Alyssa Black (Aly200) Being a fan of most musicals I expected a fun story with hopefully catchy songs. Alas this outing proved to be a disappointment in more fields than one.The film's story is meant to tell the story of a young photographer's romance with a nightclub singer and his corruption by a greedy advertising agent. And then there's some subplot about racial tensions escalating to rioting. Sadly the story immediately falls flat on impact as soon as the protagonist begins his voice-over of the film's events. The performances of Eddie O'Connell and Patsy Kinset are particularly painful as their romantic chemistry is clearly lacking. Kinset comes off as whiny at the worst times or she is completely uninterested in interacting with her fellow actors. Her big song early in the film is instantly forgettable as she repeats the song's title over and over that it is maddeningly irritating. O'Connell as well is not much of an actor as he speaks his lines with a lack of passion; like just reading the script without emotion. His own singing is also unremarkable like Kinset's; lack of passion or real talent in the art.Terribly unused and meant to be a major player in the film is David Bowie as the corrupt Vendice Partners. Given Bowie's proved acting abilities in the past, the filmmakers seemed to have discarded this detail except for Bowie's songwriting ability and terrific vocals. Bowie wrote the film's title song that plays over the opening credits and is the film's only memorable musical number and has his own musical number within the narrative. Sadly the performance and musical sequence is utterly forgettable after the film's end which is a crying shame for the gravitas that David Bowie brings to his film performances.If you want an example of how not to do a musical, this is a sure bet.

Dave T I appreciate a good musical, however, this film was a narrow miss for me when I first saw it - though I really wanted to like it. After watching the blu-ray release 30 years later, I'm afraid I can't imagine why I ever thought I liked it at all. No doubt a good-looking picture with candy-color saturated sets and costumes but that's where its appeal ends. Mostly forgettable songs, and production values that worked well for short format music videos are all too much for one to endure as a 2 hour feature. The rushed, often cringe-inducing dialog, sloppy overdubbing, endless jump-cuts, even the claustrophobic framing are unsettling enough to inspire angst in anyone. There's something odd about the timing, pacing, and overall flow that feels so foreign and unnatural - like watching a really long television commercial. In any case, this is not an enjoyable film. A 1950's story trapped in a 1980's medium. Hopelessly dated.

TBJCSKCNRRQTreviews I suppose I didn't know what to expect, when I sat down to watch this. However, I can't possibly imagine that I would have enjoyed it regardless of the quantity of warnings that I had been showered in beforehand. I haven't read the novel(though I understand that it is far superior to this). The movie is an eccentric little number that at times gets to be downright bizarre. I'm all for surrealism, but here, it just felt like they weren't taking the issues that they were dealing with seriously(which makes it difficult for the audience to), in spite of them being as important as identity, the effect fame has on you, and racism. There are even parts where it appears to be poorly "dubbed", meaning the words spoken and the lips moving do not match. How? Why? What? Did I seriously just write that? Did some of the actors not speak English? On that, the performances range somewhat, and Bowie is *terrible*. Why is this a musical, anyway? Not all of the songs chosen make sense. The pace is fast, at least at points. Plot-wise, this takes a nose-dive about halfway through. This is cheesy, and the score is way over the top. There is sensuality in this, and possibly language. I recommend this to fans of the type of tunes of the period this takes place during(the 1950's), and/or theatre. Anyone else, stay away for your own good. 5/10

itc-emma I remember watching this film back in 86' when it first came out & what an awful film. The acting was atrocious the plot was so flimsy it would or is that should have blew away in a breath of wind. I think it put me to sleep on more than one occasion & i was not tired that i remember. Please avoid at all costs better still have all your teeth taken out with no anaesthetic cos that would be more entertaining. It's just a pity i couldn't give it a zero or a negative score. I wish i had not wasted my money getting this one from the video shop all i can say was that the tape it was on was still brand new practically hardly surprising as the film was so poor. If i remember right i sat & watched it with a girl i really wanted to go out with & the fact she was sat next to me was still not enough to keep me awake thats how bad this film was.