Canibalizing the Musical.

[HarlotBug3]

I finally saw "Canibal...the musical" the other night, and though the spaces between the humor were a bit painful, it made me realize how funny it is that broadway shows still sell tickets for hundreds of dollars while the musical genre hasn't been done without absurdity, nostalgia, or both for decades. They come around here and there, even do well, but unlike the seemingly endless output of 40s and 50s, I can't recall any that take place in current times.

I don't blame the musical, I blame music, but that's a long dark road.

Thoughts? Jingles?

[Rev. Powell]

I don't really enjoy most of them, though JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR is a guilty pleasure of mine.  I also like individual songs and pieces from many of them.

In the Golden Age of the musical there were lots of serious musical talents working who knew how use the form: Kurt Weill, George & Ira Gershwin, Bernstein, Rogers & Hammerstein, Cole Porter, Sondheim.  Now, Andrew Lloyd Weber seems to have the field almost to himself, and I don't think he quite stacks up to those previous luminaries.  I'm sure Hollywood will dust off the genre from time to time, as with MOULIN ROUGE, but without that classic pool of talent to draw from there's no hope for a sustained revival of the form. 

Now, if we're talking bad musicals, I want to catch THE APPLE based on Andrew's review.  Too chicken to rent XANADU, though.   

[RCMerchant]

ROCK and ROLL HIGH SCHOOL 

[Khaz]

I don't know why, but I enjoyed Pick of Destiny.. Does that count as a musical?

[dean]

The musical is another one of those evolving genres.  Classic musicals are on the down-turn comparatively speaking, sure, if you are going the traditional route.  I suppose you could now class musicals in two types: Musicals which have songs apart from the action, as a way of saying thoughts etc [ie the traditional musical style of 'I'll explain it with a song etc etc] or musicals in which music plays an important part in the story, but takes place as part of the action/story. 

Modern day musicals are very much, like everything else I suppose, about selling soundtracks as well as movies.  Your "Stomp the yard" type movies very much apply here, and you could even go so far as to say Glitter counts [hey I like it, but my tastes are a bit bitter  ]  They use modern music tracks in a way which doesn't take you out of the 'fantasy' like a traditional one does. Just think of any movie where music tracks are used as an important plot mover/intensifier and you'll see there's alot still around.  Honey, Save The Last Dance, Bring it On, Centre Stage, Step Up, christ I could list a heap that use music in this way, and I would therefore count as a musical.

If you're talking the traditional sense, then they're still around, and made a semi comeback with things like Moulin Rouge, Chicago, Hairspray, High School Musical etc.  Sure they're not as 'impacting' as the musicals of old, but still 'good' films.

The South Park boys are also great at the genre too, what with their work on Team America, The South Park Movie, even Baseketball and Orgasmo had their music in it in some form or another.  They surely count as well.

But if you look close enough, many films use music to an important degree, with the musical montage as an important plot device [and a handy way to fill the soundtrack with a few easy to sell singles] from car racing scenes in Fast and Furious, to romantic movies which spawned hit singles.

Top Gun could even be classed as a musical, though loosely of course: the movie itself is pretty much dependent on its awesome 80s Loggins score.  In my copies linear notes it even went on to say that Top Gun had a slow start sales wise, but the soundtrack was a big success, and from that success came people interested in seeing the movie based off the soundtrack.

The methodology of that has been applied, though I'm sure in not as strong away, to quite alot of movies you see lately.

Like Rev Powell said, there's not a lot of talent out there committing solely to the genre [though Baz Luhrmann seems to be having a bit of a crack with Moulin Rouge and Romeo and Juliet etc] and certainly not as much talent like your Gene Kelly's and Fred Astaires etc.

I'm sure they're out there, but I suppose the demand isn't as high, and boy is the market competitive.

I dunno...

But either way I'm a fan.  They may be mostly sappy, but most of the time, even if the music sucks, I enjoy them.

[Raffine]

I was dreading Tim Burton's upcoming film version of Sondheim's 'musical thriller' Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street. However the buzz is this a very respectful version of the musical with the score practically intact, and it's gotten the thumbs up from Sondheim himself.

Of course, you can't tell from the trailer it is a musical (more like an operetta, actually) so there are going to be lots of really surprized Burton/Depp fans when this is released.

[Oldskool138]

Of course, you can't tell from the trailer it is a musical (more like an operetta, actually) so there are going to be lots of really surprized Burton/Depp fans when this is released.

I didn't know that The Nightmare Before Christmas was a musical until I sat down in the theater.  The ads made it look like a fractured fairy tale kind of story.  I dragged my friend to the movie, who was on the fence about seeing it.  I felt like a fool because it was a musical and my buddy was NOT a musical fan.  I almost never heard the end of it.

I think Burton is using the same technique this time around in order to get more butts in seats.

[HarlotBug3]

Of course, you can't tell from the trailer it is a musical (more like an operetta, actually) so there are going to be lots of really surprized Burton/Depp fans when this is released.

I didn't know that The Nightmare Before Christmas was a musical until I sat down in the theater.  The ads made it look like a fractured fairy tale kind of story.  I dragged my friend to the movie, who was on the fence about seeing it.  I felt like a fool because it was a musical and my buddy was NOT a musical fan.  I almost never heard the end of it.

I think Burton is using the same technique this time around in order to get more butts in seats.

Corpse Bride didn't get a fraction of the Burton/Elfman potential, which is a shame, but I will see this Sweeny Todd movie.

Although the one long responce ignored some of my points it seemed to bring up something in the vein of modern popular music's (post Beatles) effect, that record companies pushing their product through soundtracks now have more influence. Of course, now that we (thankfully) are spoiled my music downloads to never again buy another soundtrack with only 3 songs worth spitting on, this may change again.

[Scott]

I like musicals. Most notably WEST SIDE STORY.

Tried very hard to enjoy CANIBAL THE MUSICAL a couple years ago. Couldn't finish it. It just wasn't working for me.