Rien n'arrête la musique

The Village people started as a band who was for the Gay community. Then, something else happened. Teenagers started to like them, but on a totally different level of the disco music and costume theatrics.

When it came time to make a movie, which audience do you try to satisfy?

Well, I guess Alan Carr thought you could satisfy them both.

The result is one of the most incredibly bizarre, unintentionally funny musicals ever made. One that tried to balance Family friendly and Gay friendly to help VP's duel followings to come and enjoy.

But even my naive, young self who saw this movie when it first came out could sense that... something was amiss in the village :)

I mean, the YMCA sequence has quick, almost subliminal cuts of a bunch of guys in the shower, one slapping a towel on the others butt (swear to God!) in between loving, slow motion shots of buff oiled athletic guys and an all male sychronized swimming team scene.

Hmmm....

That was a bit sledgehammer, even for me back then.

Then, I watched it more recently and found a gay movie that was in denial

You have a movie that never says the "G" word but has an incredibly effeminate man with TIGHT gold shorts come in and Juggle "Flaming" fire batons.

The Indian,Felipe Rose, has that nice, smooth look and wears cut off jeans and a headress and when he prances around, makes noise like a wind chime tinkling.

The Leather man, Glenn Hughes (rest in peace)sounds pretty effeminate.

The Construction worker, David Hodo, has a musical number where he tries to escape from a bunch of adoring women...

Then there is Lulu, who seems to be female... mostly, but she reminds me of a drag queen.

Which begs a question? How come almost all the Homo imagery here is for males. How come the lesbians get left out?

And how come a lot of this movie is "looped". Even a lot of stage shot stuff seems to have been redubbed in post production. It made me think I was watching a forign movie sometimes.

Ahhh well, you'll have a lot of fun with this. You'll be in disbelief that the thinly disguised homoerotic undertones went over the heads of the powers that be. Perhaps they were too busy watching Valerie Perrine "stick out".

Bad movie fans will be in their glory too. It's not everyday that a big budget movie like this is so hilariously and ineptly executed.

And hang on to your hats boys and girls, that great video company Anchor Bay has bought the rights to this movie and it will be on DVD in April 2002. Hopefully it will be a special edition, with a widescreen transfer and 5.1 remix and I'll be one of the first to get it.

I still like the Village People and love this campy, bizarre, collosal misfire of a movie.

How many times have they examined, reconfigured and grumbled at Allan Carr's Can't Stop the Music? I have often wondered this because let's face it, if indeed this is one of the best bad movies ever made, then, let me go on record as saying that of the three classic disco movies of the early 80s --- the other two being Xanadu and Thank God It's Friday --- this one, directed by the Bounty lady herself, Nancy Walker --- holds up against the ravages of time because of its basic premise: it is nothing less than the story, as presented through songs and film fantasy, of the origins of the Village People. Particularly, the prime mover of the saga (indeed, its true hero) is Jack Morell, played by Steve Gutenberg. This one-time record store cashier is in love with beautiful, retired fashion model Samantha Simmons, played by Valerie Perrine. Eventually, Sam gets her heart stolen by attorney Ron White, played by Bruce Jenner. It is the odyssey of Jack, Sam and Ron to bring together six men from the diverse subcultures comprising Lower Manhattan's Greenwich Village to form an unusual singing group called the Village People. Before long, their adventure culminates in the Vilage People's first-ever live concert performance, in San Francisco. How is it, I wonder, that after 21 years we still think of this particular film as the ultimate nail in the coffin of Disco? Frankly, I would like to see this film done proper widescreen justice on AMC. And as some of you, my two most favorite moments in the film are here: the re-mixed "YMCA" and the always awesome "Milkshake." Milkshake is especially tattooed in my brain because it was the last major original song written and produced by the Village People's founding threesome: Jacques Morali, Henri Belolo and Victor Willis. Jacques having long since died of AIDS, and Allan Carr himself having succumbed to prostate cancer, we will never know how much of the magic of Can't Stop is, and yet is not, the accepted truth. One thing's for sure: Can't Stop the Music is the last great effort by six awesome guys to make disco the safest music on the Planet. Well, that's my salute to Can't Stop the Music. And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go do the Shake (do the Shake), do the Shaaaaaaake (do the Shake), do the Milkshake, the Milkshake (do the Shake)!

There is no doubt this film is a joy to watch. The reasons for this may vary from viewer to viewer, but chief among them for me is the sheer, exuberant awfulness of it. How could you not enjoy seeing Bruce Jenner metamorphose from button-down business type to overage crop-topped de-facto podium dancer? And him apparently unaware of how odd he looks in it? Any film that has a gravel-voiced Tammy Grimes poncing around in outfits rejected by Phyllis Diller as being too much can't be all bad. Among so many highlights - the 'I Love You To Death' sequence, where David Hodo understandably runs away from a bevy of carnivorous performance artists in red satin pillowcases (which raises the point: how come no-one on-screen mentions the word 'gay' when everything everyone does all the time in this film screams the word? Take for instance the walrus-moustached Village Person who, white-knuckled before the Big Show whimpers 'Leathermen don't get nervous', eliciting the catty aside from passing Construction Worker 'Oh yes they do'). Steve Guttenberg recovered from this false start to make the seminal Police Academy saga, and the Village People did what they do best for a few more years. A smash hit in Australia (and, I think, Iceland), this overlooked film deserves a reappraisal.

Boy, where to start? My memory might fail me, but how about Steve Gutenberg rollerskating down the streets of New York, dancing to his transistor radio and wearing his corduroy OP short shorts and an Izod shirt with the collar flipped up? The mirroring camera "tricks" are sophomoric and silly, and the entire sequence sets the tone for the implausible film that follows. I wouldn't be surprised if that scene took months to film as Gutenberg was probably beaten up a multitude of times and they needed to splice together bits and pieces of footage. It isn't exactly Rocky running through the warehouse district of Philly, is it? No... No it's not. How about the brilliant decision to cast Bruce Jenner, fresh off the crowd-pleasing performance on a box of Wheaties? The best moments of the film are of the Village People following closely behind Jenner in his bare midriff t-shirts with cozy little smiles on their faces. Not even Jenner's classic method acting style was enough to help the rest of the cast rise to the ankle-level material here. I seem to recall a scene where they decide on a name for the band... "Hey... We're all from the Village, so why not The Village... PEOPLE?" Then the Village Person dressed as the Indian chief showed his approval by employing the classic Indian war call; hooting while popping his hand over his mouth. I nearly fell out of my chair.

And what about the fellow who comes to the band "try-outs" with the flaming batons? I think there was a message in there somewhere...

This film is hysterical for a million different reasons and therefore, a complete failure. Surely a must-see in order to provide acute awareness of the bad taste high-water mark.

I urge everyone to buy a bottle of booze and see this movie immediately.

If only for the Construction Worker's song "I love you to death" in which girls ride atop giant pistons and sprinkle glitter all over his jeans. Or maybe the Leatherman's rousing version of "Danny Boy" atop a table in a Board Room. Or, maybe the gigantic musical busby berkley dance numbers with added "onion skin" rainbow graphics of naked men jumping into swimming pools. Or, maybe the worlds most bizarre milk commercial starring the Village People singing about how a milkshake goes with your sandwich too.

Be warned though, the songs are kind of decent. Maybe even better than decent. And theres a great performance by the otherwise mediocre Ritchie Family. Seriously, i love this movie. Everyone i have shown it to has remembered it, and maybe hates me for it. But its definitely an original.