Xanadu

[Doug Scott]

I'm gonna have to confess that I, too, developed a crush on Olivia Newton-John because of Xanadu. I'm actually relieved to see so many others here acknowledge this cause I got the *hell* teased out of me in high school.
So, while looking back on it, I admit that it's really a god-awful film (except for the music), I'll always have a soft spot for it.

[Heather C. Marsh]

Xanadu will always remain close to my heart.  My Mother & Grandmother took me to see it upon its theatrical release when I was seven.  I was already a fan, as my parents had Olivia Newton-John's "Greatest Hits" on 8-track cassette as well as the "Grease Soundtrack" but seeing her on the big screen like that, looking absolutely luminous, I was mesmerized and transfixed throughout the entire film.  She completely owned my heart...and to this day I am a HUGE fan.  I've seen her twice in concert and while I have to admit, acting is not her strong point, her voice still gives me goosebumps like no other.  

Xanadu = Happy childhood memories

A few unrelated thoughts on Xanadu.

1:23 minutes in--Only a muse played by Olivia Newton-John can be invoked by chanting "Ho" over and over again.

1:14--Sonny:  "Hey Zeus."  Zeus:  Si?  (Hey Zeus, sounds like Jesus in spanish.  Eh, nevermind.  Dumb joke).

Plus Shabba Doo is an extra dancer in a zoot suit in the final sequence.  What more can you ask for?

[Malarky]

The guy who plays the love interest of Olivia Newton-John also starred in the late 70's movie The Warriors.  He is quoted as saying that The Warriors opened a lot of doors for him, and Xanadu closed them all up again.

[hesalwysnmyhair]

Ohmigosh!!!  This has got to be my number two favorite movie...right behind the great Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band!!!  Yes, I love corny-lovey-musicals, please give me more rollerskates, more mopeds, and of course, more Blue Auras!!!  How could you hate such wonderful music, classics like Suddenly and of course Xanadu, I hope my daughter will follow in my footsteps, and like this 80's type of "bad movie" instead of the "bad movies" we have these days!!

[Government Cheese]

 I think there are a few great crimes of the twentieth century. The fact that this movie was the great Gene Kelly's swan song is one of them. I can only equate to Bob Fosse passing away right after choreographing "From Justin to Kelly".

[Nathanial Meade]

I heard that the Vietcong used to show this movie to P.O.W.'s. Hell, this movie does make communism seem like the better system.

[lisa]

If it wasn't for me being an Olivia fan I wouldn't have bothered checking out this film, I like the musical numbers, if you enjoy the music it's good like a long music video.  As Swamprat mentioned, Olivia IS British, she lived in England from birth to 5yrs old, then moved to Australia, returned to England at about 16yrs old and stayed for about 11 years more before moving to the States after her friend advised her to.  She used to have more of a British accent, I don't know what sounds more like now. She feels more Australian because that's where she most remembers growing up of course.  Oh by the way, Swamprat, Olivia has put on more weight.  I guess Xanadu was targeted at very young women and girls... and also the guys who just wanted to watch Olivia.

[Nikki]

Love the movie! Even had it special ordered on DVD from Best Buy because I couldn't find it anywhere else!

One thing though... Michael Beck sucked ASS.
My friends & I think the director lost a bet to Beck's father, and that's why he was cast.

[Carl]

One of the great mysteries of life...how can such a incredibly cheesy movie have such an excellent soundtrack?  It's probably the best thing about it.  

Well, the ELO songs, anyway.  Although, Olivia doesn't do that bad of a job, herself.

[R]

If not for this movie, Chloe Lattanzi wouldn't be here!  She is soon to release her first cd, Lonely Nights in Paradise, and her parents (Matt Lattanzi and Olivia Newton-John) met on the set.  That's one extremely cool thing going for it.

Best of all, it has Olivia Newton-John delivering great acting and great music!!

Gene, Olivia, and all are fantastic.  The skating is fun.  I was only a year old (not even) when it was released, but I have loved it on video for years.

TEN STARS!  Fantastic movie!

[Danny]

There was some talk about Xanadu being re-written as a Broadway musical, with John Farrar doing the re-write. Has anyone else heard about this??? Olivia even mentioned it in an interview late in 2004.
"Xanadu Live" did have a limited run in L.A. a couple of years ago, however, this Broadway verseion was to have been a big budget version...
Anyway, back to the original film! Every time I have a few too many drinks and have friends around, the Xanadu DVD comes out for a laugh... now you can't beat a good laugh! (& the music IS pretty darn great!)

[Ron]

Erg...back when I was a sprout, my younger sister worshipped Olivia Newton John. My mom would drop us off at the Saturday matinee, where such delicious fare as Abbott&Costello and/or jason and the Argonauts would play all day. Did I get to see Bud&Lou run from Dracula or Martians? Did I get to see Talos crush Greeks and Jason skewer a hydra? No.
I got to sit with my sister through Xanadu something like 20 times. I would sneak off after and see cool movies, but never without having to watch ONJ skate,skate,skate...damn it. I had forgot the horror, but now it returns. Man, now I'm having bad flashbacks about Sgt Pepper,too... Damn it!

[Posiedon]

One good thing from this movie: people now know why I sunk Atlantis.

[johnpenn]

On long drives me and my sister will sing together through the whole movie.  There comes a point when a movie (what I call) 'crosses over'.  Then it doesn't matter what you think about it.    

'Xanadu' is like a benign tumor grown together with my soul.  It won't hurt me but it can't be removed.

I loved when the muses in the mural started coming to life.

I'm hopeless.