Underplayed Gems

Xanadu (1980)

Xanadu poster
Directed by
Robert Greenwald
Genre
fantasy film, musical film, romantic comedy
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 32m
Rated
PG
Rating
5.7 of 10 from 289 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

More films like thisWatch the trailer

or watch the trailer on YouTube

How it feels

A young artist meets a mysterious woman who inspires him to open a roller disco nightclub. She is actually a muse from ancient Greece who has come to Earth to help him realize his dreams.

whimsicaldreamlikenostalgiclightheartedcampyenergeticromanticcolorful

What happens

Xanadu is a 1980 American musical fantasy film written by Richard Christian Danus and Marc Reid Rubel and directed by Robert Greenwald. Starring Olivia Newton-John along with Michael Beck and Gene Kelly in his final film role, the film features music by Newton-John, Electric Light Orchestra, Cliff Richard and the Tubes. The title refers to the nightclub in the film, which takes its name from Xanadu, the summer capital of Kublai Khan's Yuan dynasty in China. The city itself appears in the 1816 poem Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, which is quoted by Newton-John's character in the film. Released in the United States on August 8, 1980, by Universal Pictures, the film was a critical and box-office disappointment, and (along with Can't Stop the Music) inspired the creation of the Golden Raspberry Awards to recognize the worst films of the year. Despite this, the soundtrack album became commercially successful worldwide and was certified double platinum in the United States. The song "Magic" was a US chart-topper for Newton-John, and the title track (performed by Newton-John and Electric Light Orchestra) reached number one in the United Kingdom and several other countries. The film has since become a cult classic for its mixture of 1980s music and culture, creative choreography, and special effects that were innovative for the time. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.