Can't Stop the Music

CAN'T STOP THE MUSIC (1980) - It's interesting to note that disco - a much-maligned and often marginalized style of music - once served as a dynamic catalyst for a serious, streetwise drama about working class dreams and realities; propelled in equal measure by a star entering his absolute zenith as a dramatic actor and sex symbol, as well as the efforts of veteran singers and songwriters who were able to tap into all of disco's strengths while keeping the material intelligent and relevant beyond the dance floor. That film, of course, was SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER (1977). This film is what happens after you pop a little too much amyl nitrate and start to operate under the delusion that crossing Busby Berkeley with the Continental Baths has blockbuster written all over it. Nominally a pseudo-factual relating of the formation of the Village People, there are several other story threads, one which somehow involves the American Dairy Association (don't ask). Now obviously, no one is here for plot development; they're here to camp away a few hours - and in that regard, the "Y.M.C.A." sequence delivers: Acres of well-oiled male flesh in startlingly-brief man-Dukes; slow-motion examinations of new techniques in pommel horse; dozens of soapy young men crowding the shower, getting clean before having a good meal or doing whatever they feel (all strategically sudsed to maintain that PG-rating). Otherwise, it's over two hours of mostly cringe-worthy thesping (as actors, the Village People make Bruce Jenner look like the Village People); cringe-worthy dialogue; and yawn-inducing attempts at narrative. And yes, this runs in excess of two hours (even longer than this review). It starts to feel like you've plopped yourself down in front of von Stroheim's uncut GREED (1924) if that film were a gay sitcom. Oh well, at least we'll always have ROLLER BOOGIE (1979) around for credibility.