empty-headed 50s pastiche

Rating: 7/10 (11 January 2004)

John Travolta's high voice and Olivia Newton-John's impossibly tight trousers as sweet Sandy Dee is on a mission to romance slick-headed jerk Danny ... the plot of 'Grease' is simple and mindless and the characters flat and one-dimensional. The film is shot in the manner of an oversized cartoon and the caricatures played out by the cast (Jeff Conaway, Stockard Channing, Didi Conn in particular) are laughable.
The music though does grow on you, although it has an artistic value of about -100. Everyone knows "Summer Nights", "Greased Lightning", "You're The One That I Want", and "Hopelessly Devoted to You", although personally I like the wit of "Look at me, I'm Sandra Dee" (often omitted from TV showings of the film), "Beauty School Dropout" (drippily sung by former teen idol Frankie Avalon).
Movie old timers Eve Arden, Sid Caesar, and Joan Blondell (her last film) are in the cast, and add a lot to the proceedings. Otherwise it is fun, colourful, but totally empty.