Iconic

Rating: 6/10 (18 April 2016)

Full confession: In a '50s musical, my favorite song is Frankie Valli's titular disco track. That's what's kind funny about this movie: it's youthful midcentury Americana by way of the '70s. But it's also pretty much a cinema staple - you're an oddball if you haven't seen this (I mean even the '98 rerelease was enough to tell me that back in high school).
Musicals aren't my thing, so I'm not the ideal audience for this - but even I can appreciate big set pieces and elaborate dance numbers. And any time you see the L.A. river in a movie, you think of this drag race. That alone says a lot about the movie's legacy. But the cast looks good (even the way-too-old Stockard Channing), the songs are lively, and you don't really see this kind of thing anymore.
6/10