In general I have to say his shows don't make very good movies, but I'm curios to know what you think was the best. I'd have to say it's either the Norman Jewisaon Jesus Christ Superstar or Evita. If I had to pick one I would say Evita, just becuse I'm a Madonna fan, and I think it is one of the most underrated musical movies of the last 20 years.
I Wish... Madeline Kahn could have played the Witch in Into the Woods. She would have rocked!
Well there's only been 3 real movies; JESUS CHIRST SUPERSTAR, EVITA and THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. All the others are stage versions filmed in a studio/theatre and went straight on dvd.
But of the movies, EVITA is my favorite. Updated On: 4/1/06 at 11:50 AM
I'd say probably Evita, but I'm not a huge fan of any of them.
I am confused by feminisim, because if you disapprove of men so much why wash off the make-up, crop the hair and slap on the boiler suit
in order to resemble the rotters?
I hate the Evita movie a lot. Evita's one of my favorite shows and... eh, I won't even try to rationalize it, I think I'm just a baby.
But I love the Jesus Christ Superstar movie. Mostly just in comparison of Evita and the awful POTO, and also because Ted Neeley is hot... but I swear, somewere deep down inside, it's also a pretty decent movie.
haha none of the three movies are really quality but jesus christ superstar is me and my best friend's "bad movie obsession" so i'll go with that
"No two shows are alike in the making. Each show is a living
piece of your life in a small unreal world with its own character
and integrity; its own new set of memorable experiences and
incredible happenings. You begin to love and adapt to its strangeness.
Dreams harden into substance. Values come into focus. You wish
it would never end. The dream world vanishes like mist before a
rising sun; part of you vanishes with it. And back you land in the
real world with a thud- fogged, uneasy, jittery, difficult to get
along with. There is only one cure. A new show. A new, small
unreal world; new visions, experiences, incredible happenings.
Again you love it, adapt to it, wish it would never end.
But end it does. Another part of you vanishes.
That's show business."-Anonymous
I understand that there really only are three "MOVIES." For the sake of discussion I think it's fair to include the straight to DVD movies as "MOVIES," because any filmed version of a show lasts as the visual record of that show whether it's the show filmed or a moive adaptation.
Realy I started this thread, as a jumping off point to discuss the movies rather than to take a poll of what movies people liked. I think it's interesting how badly his shows translate to film, even when it's just the stage show filmed. Whether you love ALW or hate him, seeing one of his shows is never an awful night of theater. In the cases of CATS and POTO, many people(I'm not one) would say that those shows provide the best nights of theater. So why is it that they don't translate to film?
I have my ideas, but it's a topic that I think is at least moderatly worthy of discussion.
I Wish... Madeline Kahn could have played the Witch in Into the Woods. She would have rocked!
"Phantom" is my favorite, and I'd argue that both it and "Evita" are good films. However, Emmy Rossum is what really elevated my opinion of the "Phantom" movie. Joel Schumacher's direction, however, left something to be desired.
"People have their opinions and that doesn't mean that their opinions are wrong or right. I just take it with a grain of salt because opinions are like as*holes, everyone has one".
-Felicia Finley-
Although many faulted the singing of Madonna, I thought she did a better job than the very young and thin voiced Emmy Rossum and the not-very-good-at-singing-at-all Gerard Butler in the Phantom film.
I had seen both Evita and Phantom on stage before I saw the films, and although neither film was as good as the stage production, in my opinion, the Evita film didn't annoy me, and Phantom did.
---Just not as fond of JCS . Cats put me to sleep.
Just caught EVITA through HBO ON DEMAND, and it does not stand up to a repeat viewing. I saw it back when it first came out in the theatres, and I have to say that it is the worst ALW movie. I've seen Madonna live and she's quite the performer (I saw her MUSIC tour), but in the film version of EVITA, Madonna was just plainly awful both in her acting and singing. I hate the fact that ALL of Eva's songs were lowered to accommodate Madonna's extremely limited range. A back to back review of the film soundtrack and the OBC will demonstrate the deficiencies in Madonna's singing. (I also saw the recent tour with Sarah Litzsinger, and she too blows Madonna away).
I liked JCS but it seems a little dated. The vocals there are the best in terms of preserving the actual staged performances on film, but the concept itself was a little weird.
Lots of folks I know would disagree, but I quite loved PHANTOM. I was touched by the intimacy that the film gave the work, as I never was a fan of the stage show's abracadabra elements (though I think Hugh Panaro is no doubt the better of Gerard Butler, who, though he did make me cry at the end of the movie, simply does not have the voice Panaro has). I also liked Emmy Rossum, who sounded right as a developing 16-year old soprano. I was unhappy with the last stage Christine I saw in New York, Julie Hanson, who, IMHO, was subpar.
Phantom was good....Gerard Butler was nice to look at & Emmy was adorable. She has a nice voice. Although the live performances are so much better.
Evita was passable. Again Antonio Banderas was easy to look at & Jonathan Pryce was passable. I was impressed with Madonna, I didn't think she could pull it off, but I thought she was OK.
Poto movie for me...at least the depiction of the opera house is great!
...What happened next, was stranger still, a woman breathless and afraid, appeared out of the night, completely dressed in white. She had a secret she would tell, of one who had mistreated her. Her face and frightened gaze, my mind cannot erase...But then she ran from view. She looked so much like you...