How many times can you revisit old pleasures?

Rating: 7/10 (16 August 2016)

O.K., I'm sure that some teenagers my age saw "Grease" more times than I did. But I must confess that in its initial run in the late Spring/early Summer of 1978, I did see it four times on the big screen. Memories of playing certain songs over and over at a club which specialized in showtunes have embedded in my mind and won't leave. Now I look upon it with jaded cynicism, but at one time during my blossoming years, it was one of my favorite movie musicals.
Looking back, I have a hard time seeing much of the cast as high school seniors with only Olivia Newton John of the four leads the most acceptable, that is until she puts on those black leotards at the end, screaming early '70's hard rock rather than late '50's rebellious teen.
In spite of his maturity as greaser Danny, John Travolta acts, sings and dances excellently. Stockard Channing stretches the imagination as the tough Rizzo, but actually does come out smelling like a rose otherwise, giving the most memorable performance of the four. Jeff Conaway is a close second, but I found Olivia, the youngest, to be the blandest even if she sings sweetly.
Such veterans as Eve Arden, Dody Goodman, Sid Caesar, Joan Blondell and Alice Ghostley show how its really done, but Arden, in more of a featured role than a cameo, really does get the best lines in the film. Didi Conn is the best of the teen sidekicks, getting a great production number with the aid of veteran '60's teen, Frankie Avalon. Jersey Boy Frankie Valli gets to introduce the title song, while the camp boy group Sha Na Na is a delight in the prom sequence.
If you can get past the age of the four leads, you will find a lot to enjoy in this musical blockbuster that held the record for most successful movie musical ever for years. It came at a time when nostalgia was king and my generation of teens looked on at our parents from that generation as (at least for a while) as pretty cool. This isn't among the best movie musical adaption of a Broadway hit, but for all its success, it must have done something right.