musician in the 1940's. Their paths cross when both encounter Kira (Olivia Newton-John) a Greek muse who inspires them to pool their talents into creating a nightclub. The premise for Xanadu came from the Rita Hayworth movie Down to Earth where she plays the muse Terpsichore (which Kira attempts to tell Sonny is her real name). Oddly enough, Rita also appeared with Gene Kelly in Cover Girl where he plays a character named Danny McGuire. Director Robert Greenwald is better known for documentaries and won a Golden Raspberry award for Worst Director for Xanadu. Besides Oliva Newton-John, ELO and The Tubes provide the songs. Oliva Newton-John had previously scored a hit with the film version of Grease, which is likely why she got chosen for Kira. While there's not much to the character, it's kind of hard not to like her infectious spirit and smile while whizzing around on skates in a chiffon dress. Some might know Michael Beck from The Warriors where he played Swan, leader of the title gang. He seems a bit befuddled here, going through the motions, but still a likeable guy. This would be Gene Kelly's last film other than a few compilations which featured his previous work. He's showing his age here in terms of dance moves but is still the best actor of the film. You might also spot Sandahl Bergman as one of the muses, who had previously appeared in All That Jazz, would go on to play Valeria in Conan the Barbarian. The Pan-Pacific Auditorium stands in for the exterior of Xandu, later dressed up with special effects lights and marquee. The interior was shot on a separate set. The auditorium did once play host to wrestling matches as Danny states in the film as well as various other sports and shows. It's since been destroyed in a fire. Xanadu is pure 1980's, and one of those films you will either like or find a total stinker. It totally embraces the era and LA culture, the roller skating, clothing, colors, lights. At the same time, it pulls in 1940's aspects as well as a bit of 70's rock and country, suggesting maybe these times and music weren't all that different in terms of vibe and what people were expressing with them. The record album of songs did better than the movie on first when released, with a few getting a lot of radio play. The film has since become a bit of cult classic, even inspiring a stage musical parody of it. Though there's a lot one could pick apart about Xanadu, I can't help but getting a nostalgic 80's feeling from it, and it provides some decent music and spectacle for an hour and a half. Not as bad reviews make it out to be, one of those grab some popcorn / check your brain at the door sort of things. 1 like