Musicals

Hairspray: A flashback in time.

6/23/2011
Donna-Dolores Buse

“Woke up today feeling the way I always do.”

With those words sung, the movie Hairspray starring John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittnay Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, and Nikki Blonksy begins.

'Burlesque' is predictable, but still fun

11/30/2010
Megan Vanderhoef

Judging from the preview for Burlesque, it seems that, at most, this film would be entertaining with a lacking storyline that serves only to fill the gap between singing and dancing performances. Luckily, Burlesque was more enjoyable than it originally appeared.

Repo! The Genetic Opera

10/17/2009
Tracy Elledge
Make sure you keep up with your payments...

In the near future, society has gone beyond obsessing with fixing their outsides. Fixing the inside is the new breast enhancement or nose job, and literally means insides. As in, organs. Most people are addicted to surgery - in and out jobs that take 20 minutes and are practically painless (thanks to new drugs and company Gene Co) and are considered de rigor. The three potential heirs to Gene Co are all greedy, spoiled, surgery addicts and the ailing head of Gene Co, Rotti, is unsure about the future of the company.

Reviewer Rating: 
4.00Stars

Repo! The Genetic Opera

8/15/2009
Lindsey Weedston
A terrible film with a few fantastic qualities.

Repo is a rock opera set in a futuristic dystopian city where organ failure is common and Hot Topic is apparently the only place to buy clothes. Plastic surgery has become a fashion statement, and the blue glowing liquid called "Zydrate" is the new morphine.

The story revolves around a 17-year-old girl named Shilo who has been locked in her house for her whole life due to a rare blood condition. She of course escapes, albeit by accident, and gets mixed up in the politics of the local mega-corporation, GeneCo.

Reviewer Rating: 
3.00Stars

A Very Potter Musical

8/10/2009
Diep Tran

It is an understatement to say that the "Harry Potter" series is influential. There has been music written about it, a theme park dedicated to it, not to mention countless fan sites dedicated to the assertion that Harry should have ended up with Draco Malfoy. And the latest addition to the "Harry Potter" canon is "A Very Potter Musical," a musical satire of the series; it was only a matter of time.

Reviewer Rating: 
5.00Stars

Jesus Christ Superstar

8/9/2009
Brian Donnelly
A modern take on the greatest story ever told

Jesus Christ Superstar has a long history of adaptation. Beginning with the record in 1970, the western world's best-known story is retold from the perspective of Judas Iscariot in Jesus's final days. The Andrew Lloyd Webber and Time Rice-penned record hit the stage as a rock opera shortly after, and then film in 1973.

In 2000, a modern take on the controversial story preceded its Tony-nominated Broadway revival.

Reviewer Rating: 
4.00Stars

Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway

7/30/2009
Brian Donnelly
A year in the life of friends.

On September 7, 2008, the Broadway production of the infamous rock musical, "Rent," closed after more than 12 years. The final performance was filmed for a limited theatrical release, and then released on DVD in February 2009 to allow the stage version of the show to live on in "Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway."

Many believe that the 2005 film adaptation of the late Jonathan Larson musical was a failure because it didn't capture the elusive magic of the stage production.

Reviewer Rating: 
4.50Stars

Camp

7/13/2009
Alisha Prakash

If you don't enjoy musicals, then avoid watching "Camp" at all costs. Unless you're a theater buff, you might find yourself lost in a film that is brimming with insider theater jokes and references. "Camp" reads like a wannabe "Fame," but falls short with no energy and no comedy.

Written and directed by Todd Graff, this film tells the story of a group of kids who are outcasts at home and live it up at musical-theater camp in the summer.

Reviewer Rating: 
2.50Stars

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

6/27/2009
Rebecca Hiatt
A musical about a man's quest for revenge

Revenge. It's an emotion that all humans feel, but it can eventually destroy you. The musical, "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street," directed by Tim Burton, follows a man who can't forgive and certainly can't forget.

Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp), formally Benjamin Barker, returns to London after being in prison for 15 years for a crime he didn't commit. The man who sent Todd to prison on the false charge is Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman), who abused Todd's wife and took his daughter. Wanting revenge on Turpin, Todd comes back to his home on Fleet Street, above Mrs.

Reviewer Rating: 
4.50Stars

Gold Diggers of 1933

3/1/2009
Kristin Hunt
Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler and a host of other talents star in this fantastic Depression-era musical.

Most movies about the Great Depression tend to be a little, well, depressing. Often we witness the hard-working family man struggle to support his wife and kids as the greedy elites suck him dry. This doesn't seem like the kind of turf that musicals, with their joy of song and endless optimism, would tackle. Yet Gold Diggers of 1933 makes phenomenal use of this setting without sacrificing a bit of the extravagance or merriment of its genre.

Reviewer Rating: 
4.50Stars
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