Knight at HOME at the Movies
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Back to 1976
This week's DVD picks are two 30 year old musicals that for different reasons are worth checking out. Both are FINALLY
making their DVD debut, both are from Warner Home Video, and both have a personal connection for moi that gives them
a special place in my cinema loving heart. Read on...
This week's DVD picks are two 30 year old musicals that for different reasons are worth checking out. Both are FINALLY
making their DVD debut, both are from Warner Home Video, and both have a personal connection for moi that gives them
a special place in my cinema loving heart. Read on...
30 years ago on Christmas Day can you guess, dear reader, who was the first in line
to see the hotly anticipated third remake of A Star Is Born? This little show tune
queen, I might add, had avidly read all the gossip surrounding the drawn out filming
of the Barbra Streisand-Kris Kristofferson rock musical and had just as quickly
dismissed any fingers pointed at his beloved BAR-BRA (must be said with at least
four syllables and with a flair for the dramatic). Jon Peters, her lover and now co-
producer was still an unsure influence on his BAR-BRA. The press clearly wasn’t
thrilled with the influence Peters was having on his BAR-BRA and frankly, he wasn’t
sure either. The trailer for the movie had looked interesting and the snatches of
songs he’d heard sounded okay and the idea itself was fabulous but would the film
work?
All this and much more ran through our little show tune queen’s mind as he eagerly
ran to his center row seat in the packed theatre and when the film was finished, over
two hours later, he sighed with relief, genuinely enraptured. His BAR-BRA had done
it again! Judy’s version of the movie would always be the best, of course, but BAR-
BRA had made the part of the singer turned star as the famous husband who
discovers her goes down in a sea of drink her own. And those songs! “Queen Bee,”
“Everything,” “Woman In The Moon,” “I Believe In Love,” “Lost Inside of You,” “With
One More Look,” “Watch Closely Now” and Barbra’s own “Evergreen” (an automatic
Number One). All were instant classics in his mind. And Barbra’s acting was
unbelievably moving – so dramatic and funny – those pratfalls in the mud! – that
moment where she ran through the rooms of the mansion sobbing for John
Norman. And her clothes! How ADORABLE that his BAR-BRA had picked the outfits
from her own closet.
The movie itself was just wonderful and great. It had made him laugh and cry and
tap his foot to the great musical numbers. It had such a moving script and he had
cried a lot along with BAR-BRA and laughed a couple of times, too. Boy, it was a
good movie.
And what about that Kris Kristofferson? He had to admit that he hated his singing
but he was so cute! And that body! And his teeth so white! And he had counted
(silently to himself of course) at least 20 times when they’d shown him with his shirt
off. Between all that BAR-BRA (and Kris’ body) he’d have to see the movie again –
and right away!
And he did. Six times over the next two days. That’s how much our Little Show
Tune Queen a/k/a me, myself and I took in A Star Is Born upon its initial release.
Then I got the sheet music and started playing it and singing it along with my
musical theatre friends. Boy, we were awfully gung ho over that movie all throughout
the first quarter of 1977. Now I see the film through completely different eyes – and
find the majority of it either all out camp or just bordering on it. Oh there are
genuine moments – Streisand telling off Paul Mazursky playing her ice cold
manager, Gary Busey as the update of the subservient star assistant, Kristofferson’s
genuine rock star aura – but as Pauline Kael noted in her review of the time, the
camera is always on Streisand a second too early and a second too late. I thought
this review was mean and spiteful at the time. Now it seems dead on.
Aside from these few moments of earnestness, several of the songs are still lovely,
though some are over sung by Streisand and yes, Kristofferson is still quite the
hottie. The movie – whether you’re still gaga over it as I was as a young gay man
just coming out or find it the height of camp – is really enjoyable in a way that many
movies from this mid-70s period are. The sets, clothes, and make-up alone make
it worth a look.
All in all, this is a fascinating relic that I’m happy to add to my DVD collection. The
disc includes a montage of Streisand costume tests with her “gee did I look like
that/wear that/do that?” commentary (“My hair looked cute with that short cut” is a
typical remark) and some deleted scenes. I especially appreciated finally seeing the
long talked of scene in which Streisand plays her own “Evergreen” on the guitar for
Kristofferson (it’s rather charming and so is her tentative playing) and the movie was
fun to watch with her full length commentary – and it’s got more making of
anecdotes. Sadly missing for me was the making of special that ran on syndicated
stations during the time of the film’s release. It would have been another
interesting artifact, a great extra for this fascinating though flawed movie.
That same year, earlier, we got another backstage musical in Sparkle. Warner
Home Video is wisely releasing the film now (in a bare bones version with just the
film’s trailer as an extra) in time to cash in on all the Dreamgirls fuss. You can
hardly blame them as this was really a first version (a very early one) of the
Supremes story. In this case, though, the three singers from the projects are sisters
who form a singing group along with two of their boyfriends (Miami Vice’s Philip
Michael Thomas is the prime motivator and songwriter). Lonnette McKee, Dwan
Smith, and Fame’s own Irene Cara play the three sisters. McKee plays the eldest,
the sultry, sensational lead singer of the group who quickly attracts trouble in the
form of yet another abusive boyfriend and drugs. When McKee disintegrates, it’s up
to Cara as Sparkle to take over lead vocals and carry the torch. There’s a lot more
melodrama (a subplot involves the Mafia) in gay writer soon to turn director Joel
Schumacher’s script and plenty of good songs in a score by Curtis Mayfield. The
DVD includes a second disc, a CD that includes the songs as recorded by Aretha
Franklin upon the film’s initial release – a nice bonus. Good as these tracks are, I’d
still like to have a release of the versions sung by McKee, Cara and others in the
film.
to see the hotly anticipated third remake of A Star Is Born? This little show tune
queen, I might add, had avidly read all the gossip surrounding the drawn out filming
of the Barbra Streisand-Kris Kristofferson rock musical and had just as quickly
dismissed any fingers pointed at his beloved BAR-BRA (must be said with at least
four syllables and with a flair for the dramatic). Jon Peters, her lover and now co-
producer was still an unsure influence on his BAR-BRA. The press clearly wasn’t
thrilled with the influence Peters was having on his BAR-BRA and frankly, he wasn’t
sure either. The trailer for the movie had looked interesting and the snatches of
songs he’d heard sounded okay and the idea itself was fabulous but would the film
work?
All this and much more ran through our little show tune queen’s mind as he eagerly
ran to his center row seat in the packed theatre and when the film was finished, over
two hours later, he sighed with relief, genuinely enraptured. His BAR-BRA had done
it again! Judy’s version of the movie would always be the best, of course, but BAR-
BRA had made the part of the singer turned star as the famous husband who
discovers her goes down in a sea of drink her own. And those songs! “Queen Bee,”
“Everything,” “Woman In The Moon,” “I Believe In Love,” “Lost Inside of You,” “With
One More Look,” “Watch Closely Now” and Barbra’s own “Evergreen” (an automatic
Number One). All were instant classics in his mind. And Barbra’s acting was
unbelievably moving – so dramatic and funny – those pratfalls in the mud! – that
moment where she ran through the rooms of the mansion sobbing for John
Norman. And her clothes! How ADORABLE that his BAR-BRA had picked the outfits
from her own closet.
The movie itself was just wonderful and great. It had made him laugh and cry and
tap his foot to the great musical numbers. It had such a moving script and he had
cried a lot along with BAR-BRA and laughed a couple of times, too. Boy, it was a
good movie.
And what about that Kris Kristofferson? He had to admit that he hated his singing
but he was so cute! And that body! And his teeth so white! And he had counted
(silently to himself of course) at least 20 times when they’d shown him with his shirt
off. Between all that BAR-BRA (and Kris’ body) he’d have to see the movie again –
and right away!
And he did. Six times over the next two days. That’s how much our Little Show
Tune Queen a/k/a me, myself and I took in A Star Is Born upon its initial release.
Then I got the sheet music and started playing it and singing it along with my
musical theatre friends. Boy, we were awfully gung ho over that movie all throughout
the first quarter of 1977. Now I see the film through completely different eyes – and
find the majority of it either all out camp or just bordering on it. Oh there are
genuine moments – Streisand telling off Paul Mazursky playing her ice cold
manager, Gary Busey as the update of the subservient star assistant, Kristofferson’s
genuine rock star aura – but as Pauline Kael noted in her review of the time, the
camera is always on Streisand a second too early and a second too late. I thought
this review was mean and spiteful at the time. Now it seems dead on.
Aside from these few moments of earnestness, several of the songs are still lovely,
though some are over sung by Streisand and yes, Kristofferson is still quite the
hottie. The movie – whether you’re still gaga over it as I was as a young gay man
just coming out or find it the height of camp – is really enjoyable in a way that many
movies from this mid-70s period are. The sets, clothes, and make-up alone make
it worth a look.
All in all, this is a fascinating relic that I’m happy to add to my DVD collection. The
disc includes a montage of Streisand costume tests with her “gee did I look like
that/wear that/do that?” commentary (“My hair looked cute with that short cut” is a
typical remark) and some deleted scenes. I especially appreciated finally seeing the
long talked of scene in which Streisand plays her own “Evergreen” on the guitar for
Kristofferson (it’s rather charming and so is her tentative playing) and the movie was
fun to watch with her full length commentary – and it’s got more making of
anecdotes. Sadly missing for me was the making of special that ran on syndicated
stations during the time of the film’s release. It would have been another
interesting artifact, a great extra for this fascinating though flawed movie.
That same year, earlier, we got another backstage musical in Sparkle. Warner
Home Video is wisely releasing the film now (in a bare bones version with just the
film’s trailer as an extra) in time to cash in on all the Dreamgirls fuss. You can
hardly blame them as this was really a first version (a very early one) of the
Supremes story. In this case, though, the three singers from the projects are sisters
who form a singing group along with two of their boyfriends (Miami Vice’s Philip
Michael Thomas is the prime motivator and songwriter). Lonnette McKee, Dwan
Smith, and Fame’s own Irene Cara play the three sisters. McKee plays the eldest,
the sultry, sensational lead singer of the group who quickly attracts trouble in the
form of yet another abusive boyfriend and drugs. When McKee disintegrates, it’s up
to Cara as Sparkle to take over lead vocals and carry the torch. There’s a lot more
melodrama (a subplot involves the Mafia) in gay writer soon to turn director Joel
Schumacher’s script and plenty of good songs in a score by Curtis Mayfield. The
DVD includes a second disc, a CD that includes the songs as recorded by Aretha
Franklin upon the film’s initial release – a nice bonus. Good as these tracks are, I’d
still like to have a release of the versions sung by McKee, Cara and others in the
film.
