Grease

Grease
June 16, 1978
Paramount
Musical, Comedy, Historical, Romance, Fantasy
VHS
B-

This is both a beloved "classic" and an entry in the Medveds' lists of turkeys.  I've seen it countless times and I still don't quite know what I think of it.  Well, if you must know, I guess I think it's a movie with good to great songs ("Hopelessly Devoted" probably the best of the lot, although much more '70s than '50s) and mostly not very likable characters.  It's hard to care about the romance between John Travolta (age 24) as Danny and Olivia Newton-John (29) as Sandy, when their personalities are such a poor fit, and the changes they make to prove to be worthy of each other seem pointless.  The secondary couple, Jeff Conaway (27) as Kenickie and Stockard Channing (34) as Rizzo, are much more interesting, she especially.  She's not exactly likable either, but she's got personality, has some of the best lines ("With relish" and the "defective typewriter" one in particular), and her "There Are Worse Things I Could Do" provides the only genuine emotion in the movie, raising this from a C+ to a B-.

As for the unlikability, the characters are often stupid and/or needlessly cruel, as when they mock nerdy Eddie Deezen.  They're not any nicer to their friends, including the way that Jan is called fat (while being asked out!), when she looks petite.  The characters in Grease 2 are no saints, but there's less mean-spiritedness in that film, so in some ways I like it better, although it's certainly worse written, directed, acted, sung, danced, etc.  (But then it's more clearly a so-bad-it's-good turkey.)

Still, yes, watch this film for the musical numbers, from the title track onward.  The songs will get stuck in your head, but you probably won't mind.  Chances are, you already know them.  (Well, maybe not the smuttier lines of "Greased Lightning," if you've seen an edited version of the movie.)

The mostly female school staff includes Eve Arden as Principal McGee, Dody Goodman as Arden's assistant Blanche, Fannie Flagg as Nurse Wilkins, and Alice Ghostley as the shop teacher Mrs. Murdock, but there's also Sid Caesar as Coach Calhoun.  Edd Byrnes plays lecherous National Bandstand host Vince Fontaine.  Joan Blondell is Vi the waitress.  Frankie Avalon is Frenchy's Teen Angel guardian.  Sha-Na-Na, almost a decade before/after Woodstock, is the band at the big dance.

I'm using the "Stigwood stalwarts" tag to cover the many dancers who perform not only here but also Sgt. Pepper and/or Grease 2:  Barbi Alison, Helena Adreyko, Jennifer Buchanan, Carol Culver, Cindy DeVore, Dennis Daniels, Larry Dusich, Deborah Fishman, John Robert Garrett, Sandra Gray, Mimi Lieber, Sean Moran, Bob Quinn, Greg Rosatti, Andy Roth, Lou Spadaccini, Judy Susman, Andy Tennant, and Richard Weisman.  Wendie Jo Sperber is also a dancer here.  (I think she's the girl in the pink dress and dark ponytails in the carnival scene at the end.)  Another dancer, Daniel Levans, would be assistant choreographer on Can't Stop the Music.

Also, Dennis Stewart, who plays Leo, would be a dancer in Sgt. Pepper, as well as Balmudo in Grease 2.  (He's the zit-faced leader of the rival gang.)  Dick Patterson, Mr. Rudie here, would be Mr. Spears in G2.  Didi Conn (26), as Frenchy (the one genuinely sweet character) would be the only one of the main "teenagers" to return for G2.  Scriptwriters Alan Carr and Bronte Woodard would co-write Can'tStM.  And choreographer Patricia Birch would direct G2. 

The "fantasy" tag is for the flying car at the end, and not for the surreal New York accents in sunny California.