Xanadu - Magical Musical Edition (With Complete Soundtrack CD) Reviews

• Xanadu Your Neon Lights Will Shine

  
  By A2F8R40Z2OMIJM on 1999-10-07
  I LOVE this movie. Why talk about how bad it is? Because it is VERY bad. It's so bad it's good! Whose idea was it to merge fading musical star Gene Kelly with 80's pop sensation Olivia Newton John??? Throw in some ELO music and some neon special effects and you've got XANADU. Oh, it's fabulous!! Roller skating, off-the-shoulder 80's dresses, long hair, leg warmers.... This is XANADU. The storyline is negligable. You just wait till they get to the next song! The choreography is that Kenny Ortega 80's stuff. Look for Matt Latanzi (Olivia's ex) as a dancer in the background. By the time this movie gets to it's roller-skating in the round finale, you will be rocking! (The dancers/rollers chant: "Xanadu! Xanadu!" and perform some sort of choreographed hand-jive movements! I want to learn those moves!) Enjoy it, y'all. Like the song says: "Now that you're here, now that you're near ... Xanadu!"
  
  

• XANADU IS A GEM!

  
  By A3VX7S2Q6HZGEN on 2004-01-24
  Xanadu did exactly what it was supposed to do - entertain and make you imagine what it would be like to have a muse like Olivia breathe life into your dreams and have a sugar-daddy like Gene finance them! This movie was not supposed to provoke political though, cure world-hunger or make you a better person. It was created to make you dream, for your mind to be mesmerized by the colors, the music and the beauty of its entirety. The music was great, the plot was cute, and while today many might laugh at the roller-boogie of the last scene, it takes me back to my high school years where going to the rink was THE thing to do! Thank you Olivia, Gene and ELO for making a movie and music that I still enjoy to this day!!!!!
  
  

• Let Me Give You Kiddies a Little History Lesson

  
  By A1COG8T9MPP3KA on 2003-11-04
  All the people that say the plot makes no sense, and they didn't know what was going on, need to read this review. To truly enjoy this movie, you have to be educated on black and white musicals, poetry, and greek mythology.
  First of all I will explain the origins of the word "Xanadu".
  In 1797 there was a poet named Samuel Coleridge who lived by himself. He was asleep, after taking a dose of Opium and washing it down with alcohol. In his dreams appeared a beautiful woman, (he later called her a muse) reciting a beautiful poem. Alas, a knock at the door from a friend broke him out of his dream, and he rushed to his table to write down what he could remember. The result was a poem titled "Kubla Khan"
  In the poem, there is a heavenly place called XANADU, where there is eternal love and happiness. The word has sense been adopted to mean "heaven".
  The movie is based on this poem. When Kira appears to a bewildered Gene Kelly, and tells him to call his new club XANADU, and together they recite the first lines of the poem KUBLA KHAN.
  Now the reason Gene Kelly is in this film is because Kira has appeared in his life in the 1940's. She returns to help him out again, to inspire his dying ambitions, by inspiring him to open another music club. However he will need someone young and hip to help him out. So Kira also inspires Sonny Malone to quit his bland painting job and use his talents towards his dream. Therefore Kira brings the 2 men together.
  Xanadu is a remake of a film titled "Down To Earth" starring Rita Hayworth. Rita also appears as a muse to inspire people to follow their dreams.
  Gene kelly's character "Danny McGuire" was actually the name of Gene's character in the 1944 film "Covergirl".
  If you are well read on Greek Mythology, you will know there are muses who represent the arts. They are called for in times of need to help inspire an artist's dying ambitions. Therefore the opening scene where the muses are coming out of the wall serves as a window between their world and ours.
  Another good tidbit to know about the film, Andy Gibb was suppose to be the male star, not Michael Beck. Andy apparently was in ill health at the time and couldn't be insured by the company.
  Xanadu was a film I saw as a 9 year old child. I had been severely injured and could not walk. I was hopeless and depressed. Then one night, Xanadu made its cable debut. I was carried into the living room to watch it (I couldn't walk). I had never seen Olivia Newton-John before, and I was mesmerized by the most incredible woman I had ever seen, dancing and singing through this magical fairy tale. My life had been hum drum up to that point, and the magic, glitz, animation, and music from this film made me want to get up. I was so anxious to walk and rollerskate (LOL) that I was up in no time walking around. I will forever love this movie and how a "muse" called Olivia inspired me to live again.
  
  

• the ultimate guilty pleasure musical

  
  By ABH4G7TVI6G2T on 2002-03-18
  XANADU is a harmless, fluffy little musical from the 80's, and is a guilty pleasure movie that sits right up there with DIRTY DANCING and FOOTLOOSE in terms of being dorky but charming.

  Let's take a trip back in time...to a time when legwarmers, headbands and stonewash jeans were in vogue....oh no! It's the 80's!

  XANADU tells the story of aspiring artist Sonny Malone (Michael Beck - THE WARRIORS) who has the dream but lacks the spirit to make the dream a reality. Enter roller-skating muse, Kira (Olivia Newton-John - GREASE) who enflames Sonny's desires as well as invigorating his creative juices.

  Along the way, Sonny meets aged clarinet player Danny McGuire (Gene Kelly - AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, INVITATION TO THE DANCE) and together they decide to turn an abandoned old nickelodeon into a roller-skate disco called...you guessed it...Xanadu.

  Of course, the main highlight of the film is the great soundtrack from ELO and Olivia Newton-John, while her skimpy outfits are a big attraction, too!

  A forgotten classic.
  
  

• Full Length Music Video

  
  By ATQII8OCKV6TW on 2000-09-08
  Xanadu, Why do people criticize you so? All you ever wanted was to make people sing along, throw on a pair of roller skates, and boogie with Olivia Newton-John and ELO!

  I LOVED this movie as a kid. It brings back alot of memories watching it (we had a roller derby disco in town when I was a kid and I loved going there, I wanted so much to be like Olivia)...and I love it now for all the same reasons I loved it then...

  It's colorful, vibrant, visually appealing...and the music truly is incredible...all though the film is visually dated (the roller skates and all of the 80's type dress, hair, and makeup) the music remains timeless...the soundtrack album is considered a classic among many fans of Olivia as well as ELO...the songs are infectious and as slickly produced as the musical numbers that contain them.

  Which brings me to my point...this movie is a full length music video, it is nothing more than a series of musical numbers played out in different vignettes...tied loosely together by a weak storyline...that is all it seemed intended to be...just visually appealing fun (like most everything from the 80's i.e. pac-man and rubik's cube), set to a backdrop of incredible music. High concept, low plot...but what's wrong with that? I just think people get so tied up in "art" they forget to have fun...

  This movie also succeeded in celebrating two different eras musically...at the time Olivia Newton-John WAS 80's music, and Gene Kelly perfectly symbolized the musical films of yesteryear...I think it was good casting, it made sense for the time. And makes for an interesting collaboration in styles...particularly in the "Dancin'" number, in which the two eras collide into one song...fun and inventive.

  Yes...the dialogue is stale, and the acting appears stiff (particularly in the lead character played by Michael Beck)...but this film never tried to compete for any Oscars...it was made to entertain, nothing more...and it succeeds in that pursuit.

  Olivia Newton-John, neon lights, glitter, spandex, leg-warmers, and rollerskates...ahhhhhh, Xanadu...whatever happened to the 80's of my youth? Hopefully, they'll come flooding back to me as soon as I get a chance to buy this DVD! I can't wait...my video is warn out.
  
  

• XANADU a Guilty Pleasure!
  By A31I3HXMD5H1EL on 2003-09-11
  XANADU is one of the most critically and commercially ravaged films in Hollywood history, a 'Nouveau Art' musical with Art Deco themes, a weirdly conceived animated interlude, and performances of such widely varying caliber that a viewer might wonder if the actors were all reading the same script! But all that being said, I would like to offer a minority opinion, and say that I didn't find the film THAT terrible, and there are some aspects of it I actually enjoyed...

  First and foremost, it offers the legendary Gene Kelly, in his last musical, as charming and wonderful as ever. As retired musician/businessman Danny McGuire, Kelly has the film's best moments, including a 'classic' song-and-dance scene with Olivia Newton-John and some silly but endearing 'post-disco' routines with the talented young dancers of the cast (including future CONAN star Sandahl Bergman). Seeing him on roller-skates again, leading everyone around the club he builds, to the music of the Electric Light Orchestra, makes one realize just how irreplaceable he is. Kelly could do it all, and with style!

  The premise of the film, of a Muse coming from Olympus to inspire an artist, is farfetched, but had been done on film several times in the past (ONE TOUCH OF VENUS, with Ava Gardner and Robert Walker, and DOWN TO EARTH, with Rita Hayworth, are the examples most often mentioned), and while Olivia Newton-John is oddly cast in the role, she tackles it gamely, with a smile and a wink, and isn't THAT bad. On the other hand, Michael Beck, best-known as the gang leader in clichéd but powerful THE WARRIORS, is totally miscast as the artist she falls in love with. An actor with limited range and no singing or dancing talent, Beck lacks the charisma to pull off the role (one wonders why British pop star Cliff Richard, who voices Beck's duet with Newton-John, 'Suddenly', wasn't utilized to play the part).

  While the film often veers off in bizarre directions, the 'Battle of the Bands' scene between popular 80s rockers, the Tubes, and a 'Tommy Dorsey'-style orchestra (as Beck and Kelly envision what the 'look' and 'sound' of their club, XANADU, should be), actually works, and is fun to watch. The entire score, by Barry De Vorzon and John Farrar, and Jeff Lynne (with ELO) is terrific (and made the soundtrack album a hit).

  Sure, the ending is hokey, but it was also the same ending of ONE TOUCH OF VENUS and DOWN TO EARTH, so XANADU can't be totally faulted!

  All in all, XANADU isn't the WORST film ever made, and if you give it a chance, you might find it a guilty pleasure!
  
  

• The Last
  By A27LQDQYMOPP6H on 2000-02-25
  It is interesting to read all of the reviews posted before and note all those who get XANADU and those who don't. This is an absolutely wonderful film, an uplifting musical that exhilarates with its verve and joy. Olivia Newton-John is exquisite being both winsome and exotic/erotic as the greek muse. This was made during Newton-John's multiple personality phase of her career where one minute she was Sandra Dee from Muskogee, the next a Nordic Dominatrix from Hell. She manages to infuse both facets intriguingly here with her supernatural greek muse character being both sweet yet vaguely intimidating. As an earlier post stated, the script is very clever in it's allusions to greek mythology. The male lead is stiff but what can one do when Olivia is on the screen except stand there and be quiet. Gene Kelly is wonderful as well and I believe this was his final film appearence; an excellent final bow. The musical numbers and songs are magnificent-especially the dancing duet between Kelly and Newton-John, the big band/rock combo and the show stopping conclusion. What I think some viewers do not seem to comprehend is that this film is both a tribute and a reincarnation of the wonderful hollywood musicals of the thirties-sixties period. The animated sequence is an obvious homage/steal from ANCHORS AWAY and An AMERICAN IN PARIS. Unfortunatley, Xanadu was made in the eighties when the culture was already in freefall. So, of course, no one knew or knows what to make of it. For those who think this is a bad film--HEY! there's a new Bruce Willis movie on TV! Go watch it. For the rest, we can take pleasure in a charming musical fantasy that they just don't make anymore. Xanadu was the last. Thanks Olivia.
  
  
• Merely the Ultimate Musical
  By A1Q4ZU2Y929N0A on 2003-12-05
  I've watched "Xanadu" probably about fifty or sixty times - or more. I've worn out two VHS videos, and am now, even while typing this, watching my Xanadu DVD. I can't believe that anyone would call this undiscovered wonder of the world "wimpy" or "anemic". This movie deserves its current status as a cult classic.

  The Stars. I'll have more to say about Gene Kelly later. Olivia Newton John, still on the top of her conversion from Country Western to Pop Rock, never sounded or looked better. Her ability to seemingly switch back and forth on a moments notice from her old image of sweetness and nice to her new image of almost a dominatrix was great. Her combination of any boy's fantasies with a girl you could take home was wonderful. Mike Beck does a good job as "Sonny" - the modern-day version of Danny McGuire, although, in comparison to Kelly and Olivia, he looks kind of flat. But who could hold a candle to that caliber of actor or actress?

  The scenes. The scene where Danny dances with Kira and ends up with her in his arms ("Whenever You're Away from Me"), followed by a similar scene with Sonny and Kira minutes later in the movie ("Suddenly"), only help to reinforce the Deja-Vu like sense of wonder that permeates this entire film. We are treated to this sense of deja-vu over and over again. The scene where the Big Band era meets the rock-and-roll era still gives me a thrill. Olivia Newton John's singing blends virtually perfectly with Electric Light Orchestra's symphonic sound, but heavy rock influence.

  The musical numbers. Done by Electric Light Orchestra and Olivia Newton John, they include the pop hits "Xanadu" and "Magic", as well as: "I'm Alive", "All Over The World", "Dancin' Round and Round", "Suspended in Time", "Whenever You're Away from Me", "Don't Walk Away" and "Suddenly". Imagine, if you can, a blending of the best of the 30's and 40's Big Bands with the best of the 70's and 80's rock and disco. Now imagine it on the same stage - blended almost perfectly. That =is= what happens in this movie.

  The dancing. What can anyone say about Gene Kelly that hasn't been said already? Watching Gene trip the light fantastic with Olivia was worth the price of admission all by itself. This was, I believe, Gene Kelly's last movie, and it is a fitting send-off to his long career. It was kind of fun to see him as a clarinet player and construction company boss. He doesn't look the least bit "silly" - it's easy to see where he could have been Kira's love interest back in the 40's. It was appropriate to see Gene's character called "Danny McGuire" as that was actually the name of one of Gene's characters in another movie.

  In addition, to cap off this film, Don Bluth did the animation for a wonderful sequence ("Don't Walk Away") where Kira and Sonny are transformed into fish and birds. This provides a perfect sense of surreal to Sonny's and Kira's developing love.

  This movie means more than its outer shell of "a muse is sent from 'heaven' to help with the creation of a disco roller derby". It means it's OK to have dreams - because a dream is a wish your heart makes. The emphasis, told in various ways, that you should always follow your dreams, is a message that needs to be emphasised today. Both Danny's dream of opening a new club, and Sonny's dream to do something more than his boring job of painting recreations of album covers are fused together by Kira (or should I say "Terpsichore"? :-) into a single dream that they, with her help, make a reality. Do a search on the Greek Muses and you'll find a lot of the inspiration for this movie.

  If there really is a real Xanadu, I would love to go there. If there never really was a real Xanadu, there should be. This still ranks as one of the most underappreciated musicals ever. Get it. You will not be disappointed.
  
  

• XANADU was and still is pure MAGIC!
  By on 1999-10-17
  I truly love this movie! I was 10 years old and had and still am a huge OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN fan!I went to see this movie on it's first opening night with my mom and we stayed and watched it over again! When it finally came out on tv on HBO, I watched it as many times as I could! I finally bought the movie on VHS,Laser Disc and now on DVD. Though I love it on DVD and I just wonder why it wasn't 5.1 instead of 4.0 audio? You have to turn your volume up a little more, but overall the picture is fantastic! I truly love the movie all the way through, sure it's a little campy, but so what! It never bores you, it's entertaining and will appeal to anyone who has good taste in music, unlike the so call stuff you hear today. "XANADU", was and still is pure Magic! My favorite scene would have to be when OLIVIA comes out at the finale singing XANADU and her and her dancers doing that famous OLIVIA head bopping. She was wonderful and she still is! I just seen her in concert and man, let me tell you she still turns my head! She is charming and so real! XANADU I love 100%, more so than GREASE, don't get me wrong I love GREASE, I just can't stomach John Travolta, I usually fast forward his scenes in the movie. It's the beauty and voice of Legendary Mega-Superstar OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN that had me crazed! She is wonderful and charismatic and she is the most beautiful female entertainer that ever graced Hollywood! Her appeal is true and genuine and she doesn't have to act or try to be sexy, she just is. Madonna, Tina, Mariah,etc eat your hearts out, OLIVIA is a true Diva without an attitude. It would be so nice to see her again on the big screen singing and acting and hearing her music on the radio.They'll never be another OLIVIA! I hope all of OLIVIA's work will be available on DVD soon!
  
  
• Still one of my favorites
  By A3CNVN02D6AXM on 2002-09-03
  First off, let's get one thing clear. The acting in this
  movie is dismal. Michael Beck couldn't act his way out of
  a wet paper bag in this thing (he did a better acting job
  in "Megaforce", which should tell you just how bad he
  was in this movie). Gene Kelly was wasted. At least Olivia
  Newton-John had one or two moments where she let a believable
  reaction slip out. In fact, the best acting performance in
  this movie was probably turned in by Michael Beck's boss.

  That having been said, I highly recommend this movie.

  Why? One reason: it's a sensual extravaganza. Both musically
  and visually, it's a feast. If you can sit through the
  bad acting, you'll be rewarded with lush production numbers,
  incredible visuals, and fantastic musical treats by ELO.

  If you're a fan of late-70's/early-80's music, by all
  means get this movie. If not, if you're a Gene Kelly
  fan, steer clear; it'll break your heart to see the
  acting job Mr. Kelly put in. If you're looking for story,
  depth, or acting, forget it.

  If you're looking for a good time that's not intellectually
  demanding but is a lot of fun, this is a good choice.
  
  

• Why did they even bother?
  By A3JDL3YDT7TCTT on 2008-07-08
  The one star rating isn't for the movie. Xanadu is what it is and I'm one of the people who love it. And because of that, I was really excited to discover they were putting out a special edition DVD. The original DVD only had the trailer as a bonus feature and between the movie's status as a cult classic and the success of the Broadway show I figured this edition would give it the treatment it deserved.
  
  Boy, was I wrong.
  
  Yes, it's cool that the DVD comes with a CD of the soundtrack. But most of the people who own the DVD have likely had the soundtrack for years. So now we have 2.
  
  And the bonus features? The original trailer, a photo gallery, and one documentary. That's it. Which wouldn't even be too bad if the documentary was a good one. But it's not, not by a long shot.
  
  For starters, there are no Olivia interviews in the documentary. I find it hard to believe that she wouldn't have sat down with the filmmakers for a few hours, but she's nowhere to be found except in the clips from the movie. And the clips from the movie? Apparently they weren't able to license the music because that's nowhere to be heard either. In it's place is just a bunch of generic synth music that wouldn't be out of place in an E True Hollywood Story.
  
  And the real kicker? There isn't a single mention of Michael Beck in the entire featurette. How on earth do you do a documentary on a movie and completely ignore the male lead? It's just mind boggling.
  
  All I can conclude is that this feature wasn't specifically produced for the DVD, but it was something they just found and threw in.
  
  It's such a shame. There could have been a wealth of extras on this disc to satisfy the Xanadu diehards - a feature on the success of the music, a feature on the fashions, interviews with Olivia and Michael, a history of how the movie evolved into a cult favorite, deleted scenes, outtakes, karaoke versions of the musical sequences, something about the Broadway show and the previous stage versions......
  
  But instead we get a photo gallery, the trailer from the first DVD, the CD that we all already have, and a single lame documentary.
  
  What a missed opportunity.
  
  
• Oh my poor aching brain.
  By AJIH1NJ9N28D9 on 2006-04-18
  Horrible, but in a good way. XANADU is the magical story of an artist who rips up his crappy drawing and throws it out the window in a humanitarian effort to spare the world from seeing his middle school level drawing. The pieces flutter around town until they land in front of a wall size mural on the side of a building. The women in the wall-size mural come alive and start dancing and exploding and roller skating! Oh...my. This is within the first two minutes (!) and it just gets stranger from there. By the 60 minute mark I was holding my drink up to the light to see if my buddy had spiked it with LSD or frog puss.
  
  One of the girls from the wall painting is Olivia Newton-John, she's a muse sent from beyond to inspire Sonny, a record cover artist, to open up a roller disco cause, you know, that's what the world needs. She inspires him by blowing up his mind.
  
  After their bizarre first meeting (which includes her kissing him then disappearing and him subsequently stealing a motorcycle, falling off a pier, stalking, being drug behind a hot dog truck then finally breaking into an abandoned building) they go on a series of psychedelic musical numbers that cracked the foundations of my mind, but in a good way.
  
  
• WHAT WAS GENE KELLY SMOKING WHEN HE AGREED TO THIS?
  By A231ZCJGWZA38A on 1999-11-26
  All these other reviewers must be working for Universal Studios because there is NO WAY that this movie is even remotely good. It's a crashing bore (96 torturous minutes), the acting is amateurish (if you think Al Gore is stiff, check out Michael Beck's acting), the choreography is numbingly bad, and the "special effects" are so embarassing and sickeningly sugary to watch that you'll be cringing in your seat on your way to a most certain diabetic coma! Even the Don Bluth animation sequence is so mortifyingly out of place, you'll be screaming in disbelief at how this movie ever got made, let alone released! To this day, I thought the Village People's "Can't Stop The Music" was the worst movie musical I'd ever seen. I was wrong. This one takes the cake! The music itself is first-rate (ELO is great and Olivia is superb, as always), but its inclusion in this mess doesn't do it justice. I understand this film wasn't made to be an Oscar-winner, but come on...it tries to be too many things to too many people while attempting to incorporate all the then-hot trends of 1980 and fails miserably in the process. Even the ultra-talented Gene Kelly can't save this stinker. So is it worth buying? No way. Is it worth renting? Definitely. If only to see how bad a movie can be.
  
  
• a guilty pleasure
  By A3C9P5G60LMYIY on 2005-02-19
  Okay folks, it's not art (for the most part)...but c'mon, have some FUN. This film had the misfortune to be shot at the end of the disco era and the beginning of the so-called "New Wave" movement, only to be released after disco had died HARD. So, we are treated to a strange mix of 70's roller boogie/disco glitter, 40's nostalgia, and a premonition of 80's silliness to come (e.g., off the shoulder dresses, engineered hair--pass the mousse please, and leg warmers with flats). A film in which the men wear shirts unbuttoned to their navels half the time AND one that includes leg warmers and big hair on the women in the other scenes is a strange juxtoposition indeed!
  
  I remember all the preceeding fads well, because I worked retail at the time, and believe me, I sold TONS of crap as seen in this film. People can rip on it all they want, but those 70's and 80's fasion faux pas were hugely popular.
  
  If you can get past the tremendous cheese factor--or maybe you shouldn't--there are some lovely songs by Ms. Newton-John, several of which turned out to be pop hits, despite the commercial failure of the film. The "Whenever You're Away From Me" song/dance duet is absolutely precious. Gene Kelly is to be forgiven for that number alone.
  
  The DVD version of the film has some nice bounuses, including some production notes on "What they were thinking" when they devised this vehicle. The print is scratchy and grainy in some spots and okay in others--obviously no one thought enough of this film to preserve it well, and as for a restoration? Not likely.
  
  Overall, an odd, fun cheesy movie; enjoy it for what it is. Let the purists go watch "The French Lieutenant's Woman" or something else deep. I'd rather live in Xanadu, thank you.
  
  
• A Flashy, Fun, Guilty Pleasure Pop Classic!
  By A1OK915XP4WKQJ on 2006-07-19
  Let's get one thing straight: You can't deliberately create a Guilty Pleasure camp classic. These things just happen by themselves. In the case of Xanadu, producers threw everything they could possibly think of (dance film legend Gene Kelly, beautiful pop superstar Olivia Newton-John, glowing neon, roller skates, leg warmers, Rodeo Drive fashion, Electric Light Orchestra's music, a Don Bluth animated sequence, etc.) up against the wall to see what would stick. The results are priceless! Now, let's get another thing straight: There is "film" and there are "movies". Xanadu is a MOVIE, which is why I cannot understand other posters reviewing and criticizing this movie as if it were in a league with Citizen Kane! It's most certainly NOT. What it remains is an entertaining, head scratching delight. Oh, there ARE moments when a viewer can see what might have been (the "I'm Alive" opening sequence, where the nine sisters jump off the mural and come to life before shooting up into the heavens, the charming "Whenever You're Away From Me" tap dance/duet between Kelly and Newton-John) but Xanadu falls victim to a half-baked script. Why four stars, then? Almost all the musical sequences are fun and energetic, if not bright, flashy, and blinding. The music soundtrack, itself, holds up extraordinarily well, with the eerie, hypnotic "magic" being one of ONJ's greatest recordings, and the ELO score one of their best. And, finally, Olivia Newton-John herself. Though often dismissed and greatly under-appreciated, she possesses a sweetness and charm that transcends even the weakest of material, while always being easy on the eyes. Xanadu is a flashy, fun, low calorie brain workout that remains a true pop culture Guilty Pleasure. Don't miss it!
  
  
• Suspicious "Magical Music Edition" a letdown for true fans
  By A14NAEWHKBW1NF on 2008-06-30
  I love Xanadu. It's not a bad film at all (try The Apple, now that's bad), I'd rate this a five but the "Magical Music Edition" DVD is so much less than it could have been. After all these years, true fans were expecting a bit more than this edition offers.
  
  Highly suspicious is the fact that the "Going Back To Xanadu" documentary, while including many film clips, uses NONE of the music from the film. Instead there is a cheesy score of music that sounds like it was created to sound early 80s, which makes the clips come off as indeed something from a bad film instead of how much fun Xanadu really was. Was it that Universal couldn't manage to legally use the music at this time in the documentary? I know back then Universal was tied in with MCA Records, so now who knows what happened.
  
  What was left out that should have been included was a documentary aired on TV called MAKING XANADU ("An ONJ Production") that included interviews by the musical talent involved, as well as a great alternate take on the scene for the song "Suspended In Time."
  
  The so-called complete soundtrack CD included in this edition is just the regular 10 track soundtrack that was on vinyl and released on CD before, with the basic short versions. Fans were expecting at least the inclusion of the 7" b-sides of songs from the film but not on the soundtrack release before... songs like ELO's "Drum Dreams," Olivia's "You Made Me Love You" and "Fool Country" as well as some nice score music like the dancing waitress music. There were also early versions of songs like "I'm Alive" and "All Over The World" that could have been included somehow. Let's hope that there will someday be a special CD release with the extra tracks before the CD format fades away -- if a special anniversary edition of the soundtrack for The Sound Of Music can be released with alternate takes and fuller versions, why not one for Xanadu? There are indeed enough people out there that would buy it and it would be a great seller.
  
  As I said, I love Xanadu. I saw it three times the first week it was released in theatres (as the director said, "They loved it in St. Louis!" which is where I lived at the time). The film always makes me smile and brings back fond memories of that time in my life. As a collector of things Xanadu, I of course bought this DVD edition and enjoyed some of the new features. However, it seems Universal just didn't try hard enough with the "Magical Music Edition." New generations of fans just don't know how much more is out there from this film!
  
  
  The film? Five stars. The "Magical Music Edition" DVD/CD? Three stars. For a triple-dip DVD of a better edition I hope we don't have to wait another 10 years or so....
  
  
• about the 'complete' soundtrack cd...
  By A2FU06SUDA4WA8 on 2008-06-24
  well, it's complete in that it contains all 10 edited down songs from the original 1980 lp. no score of any kind, no drum dreams, no fool-country (actually that one you can get on the 2cd olivia gold), no 40s standard that olivia sang as gene kelly's original muse when he was envisioning xanadu as bringing back the giant dance halls of the wwii era, and no cute little synthesized waitress dance with heels clicking. hang onto your 45s guys, because that's probably the only place we'll ever see these tracks. such a wasted opportunity. 3 stars because i still love the movie.
  
  
• False advertising
  By AC9JSFAC7P6M2 on 2008-06-25
  I had already bought the original XANADU on DVD and I also had the original soundtrack, as well. When I saw that the DVD was going to include a complete Soundtrack from the movie I thought, finally, the complete soundtrack is being released. Wrong. The Complete Xanadu number is the same as the one on the original. Just the song Xanadu. There were several numbers by Olivia Newton-John in the movie right before the Xanadu number. The box itself states that the Cd is the full complete soundtrack from the movie. But we were misled again. I don't understand why these companies do this. You know later on they will release it again with the complete soundtrack and then we will have to pay for it all over again.
  
  
• "Xanadu" - Redux!
  By A3NQ9N2OO60JGP on 2008-06-27
  Well, I was a bit skeptical about this release. I mean, how much money are you going to throw at the remastering of a film that was critically reviled and a box office bomb? The answer is: Not much. Still, I think they did a good job with what they could afford. The picture quality is an improvement over the version released in 1999. The images aren't as low-contrast and there isn't as much dirt on the print. The image quality is still a bit soft, but I attribute some of that to the quality of film stock they used when they filmed it.
  
  This is where it gets tricky-- the soundtrack on the previous version was a bit of a mess. The music sounded ultra-compressed and muddy at times. Other times, it sounded great. The worst offender was the first number, "I'm Alive". For whatever reason, this song never sounded as good in the film as it did on the soundtrack. I'm not exactly sure why that is. I am pleased to announce that the mix is fairly well improved. It still sounds a bit squashed but the lows boom without being overbearing and the highs sparkle. "All Over the World" has a bizarre sound mix where the back up vocals are largely relegated to the back of the mix and are barely audible at times. If you know this song, you'll notice that they are missing. Also blended back are some of the instruments in Olivia's "Suspended in Time" number. It's interesting to compare the 5.1 mix to the French 2-track mix, which is also an entirely different mix. In that mix, some of the background vocals are mixed way up front and some of the harmony lines are more present in tracks like "Don't Walk Away".
  
  The trailer attached to this is the same one as in the previous release. They didn't clean this up at all and, for what it's worth, it's no surprise that no one came to this film. It's a terrible trailer!!!
  
  The high point of the DVD is the mini-doco. There are confessions, revelations and grumbles as well as a bit of celebration and appreciation for the film that won't die. Olivia Newton-John and Michael Beck are sadly absent from this but there are a few dancers, the production crew and Gene Kelly's widow present to help you understand why this movie failed but also succeeded in the afterlife of video rental and late night cable.
  
  One other bit they attached to this is a little photo gallery. The frame isn't very big so most of the pictures are smaller than you'd like. It's still nice to see some production photos and some never-before seen shots from the film.
  
  Lastly, the packaging is embarrassing. I wish that it wasn't quite so tacky. The original release sported a reprint of the original movie poster. It wasn't the most eye-catching packaging but at least it was authentic. The bonus CD is exactly the same disc that was remastered and released on MCA records a few years ago. Not to take away from the Amazon bundle that's currently being hawked, but there's no reason for you to buy the soundtrack in addition to this release. It's already included.
  
  All in all, it's a nifty little re-release. If you are a fan of the film or a fan of the "spec-tacky-lar" musical numbers, I'd totally recommend getting this edition.
  
  
• 4 good minutes, forget the rest
  By A2ML3LYF8WYVIG on 2003-12-21
  This is one of those movies that makes you think, "They really could've made something of this -- so why did they choose to make a disaster?" The one shining moment of creativity is the dance number with Gene Kelly and Olivia Newton-John. They managed to make a dance duet between a 68-year-old man and a much younger woman that not only does *not* seem silly or tacky, but which is very touching -- and fun to watch, as Kelly still had great moves, and the scene (unlike every other dance in the movie) is filmed very effectively. Someone suggested Kelly must've had some input into how the dance was directed and filmed; if so, it's a pity he didn't push for control over the whole project, because the rest of the movie is a mess, with an awful script, non-existent characterization, chaotic choreography and the most inept directing and editing I've seen outside of a home movie. The 4-minute dance duet gives the sense that they *could* have made something interesting and creative; I thought it was clever that they found a way to have Kelly and Newton-John dancing together in the first place and have it make sense (by framing it all as his reverie as he's listening to a recording of her singing). ... then as soon as the dance comes to an end, it's back to sheer wretchedness. It feels as if those 4 minutes were filmed by professional filmmakers and spliced into an amateur production. It's a real pity, especially because the film *does* have something to say, it just says it so ineptly that it's almost torture to watch. Gene Kelly fans really should check out that one scene, but as for the rest -- it's a crying shame.
  
  
• How can you rate this movie?
  By AVOCNUFOXUCA6 on 2005-04-27
  "Xanadu" is one of the Holy Trinity of 1980 musicals, the other two members being "The Apple" and "Can't Stop the Music". Why Holy Trinity? All of these movies are awful, strange, and enjoyable because they're so awful and strange. In addition, these three films not only put the final nail in the coffin of the movie musical (a form badly wounded already by "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" in 1978 and "The Wiz"), but also drove a stake through the heart of the fresh corpse of disco.
  
  "Xanadu" has barely any plot and no characterization whatsoever. A lazy artist halfheartedly goes about his day job of designing record album covers. Kids, ask your parents. Of course, he's bored, you know, working 9-5 for The Man of rock 'n' roll, designing cool covers for hot music. Who would want to do that? He has some undefined, general idea that he wants to do some other kind of art, even though he has no demostrable talent and no drive whatsoever. Because it's in the script, Olivia Newton-John, an immortal muse, falls in love with him and has to have him, so she comes to Earth like Rollergirl and starts roller disco-ing at random times with him. Meanwhile, our hero (and I use this term not because he displays any heroic qualities, but because the script would have us believe that he's the protagonist) randomly meets Gene Kelly. Kelly, being rich and talented, almost immediately decides to make our hero partners with him in a fancy new roller disco place, even though our hero has no money to invest and apparently does nothing to justify this partnership. Our hero just drifts into this lucky situation, like everything in this movie; he never once has to make a decision or take a chance. They open the disco, it's a success, and the movie's over. Hope that didn't spoil anything for anyone.
  
  So what's good about "Xanadu"? The music, for one thing. ELO and Olivia sound fantastic and do some of their best work on the soundtrack. At least it's shot kind of interestingly; in places, this film feels more like a sequence of early-vintage music videos stitched together than some kind of coherent narrative. Because the music's pretty good, it carries you along and gives you the energy and will to stay with the rest of the movie and mock it relentlessly. Good movie? Heck, no! But this is a jaw-droppingly bad movie with good music that will entertain you - just not in the manner that the makers intended.
  
  
• Xanadu baby
  By AFCV1F72NFFSO on 2006-05-30
  I love this movie. Unabashedly. We had this on beta, I had older sisters and we rented it so much at the Fotomat (where you used to rent movies believe it or not) on beta that my parents bought it for us (still have the beta tape)..we had the LP (which also, I still have lol)...but onto the movie. It's indulgent, over the top and completely random. Like a brainstorming session where no suggestion was cut. My favourite is the merged-song "Dancin'" with Olivia Newton-John doing her best Andrews Sisters dinner club bit and The Tubes 'rocking out'....I love the dramatic costuming all throughout the movie, the 40s stuff,the punked out glam dancers, and of course the requisite floral asymmetrical hem dresses with the legwarmers and pumps combo. As a child of 6 and so on I thought that was the height of glamour. It's a laugh to watch, sometimes you wonder, why? How...? Why? But it's thoroughly enjoyable. The cartoon bit is sweet and it's a nice fluffy love story with a bitchin' club (alright...bitchin' for the time...and for the fact it was a movie). It's a confection. I still enjoy the it and it makes me feel like a kid again.
  
  
• Ooohhh man.....
  By A1SDWFE0ETD2Z4 on 2002-09-02
  .....just how can it be that something this "bad" be this good?! Xanadu was one of the greatest guilty pleasures in cinematic history. So hokey, corny, and silly, you'll watch the movie bewildered and with a big goofy grin on your face. Probably the ultimate tribute and swan song to '70s pop culture - a confused, overwrought, overdone mishmash of neon, disco, rollerskating, classic Hollywood musical (with a cameo by Gene Kelly), ancient Greek mythology, and even a touch of Disney style animation by Don Bluth (An American Tail) - in other words, a total mess! But yet, somehow it never fails to entertain! Now that's REALLY amazing! Featuring probably THE absolute best music ever by Olivia Newton John, it was a movie that perhaps best defined that confused cultural era we call the '70s - ridiculous, but a lotta fun!
  
  
• "Oll luv yew for-revva!"
  By A106016KSI0YQ on 2003-07-12
  Many mere mortals--not privy to the blessings of the gods-- will tell you that XANADU was a flop for any number of reasons. Its plot makes no sense (a muse descends from heaven to help painter Michael Beck create the ultimate roller disco palace); its attempt to appeal both to an older crowd (with Gene Kelly in the WWII sequences) and a younger crowd (with the disco music, already out of fashion when the movie was released) was doomed to please neither constituency; and its star, Olivia Newton-John, seems unsure what she's supposed to be doing.
  
  Foolish mortals: Whatever its failing this movie is worth it just for its fashions and makeup (vintage 1980) and its two great opening and closing numbers, which showcase the musical directors' lovely (if silly) eye for style. In the first, set to ELO's "I'm Alive," a lovely group of muses (including the enchantingly beautiful ONJ) emerge from a mural and start dancing exuberantly in truly beautiful dancing outfits that look like a cross between Seventies peasant dresses and togas: they all become transformed into rainbow-colored raybeams and zoom up to the skies, and then Newton-John herself descends from heaven, rollerskating and glowing orange. (It sounds ridiculous, but it's visually stunning.)
  
  The bizarrely campy final number, the amazing title song, features hundreds of chanting roller dancers first led by Kelly (in his Seventies!) and then by Livvy herself in a whirling array of different outfits that must be seen to be believed. First she's in a kind of spangly combination of a maillot and a sleeveless jumpsuit, dancing all over the place and watching circus performers, and then her hair is piled high on her head and she's in what looks to be a polka-dot Forties cigarette girl costume actually leading the other muses (gifted trained dancers all) in a tapdance number even though she can *barely* do the most simple tap steps herself, and then she's in this foxy tigerstriped "glam rock" miniskirt prowling around and being sensual, and then she's doing a country number in a white suede cowgirl thingy with ultra-long fringe, and then (gasp, gasp!) she disappears for a moment and all the other muses come on wearing white dancing gowns with what appear to be white plastic triangles on their heads, and then finally Olivia herself emerges from behind them wearing an outfit that almost completely defies description--she looks like like a cross between Josephine Baker and a Cylon warrior: appropriately, everyone else onscreen wildly applauds this latest costume change. And THEN--zap!--neon lightning transforms Olivia and the muses back into their beautiful peasant togas from the first number, and then they all are transfigured and sent back up to heaven. You will be too.
  
  
• Defines the term "guilty pleasure"
  By A38QYYNVUL52HT on 2005-08-01
  Yes, this movie is terrible. But it's terrible in the sense that "Plan 9 From Outer Space" is terrible. Kitschy fun that probably you wouldn't want to ever admit to liking.
  
  What's bad here? First and foremost is Michael Beck. I can't figure out if he's trying to have some sort of cocky attitude or merely trying to be really annoying; whatever he was striving for, his performance mars the film like forks scraping a car. By the end, you end up just hating him, and considering that he's the film's protagonist, it's hardly the intended effect. For that matter, you wonder just how Olivia Newton-John (playing a muse named Kira) can tolerate him, let alone profess undying love for him. The plot also is unbelievably thin; how this got past the drawing board is truly amazing. (Rumor has it, though, that the plot was changed halfway through the production, which may explain a bit.) Example: Beck's character, Sonny Malone, sees Kira (whom he's never seen before) two times in one day, and during their first conversation together, he tells her that he can't believe the coincidence. At this point, moviegoers back in 1980 could be forgiven for slapping their foreheads and leaving the theater. Another example? You really have to suspend your disbelief to understand exactly how Sonny, after a fight, finds Kira in...um...somewhere. Some place where neon tubes separate him from her, and where Zeus and Hera speak from the sparkling lights above. Perhaps hell or purgatory, since Newton-John sings what has to be the most awful sad song of love lost ever committed to celluloid...and that's saying a lot, since she's known for dribbly dreck where sad love songs are concerned. Editing is also woefully off in places...check out Sonny and Kira's first meeting.
  
  But the good parts? Well, ELO's music is undeniably excellent, and the pop-perfect title song, with Newton-John singing, can actually give you goosebumps if you let it. The first scene (with muses emerging from a mural) is great fun, too, and is just about worth the bad parts that follow. Gene Kelly's charm adds a lot; it's beautiful what he could accomplish with just a smile in this film.
  
  The just so-so? Many of the music/dance performances are pretty iffy, even the ones with Kelly in them. The end is, um...interesting. The choreography and costumes are at best bizarre and at worst, well, terrible, but again, ELO's music somehow keeps the thing afloat. And, of course, the overwhelming early '80s feel(still VERY heavily influenced by the '70s here) is a personal matter; you either like it or you don't.
  
  Bottom line: You're forgiven if you see this and never want to see it again, it's so bad. And chances are if you didn't see it as a kid, you won't like it. (Something about that childlike wonder, I suppose.) But if you can just suspend disbelief, and enjoy '80s kitsch, you may be able to enjoy this movie. Just make sure you don't see it around people who may lambaste you if you end up liking it; you'll never live it down.
  
  
• I THREW UP...
  By ACO20QL72D1E6 on 2006-05-21
  halfway through the picture when I saw it in the theatre in 1980, and it was NOT because of the movie.
  It shows us what MTV shortly would become - yup it`s a feature-video and skip any argument about plot etc... Enjoy it for the great musical production values, Gene Kelly, Olivia Newton-John and ELO:-)
  
  
• God Forgive Me but I Love This Movie
  By A2U96EA8DIIM4J on 2006-07-02
  and I'm not sure why. The music is wonderful, but the script is terrible and the plot is negligible. I shouldn't enjoy it as much as I do...there is simply no good reason for it.
  
  And yet somehow this movie never fails to captivate and entertain me. I can watch it on a cold and dreary January afternoon and it always lifts my spirits. The movie tries so hard to entertain that I think only the most cynical of people couldn't help but enjoy it at least a little bit.
  
  If you like musicals, 80s music, and early days of MTV you'll probably enjoy Xanadu. Don't expect to think too hard...just sit back, turn it up and take in the imagery and the beautiful ONJ in her prime.
  
  If I could only have 10 DVDs Xanadu would be one of them. Let's hope Universal gives it the special edition that it deserves. It's a "guilty pleasure" for so many people out there.
  
  
  
• What a laugh!
  By A1GVV553MGQ3JM on 2007-01-31
  This movie is absolutely ridiculous! I'm a super musical fan and I had a friend who kept telling me that Xanadu was a movie you couldn't turn away from whenever you caught it on tv. Boy was he right! The music, themes and special effects are totally 80s. I was so pleased to see one of my all time favorites Gene Kelly as a starring character. Olivia Newton John's love interest, Michael Beck was the guy from Warriors, another of my favorites. This is a great movie!
  
  
• The music saves the day...
  By on 1999-07-23
  Despite the awful costuming, the preponderance of stars on roller-skates, and a jaw-droppingly weird Don-Bluth animated sequence, XANADU is a guilty pleasure. An odd amalgam of old-fashioned movie musical cliches and 1980s pop-rock music, we can overlook Michael Beck's wooden performance and concentrate on Olivia Newton-John's loveliness and Gene Kelly's, well, Kelly-ness. The music, by John Farrar and ELO's Jeff Lynne, is some of the best pop of the era. The idea of the film, that one of the mythological Greek muses comes to Earth to give inspiration to a struggling painter, is not new to film, but the clunky way it's presented here is charming and light. The ersatz visual effects are quaint and funny when viewed today and help the overall "glitz" factor that the film was aiming for so desperately. Picture and sound on the DVD couldn't be better, and it's great to see the film letterboxed after all its full-frame exposure on television and video. XANADU helped to destroy the movie musical genre, but when compared to say, MAME, it isn't really so bad!
  
  
• I'm aliiiive!!
  By A1QZ2P94TQEBDV on 2000-10-20
  Yet another of those movies that I insist on watching a thousand times a year. Unlike most of them, though, I only really discovered this when I was about seventeen. (Thanks Jen!!)

  Another of the reviewers was so right when s/he said "It's so good it's bad." Olivia is sickeningly nice, the Sonny guy can't act, but you just can't resist it because the music, outfits, dance routines and the mere 80's'ness of it just gets you going. Everyone in the film feels really ace because they are heading into the 80's and leaving the 70's behind them. They're setting the new trends, they're leading their followers into a brand new era and they're really not afraid about any of it! They're even willing to concede that the 40's were pretty cool.

  I would have loved to go to the opening night of the Xanadu nightclub - all you need is your roller-skates, and to know the dance routines perfectly without even having been shown them before, and you're set! (And heavy drugs don't even come into it!!)

  I absolutely love all the songs - ELO rocks da party! It is simply addictive, and has some of the best music I've personally ever enjoyed. But then again I am impaired, aren't I?? Fun for all you loveable dags out there.
  
  

• Xanadu
• Two of a Kind
• The Pirate Movie
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
• Grease (Rockin' Rydell Edition)