Can't Stop the Music
Encyclopedia
- For the title song see Can't Stop the Music (song)Can't Stop the Music (song)"Can't Stop the Music" is the title of a song recorded by American disco group the Village People. It is the title track for the soundtrack album of their feature movie, Can't Stop the Music. While the single was successful both in the U.S. , the UK and Australia the film by the same name was...
.
Can't Stop the Music is a 1980 musical
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by Nancy Walker
Nancy Walker
Nancy Walker was an American actress and comedienne of stage, screen, and television. She was also a film and television director...
. It is a pseudo-biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
of disco's Village People
Village People
Village People is a concept disco group that formed in the United States in 1977, well known for their on-stage costumes depicting American cultural stereotypes, as well as their catchy tunes and suggestive lyrics....
which bears only a vague resemblance to the actual story of the group's formation. It was produced by Thorn EMI Screen Entertainment (formerly EMI Films), and distributed by independent distributor Associated Film Distribution (AFD).
Can't Stop the Music is notorious for being the first winner of the Worst Picture Razzie, for it was a double feature
Double feature
The double feature, also known as a double bill, was a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatre managers would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown.The double feature, also known as...
of this and Xanadu
Xanadu (film)
Xanadu is a 1980 romantic musical fantasy film written by Marc Reid Rubel and directed by Robert Greenwald. The title is a reference to the poem "Kubla Khan, or, A Vision in a Dream: A Fragment" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, which is quoted in the film. Xanadu is the name of the Chinese province...
that inspired John J.B. Wilson
John J.B. Wilson
John J. B. Wilson is an American copywriter and publicist. He was born in Chicago, and moved with his parents to Santa Monica, California at an early age...
to start the Razzies.
Plot
Songwriter Jack Morell (Steve GuttenbergSteve Guttenberg
Steven Robert "Steve" Guttenberg is an American actor and comedian. He became well known during the 1980s, after a series of starring roles in major Hollywood films, including Cocoon, Three Men and a Baby, Police Academy, and Short Circuit.-Early life:Guttenberg was born in Brooklyn, New York, the...
) gets a break DJing at local disco Saddle Tramps. His roommate Samantha Simpson (Valerie Perrine
Valerie Perrine
- Life and career :Perrine was born in Galveston, Texas, the daughter of Winifred , a dancer who appeared in Earl Carroll's Vanities, and Kenneth Perrine, a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army. Owing to her father's career, Perrine lived in many locations as the family moved to different...
), a supermodel
Supermodel
The term supermodel refers to a highly-paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in haute couture and commercial modeling. The term became prominent in the popular culture of the 1980s. Supermodels usually work for top fashion designers and labels...
newly retired at the peak of her success, sees the response to a song he wrote for her ("Samantha
Samantha (song)
"Samantha" is an electropop song performed by Norwegian singer Margaret Berger. The song was written by Jukka Immonen, Berger and Patric Sarin for her second album Pretty Scary Silver Fairy...
") and agrees to use her connections to get him a record deal. Her connection, ex-boyfriend Steve Waits (Paul Sand
Paul Sand
Paul Sand is an American comedic actor.-Background:Sand was born Paul Sanchez in Santa Monica, California, the son of Sonia Borodiansky, a writer, and Ernest Rivera Sanchez, an aerospace tool designer. His father was Mexican and his mother of Russian descent.-Career:At the age of 11, he started at...
), president of Marrakech
Marrakech
Marrakech or Marrakesh , known as the "Ochre city", is the most important former imperial city in Morocco's history...
Records (a reference to Village People record label Casablanca Records
Casablanca Records
Casablanca Records was an American record label started by Neil Bogart, who partnered with Cecil Holmes, Larry Harris, and Buck Reingold in 1973, and based in Los Angeles. The label was formed after all of them had left Buddah Records and secured financing by Warner Bros. Records to start the venture...
), is more interested in getting back with her than in Jack's music (and more interested in taking business calls than in wooing Samantha), but agrees to listen to a demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
.
Samantha decides Jack's vocals won't do, and recruits neighbor and Saddle Tramps waiter/go-go boy Felipe Rose (the Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
), fellow model David "Scar" Hodo (the construction worker
Construction worker
A construction worker or builder is a professional, tradesman, or labourer who directly participates in the physical construction of infrastructure.-Construction trades:...
, who daydreams of stardom in the solo number "I Love You To Death"), and finds Randy Jones (the cowboy
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
) on the streets of Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
, offering dinner in return for their participation. Meanwhile, Simpson's former agent Sydne Channing (Tammy Grimes
Tammy Grimes
-Early life:Grimes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, the daughter of Eola Willard , a naturalist and spiritualist, and Nicholas Luther Grimes, an innkeeper, country-club manager, and farmer. She attended high school at the then-all girls school, Beaver Country Day School, in Chestnut Hill,...
) orders Girl Friday Lulu Brecht (Marilyn Sokol
Marilyn Sokol
Marilyn Sokol is an actress, comedienne, teacher, singer, writer/director. She has won an Emmy Award, an Obie Award, and a Bistro Award. She lives in New York City...
) to attend, hoping to lure the star back. Ron White (Bruce Jenner
Bruce Jenner
William Bruce Jenner is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite and television personality. He won the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics....
), a lawyer from St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, is mugged by an elderly woman on his way to deliver a cake Samantha's sister sent, and shows up on edge. Brecht gets Jack high, which unnerves him when her friend Alicia Edwards (Altovise Davis
Altovise Davis
Altovise Davis was an American entertainer, best known as Sammy Davis, Jr.'s third wife.Born in Charlotte, North Carolina as Altovise Joanne Gore, she was raised in Brooklyn, New York and worked during the 1960s as a chorus-line dancer in various musical shows both in London and on Broadway.Her...
) brings singing cop Ray Simpson, but Jack records the quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
on "Magic Night". Ron, pawed all night by the man-hungry Brecht, is overwhelmed by the culture shock of it all, and walks out.
The next day, Samantha runs into Ron, who apologizes, proffers the excuse that he's a Gemini
Gemini (astrology)
Gemini is the third astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the Zodiac between the 60th and 89th degree of celestial longitude. Generally, the Sun transits this area of the zodiac between May 21 to June 20 each year...
, and follows her home. Spilling leftover lasagna on himself, Simpson and Morell help him off with his trousers before Morell leaves and Simpson and White spend the night
Sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which a male's penis enters a female's vagina for the purposes of sexual pleasure or reproduction. The entities may be of opposite sexes, or they may be hermaphroditic, as is the case with snails...
. Newly interested in helping, Ron offers his Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
office to hold auditions. There, Glenn M. Hughes, the leatherman
Leather subculture
The leather subculture denotes practices and styles of dress organized around sexual activities. Wearing leather garments is one way that participants in this culture self-consciously distinguish themselves from mainstream sexual cultures...
climbs atop a piano for a rendition of "Danny Boy
Danny Boy
-Background:The words to "Danny Boy" were written by English lawyer and lyricist Frederic Weatherly in 1910. Although the lyrics were originally written for a different tune, Weatherly modified them to fit the "Londonderry Air" in 1913, after his sister-in-law in the U.S. sent him a copy. Ernestine...
", and he and Alex Briley, the G.I. join up. Now a sextet
Sextet
A sextet is a formation containing exactly six members. It is commonly associated with vocal or musical instrument groups, but can be applied to any situation where six similar or related objects are considered a single unit....
, they get their name from an offhand remark by Ron's socialite mother Norma (Barbara Rush
Barbara Rush
Barbara Rush is an American stage, film, and television actress.-Career:A student at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Barbara Rush performed on stage at the Pasadena Playhouse before signing with Paramount Pictures...
). Ron's boss, Richard Montgomery, overwhelmed by the carnival atmosphere, insists the firm not represent the group, and Ron quits.
Ron's new idea for rehearsal space is the YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
, where a production number set to the song "YMCA
YMCA (song)
"Y.M.C.A." is a song recorded by American disco group Village People. It was released in 1978 as the only single from the album Cruisin. The song reached No. 2 on the U.S. charts in early 1979 and reached No.1 in the UK around the same time, becoming the group's biggest hit...
" features its athletic denizens in various states of undress (the film is one of the few PG-rated
MPAA film rating system
The Motion Picture Association of America's film-rating system is used in the U.S. and its territories to rate a film's thematic and content suitability for certain audiences. The MPAA system applies only to motion pictures that are submitted for rating. Other media may be rated by other entities...
offerings to feature male full frontal nudity
Nudity
Nudity is the state of wearing no clothing. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. The amount of clothing worn depends on functional considerations and social considerations...
). The group cut a demo ("Liberation") for Marrakech, but Steve sees limited appeal and Samantha refuses his paltry contract. Reluctant to use her savings, they decide to self-finance by throwing a pay-party.
To bankroll the party, Samantha acquiesces to Channing's plea to return for a TV ad campaign for milk, on the condition the Village People are featured. The lavish number "Milkshake" begins as Simpson pours milk for six little boys in the archetypal costumes with the promise they'll grow up to be the Village People. The advertisers want nothing to do with such a concept, and refuse to air the spot. Norma then steps in to invite the group to debut at her charity
Charity (practice)
The practice of charity means the voluntary giving of help to those in need who are not related to the giver.- Etymology :The word "charity" entered the English language through the Old French word "charité" which was derived from the Latin "caritas".Originally in Latin the word caritas meant...
fundraiser
Fundraiser
A fundraiser is an event or campaign whose primary purpose is to raise money for a cause. See also: fundraising. A fundraiser can also be an individual or company whose primary job is to raise money for a specific charity or non-profit organization...
in San Francisco. Samantha lures Steve by promising a romantic weekend but Ron is taken aback by the inference she'd go through with the seduction, and Samantha breaks up with him. On his private jet, Steve prepares for a tryst but it's Jack and his former chorine
Showgirl
A showgirl is a dancer or performer in a stage entertainment show. Showgirl is also often used as a term for a promotional model in trade fairs and car shows, etc...
mother Helen (June Havoc
June Havoc
June Havoc was a Canadian-born American actress, dancer, writer, and theater director. Havoc was a child Vaudeville performer under the tutelage of her mother. She later acted on Broadway and in Hollywood and stage directed . She last appeared on television in 1990 on General Hospital...
) who show up, to hash out a contract. Initially reluctant, Helen seduces Steve with her kreplach
Kreplach
Kreplach are small dumplings filled with ground meat, mashed potatoes or another filling, usually boiled and served in chicken soup. They are similar to Italian tortellini and Chinese wontons. The dough is traditionally made of flour, water and eggs, kneaded and rolled out thin...
and before long they're negotiating the t-shirt merchandising for the Japanese market.
In the dressing room before the show, Ron is relieved to learn Samantha didn't travel with Steve, and proposes. At one point, Montgomery shows up to rehire Ron as junior partner representing the group. Following a set by The Ritchie Family
The Ritchie Family
The Ritchie Family was the name of an American vocal group, based in Philadelphia, who achieved several hits during the disco era.-Career:...
("Give Me a Break"), the Village People make a triumphant debut, singing "Can't Stop the Music
Can't Stop the Music (song)
"Can't Stop the Music" is the title of a song recorded by American disco group the Village People. It is the title track for the soundtrack album of their feature movie, Can't Stop the Music. While the single was successful both in the U.S. , the UK and Australia the film by the same name was...
" to a cheering crowd.
Cast
- Steve GuttenbergSteve GuttenbergSteven Robert "Steve" Guttenberg is an American actor and comedian. He became well known during the 1980s, after a series of starring roles in major Hollywood films, including Cocoon, Three Men and a Baby, Police Academy, and Short Circuit.-Early life:Guttenberg was born in Brooklyn, New York, the...
as Jack Morell - Valerie PerrineValerie Perrine- Life and career :Perrine was born in Galveston, Texas, the daughter of Winifred , a dancer who appeared in Earl Carroll's Vanities, and Kenneth Perrine, a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army. Owing to her father's career, Perrine lived in many locations as the family moved to different...
as Samantha Simpson - Bruce JennerBruce JennerWilliam Bruce Jenner is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite and television personality. He won the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics....
as Ron White - Paul SandPaul SandPaul Sand is an American comedic actor.-Background:Sand was born Paul Sanchez in Santa Monica, California, the son of Sonia Borodiansky, a writer, and Ernest Rivera Sanchez, an aerospace tool designer. His father was Mexican and his mother of Russian descent.-Career:At the age of 11, he started at...
as Steve Waits - Tammy GrimesTammy Grimes-Early life:Grimes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, the daughter of Eola Willard , a naturalist and spiritualist, and Nicholas Luther Grimes, an innkeeper, country-club manager, and farmer. She attended high school at the then-all girls school, Beaver Country Day School, in Chestnut Hill,...
as Sydney Channing - Alex BrileyAlex BrileyAlexander "Alex" Briley performed the "G.I." role in the disco era music group, Village People. Briley was born and raised in Harlem, New York and later Mount Vernon, New York. A minister's son, he sang in church from an early age and studied voice at the University of Hartford...
as Alex - David HodoDavid HodoDavid "Scar" Hodo is the construction worker character in the group, The Village People. He is one of three original members still performing with the group .Hodo graduated from California State University, Sacramento in 1969 where he majored in Speech and acted...
as David - Glenn HughesGlenn Hughes (singer)Glenn M. Hughes was the original "Biker" character in the disco group Village People from 1977 to 1996. He graduated Class of 1968 from Chaminade High School, then attending Manhattan College, where he was initiated as a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity in 1969...
as Glenn - Randy JonesRandy Jones (singer)Randy Jones is an American disco and pop singer and was the original cowboy from Village People.As of 2006, he currently lives in New York City....
as Randy - Felipe RoseFelipe RoseFelipe Ortiz Rose is a founding member of the disco group the Village People, in which he is the Native American. His mother is a Puerto Rican and his father is a Native American .-Early years:...
as Felipe - Ray SimpsonRay SimpsonRay Simpson is the replacement lead singer and "Cop" of noted musical group Village People. Victor Willis is the original lead singer. Like his predecessor, Victor Willis, Simpson is straight...
as Ray - June HavocJune HavocJune Havoc was a Canadian-born American actress, dancer, writer, and theater director. Havoc was a child Vaudeville performer under the tutelage of her mother. She later acted on Broadway and in Hollywood and stage directed . She last appeared on television in 1990 on General Hospital...
as Helen Morell - Barbara RushBarbara RushBarbara Rush is an American stage, film, and television actress.-Career:A student at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Barbara Rush performed on stage at the Pasadena Playhouse before signing with Paramount Pictures...
as Norma White - Altovise DavisAltovise DavisAltovise Davis was an American entertainer, best known as Sammy Davis, Jr.'s third wife.Born in Charlotte, North Carolina as Altovise Joanne Gore, she was raised in Brooklyn, New York and worked during the 1960s as a chorus-line dancer in various musical shows both in London and on Broadway.Her...
as Alicia Edwards - Marilyn SokolMarilyn SokolMarilyn Sokol is an actress, comedienne, teacher, singer, writer/director. She has won an Emmy Award, an Obie Award, and a Bistro Award. She lives in New York City...
as Lulu Brecht
Can't Stop the Music was Bruce Jenner
Bruce Jenner
William Bruce Jenner is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite and television personality. He won the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics....
's film debut after becoming known as the World's Greatest Athlete, the result of three world record-setting performances in the Decathlon
Decathlon
The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word decathlon is of Greek origin . Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not...
, capped by a Gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
win at the 1976 Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
. Jenner's record stood from 1975 until shortly before this film's 1980 release. Despite rumors that Jenner had previously turned down the role of Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
in the 1978 film, the book The Making of Superman by David Michael Petrou and a February 1980 People Magazine article claim that Jenner tested for, but was never offered, that role. Can't Stop The Music remains Jenner's only feature film role to date.
The film's supporting cast includes two two-time Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
winners, Tammy Grimes
Tammy Grimes
-Early life:Grimes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, the daughter of Eola Willard , a naturalist and spiritualist, and Nicholas Luther Grimes, an innkeeper, country-club manager, and farmer. She attended high school at the then-all girls school, Beaver Country Day School, in Chestnut Hill,...
and Russell Nype
Russell Nype
Russell Nype is an American actor and singer.Born in Zion, Illinois, Nype made his Broadway debut in Marc Blitzstein's opera Regina in 1949. The following year he won critical acclaim and both the Tony and Theatre World Awards for his performance opposite Ethel Merman in Call Me Madam...
, June Havoc
June Havoc
June Havoc was a Canadian-born American actress, dancer, writer, and theater director. Havoc was a child Vaudeville performer under the tutelage of her mother. She later acted on Broadway and in Hollywood and stage directed . She last appeared on television in 1990 on General Hospital...
(sister of stripper Gypsy Rose Lee
Gypsy Rose Lee
Gypsy Rose Lee was an American burlesque entertainer famous for her striptease act. She was also an actress, author, and playwright whose 1957 memoir was made into the stage musical and film Gypsy.-Early life:...
), Altovise Davis
Altovise Davis
Altovise Davis was an American entertainer, best known as Sammy Davis, Jr.'s third wife.Born in Charlotte, North Carolina as Altovise Joanne Gore, she was raised in Brooklyn, New York and worked during the 1960s as a chorus-line dancer in various musical shows both in London and on Broadway.Her...
(wife of Sammy Davis, Jr.
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Samuel George "Sammy" Davis Jr. was an American entertainer and was also known for his impersonations of actors and other celebrities....
), character actor Jack Weston, and Emmy
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
-winner Leigh Taylor-Young
Leigh Taylor-Young
Leigh Taylor-Young is an American actress who has appeared on stage, screen, and television.-Early life:Leigh Taylor-Young was born on January 25, 1945 in Washington, D.C. Her last name is an amalgamation of the last names of her father, a diplomat, and her stepfather, a successful Detroit executive...
. The Village People auditioners included Blackie Lawless
Blackie Lawless
Blackie Lawless , is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, bassist and actor, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for heavy metal band W.A.S.P..In an interview, Blackie claims to have been born in the kitchen of the Rainbow Bar and Grill in Hollywood,...
(a member of the glam
Glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
-punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
group New York Dolls
New York Dolls
The New York Dolls is an American rock band, formed in New York in 1971. The band's protopunk sound prefigured much of what was to come in the punk rock era; their visual style influenced the look of many new wave and 1980s-era glam metal groups, and they began the local New York scene that later...
and heavy metal group W.A.S.P.) and James Marcel (who would later find greater success with the name James Wilder
James Wilder
James Curtis Wilder is a former professional American football running back in the National Football League for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins, and the Detroit Lions.-High school career:...
). Background dancers included Perri Lister, girlfriend of Billy Idol
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad , better known by his stage name Billy Idol, is an English rock musician. A member of the Bromley Contingent of Sex Pistols fans, Idol first achieved fame in the punk rock era as a member of the band Generation X...
and mother to his son, and Peter Tramm, who would go on to appear in dozens of music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s and double for Kevin Bacon
Kevin Bacon
Kevin Norwood Bacon is an American film and theater actor whose notable roles include Animal House, Diner, Footloose, Flatliners, Wild Things, A Few Good Men, JFK, Apollo 13, Mystic River, The Woodsman, Trapped, Friday the 13th, Hollow Man, Tremors, Death Sentence, Frost/Nixon, Crazy, Stupid, Love....
in Footloose.
Jack's song "Samantha" is credited in the film as being sung by David London, which was the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
for rock singer Dennis "Fergie" Frederiksen, who was the lead singer for several rock bands including the Grammy
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning band Toto
Toto (band)
Toto is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1977. The group currently consists of Joseph Williams , David Paich , Steve Porcaro , Steve Lukather , Mike Porcaro , and Simon Phillips . Toto is known for a musical style that combines elements of pop, rock, soul, funk, progressive rock, hard...
from 1984–1986, singing on their top 30 hit "Stranger in Town". London/Frederiksen also sings a second song on the soundtrack, "The Sound of the City".
The band's silver and white costumes in the "Milkshake" sequence and red costumes in the finale sequences were designed by Tony- and Oscar-winning designer Theoni V. Aldredge
Theoni V. Aldredge
Theoni V. Aldredge was a Greek-American stage and screen costume designer.Born Theoni Athanasiou Vachlioti in Thessaloniki in 1922, Aldredge received her training at the American School in Athens. She emigrated to the United States in 1949 and attended the Goodman Theatre at DePaul University,...
.
Two of the band's three biggest hits—"In The Navy
In the Navy
"In the Navy" is a song recorded by American disco group Village People released in 1979. It was the last top 10 hit for the group in the United States.-Background and writing:...
" and "Macho Man
Macho Man (song)
"Macho Man" is the seond single recorded by the American disco group Village People. The song "bubbled under" the charts during summer 1978 before picking up substantial airplay that August...
"—do not appear in the film, though in reference to the latter, Perrine wears a t-shirt emblazoned with the words "Macho Woman" as she jogs through the men's locker room at the YMCA.
The film's director, Nancy Walker
Nancy Walker
Nancy Walker was an American actress and comedienne of stage, screen, and television. She was also a film and television director...
, a theater, film and television star since the 1940s, had been nominated for two Tonys
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
, four Golden Globes
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
, and eight Emmys.
Walker guest starred as Rhoda's mother Ida Morgenstern in several episodes of The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977...
and continued that role in its spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
Rhoda
Rhoda
Rhoda is an American television sitcom, starring Valerie Harper, which ran for five seasons, from 1974 to 1978 airing in 109 episodes. The show was a spin-off from The Mary Tyler Moore Show, in which Harper between the years 1970 and 1974 had played the role of Rhoda Morgenstern, a spunky,...
. After establishing the character, Walker directed some episodes of both series, along with episodes of other situation comedy series. Can't Stop The Music was her lone effort at film direction, after it Walker turned her attention back to acting in television.
Musical numbers
- "New York - The Sound of the City" (David London)
- "Samantha" (David London)
- "I Love You to Death"
- "Sophistication" (The Ritchie Family)
- "Give Me a Break" (The Ritchie Family)
- "Liberation"
- "Magic Night"
- "Y.M.C.A.YMCA (song)"Y.M.C.A." is a song recorded by American disco group Village People. It was released in 1978 as the only single from the album Cruisin. The song reached No. 2 on the U.S. charts in early 1979 and reached No.1 in the UK around the same time, becoming the group's biggest hit...
" - "Milkshake"
- "Can't Stop the MusicCan't Stop the Music (song)"Can't Stop the Music" is the title of a song recorded by American disco group the Village People. It is the title track for the soundtrack album of their feature movie, Can't Stop the Music. While the single was successful both in the U.S. , the UK and Australia the film by the same name was...
"
Production and reception
The film was shot at MGM Studios in Hollywood with location shooting in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and San Francisco. A few weeks prior to the film's release, Jenner and Perrine hosted a TV special, Allan Carr's Magic Night, to promote the film.
The film's producer, Allan Carr
Allan Carr
Allan Carr was an American producer and manager of stage and screen. Carr was nominated for numerous awards, winning a Tony Award and two People's Choice Awards, and was named Producer of the Year by the National Association of Theatre Owners.-Early career:Born Allan Solomon in Chicago, Illinois,...
, was coming off a massive worldwide hit with the pop musical Grease
Grease (film)
Grease is a 1978 American musical film directed by Randal Kleiser and based on Warren Casey's and Jim Jacobs's 1971 musical of the same name about two lovers in a 1950s high school. The film stars John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing, and Jeff Conaway...
when shooting began in May 1979 at the height of the disco craze.
However by the time of its release during the summer of 1980 the disco genre had not only peaked in the United States but was experiencing a backlash there. The film received scathing reviews and audiences stayed away. The soundtrack album was better received, going top 10 in the UK. The film did well in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. At a cost estimated at $20 million, the film was a colossal failure financially, bringing in only a tenth of that in gross revenue.
Carr's next film, Grease 2
Grease 2
Grease 2 is a 1982 American musical film and sequel to Grease, which is based upon the musical of the same name by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. Grease 2 was produced by Allan Carr and Robert Stigwood, and directed and choreographed by Patricia Birch, who also choreographed the first film...
, brought in more than twice as much on its opening weekend as Can't Stop the Music grossed in its entire run. Even though it was considered a failure, Grease 2 nearly made back its investment in the U.S. gross alone.
Can't Stop the Music coincided with the first annual Golden Raspberry Awards
Golden Raspberry Awards
A Golden Raspberry Award, or Razzie for short, is an award presented in recognition of the worst in movies. Founded by American copywriter and publicist John J.B. Wilson in 1981, the annual Razzie Awards ceremony in Los Angeles precedes the corresponding Academy Awards ceremony by one day...
, and was nominated in every category except "Supporting Actor". It became the recipient of its first "Worst Picture" and "Worst Screenplay" awards.
Since its initial failure, Can't Stop the Music has gained something of a cult status as a camp
Camp (style)
Camp is an aesthetic sensibility that regards something as appealing because of its taste and ironic value. The concept is closely related to kitsch, and things with camp appeal may also be described as being "cheesy"...
film. Released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in 2002, the film has been screened at gay film festivals, including the 2008 London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
The London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival takes place every spring in London, England. It began as a season of gay and lesbian films at the National Film Theatre in 1986 and 1987 under the title "Gay's Own Pictures", curated by Peter Packer of the Tyneside Cinema, and was renamed the London...
.
Critical response
- "Can't Stop the Music ushers in a whole new concept in entertainment -- it's the first all-singing, all-dancing horror filmHorror filmHorror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
; the Dawn of the Dead of the disco era." - NewsweekNewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence... - "The most conspicuous box office calamity of the summer." - Film Review
- "The Village People, along with ex-Olympic decathlon champion Bruce Jenner, have a long way to go in the acting stakes." - VarietyVariety (magazine)Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
Awards and nominations
- 1st Golden Raspberry Award
- Won: Worst Picture
- Won: Worst Screenplay
- Nominated: Worst Actor (Bruce JennerBruce JennerWilliam Bruce Jenner is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite and television personality. He won the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics....
) - Nominated: Worst Actress (Valerie PerrineValerie Perrine- Life and career :Perrine was born in Galveston, Texas, the daughter of Winifred , a dancer who appeared in Earl Carroll's Vanities, and Kenneth Perrine, a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army. Owing to her father's career, Perrine lived in many locations as the family moved to different...
) - Nominated: Worst Supporting Actress (Marilyn SokolMarilyn SokolMarilyn Sokol is an actress, comedienne, teacher, singer, writer/director. She has won an Emmy Award, an Obie Award, and a Bistro Award. She lives in New York City...
) - Nominated: Worst Director (Nancy WalkerNancy WalkerNancy Walker was an American actress and comedienne of stage, screen, and television. She was also a film and television director...
) - Nominated: Worst "Original" Song ((You) Can't Stop the Music)
See also
Other films of the late 1970s during the disco craze:- Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
(1977) - Thank God It's FridayThank God It's FridayThe triple album was, unlike the movie, a commercial success. It contained contributions from some of the biggest names in disco at the time, including Donna Summer, Diana Ross, Thelma Houston, The Commodores, and many others....
(1978) - Roller BoogieRoller BoogieRoller Boogie is a United Artists film starring Linda Blair and introducing Jim Bray The film also stars Beverly Garland, Mark Goddard, and Kimberly Beck, and is directed by Mark L...
(1979) - Skatetown, U.S.A.Skatetown, U.S.A.Skatetown, U.S.A. is a 1979 American comedic feature film produced to capitalize on the short-lived fad of roller disco.The film features many TV stars from the 1960s and 1970s, among them Scott Baio, Flip Wilson, Maureen McCormick, Ron Palillo and Ruth Buzzi. Patrick Swayze's leading role as the...
(1979) - XanaduXanadu (film)Xanadu is a 1980 romantic musical fantasy film written by Marc Reid Rubel and directed by Robert Greenwald. The title is a reference to the poem "Kubla Khan, or, A Vision in a Dream: A Fragment" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, which is quoted in the film. Xanadu is the name of the Chinese province...
(1980) - Fame (1980)
- The Apple (1980)
External links
- Screened as the Opening Night of Pride London Festival Fortnight 2009 with The Bad Film Club
- Detailed review of the film