This will catch these posts up to all the musicals I’ve watched so far. I also forgot about two musicals that go together, so this post will have a bonus musical and bring us to 31 musicals in total.
Guys and Dolls (1955 movie) – This is probably one of my favorite musicals. I’ve seen it performed live twice, but have not played music from it. Guys and Dolls is based on stories by Damon Runyon and follows Nathan Detroit as he searches for a location for his illegal craps game. To pay for his chosen locale, he makes a bet with gambler Sky Masterson that Sky won’t be able to convince a woman of Nathan’s choice to accompany him (Sky) to Havana. Nathan picks Sarah Brown of the Save-A-Soul Mission, believing that there’s no way he can lose the bet. In the movie version, Marlon Brando plays Sky, which Frank Sinatra, who got the role of Nathan, was not happy about because he was a better singer. Vivian Blaine reprises her Broadway stage role as Adelaide, Nathan’s fiancée, and Jean Simmons is Sarah. Brando and Simmons sing all their parts (they’re not dubbed in the movie), but you can definitely tell Sinatra and Blaine are the better singers.
Notable songs: “Runyonland,” “A Bushel and a Peck,” “Guys and Dolls,” “Luck be a Lady,” “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat”
The King and I (1956 movie) – My last major Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. Like other works from this era, it’s both racist and sexist, but for the sake of this post we’ll ignore all of that. It’s a well-composed musical based on the book Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon, which was based on memoirs by Anna Leonowens, who actually did teach King Mongkut’s children in the 1860s in Siam (Thailand). King Mongkut and Anna are thus “the king and I,” and the musical describes the conflict between the two as they differ over their views of women and slavery while Anna teaches the king’s numerous children.
Notable songs: “I Whistle a Happy Tune,” “Getting to Know You”
Annie (2014 movie) – Interesting adaptation that takes place in Harlem, New York City with music arranged in a pop/hip hop style. I was not a huge fan of it, and neither were the reviewers. The story loses its classic feel when Annie’s adopted by a cellphone mogul and there’s a helicopter chase. In Cameron Diaz’s last acting role, she manages to be nominated for, but doesn’t win, the Worst Supporting Actress Razzie as Miss Hannigan. Not to worry, though, she wins Worst Actress that same year for not one, but two other roles. Personally, I thought her as Miss Hannigan was one of those “so bad it’s good” things.
Notable songs: “It’s the Hard Knock Life,” “Tomorrow”
Mamma Mia! (2008 movie) – This is the musical I forgot. I actually didn’t realize it was on Broadway first and the movie is the adaptation, not the other way around. Featuring the music of ABBA and set on a Greek island, Mamma Mia! is about hotel owner Donna’s daughter Sophie trying to find her father, who could be any one of three different men, so he can walk her down the aisle at her upcoming wedding. Naturally, she invites all three men so she can figure out which one is her father. Is ABBA – or the plot of this movie – the peak of sophistication? No, but it’s pretty darn entertaining.
Notable songs: “Mamma Mia,” “Dancing Queen,” “Super Trouper,” and more
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018 movie) – I rewatched Mamma Mia! flying back from Singapore a year and a half ago, then rewatched Frozen, then watched Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Did I have ABBA songs stuck in my head for weeks? Yes. Do I regret it? Not one bit. In the sequel/prequel, Sophie is preparing to reopen Donna’s hotel. Interspersed with her plot are scenes showing how Donna met Sophie’s three potential fathers and leading up to Sophie’s birth. It’s not quite as good as Mamma Mia!, and the back and forth in the timeline can be a little disruptive, but it’s pretty close.
Notable songs: “Thank You for the Music,” “One of Us,” “I Have a Dream,” reprises of songs above
Shrek the Musical (2013 Broadway recording) – Hear me out. This is not a terrible musical. When Shrek’s solitude is threatened by the arrival of fairy tale creatures kicked out of Duloc by Lord Farquaad, he embarks on a quest to rescue a princess in order to save his swamp. While searching for Princess Fiona, he meets Donkey. Will he be successful in rescuing the princess and getting the fairy tale creatures out of his swamp – and maybe find friendship and love along the way? The plot follows what I remember of the movie pretty well, with a couple additional bits for exposition purposes. It definitely feels like modern Broadway, with a pop/rock score and flashy (sometimes kind of weird) costumes, but it mostly works. The staging is coherent, with the song lyrics and dialog working together to advance the plot, as opposed to what I’ve heard can be true of some of the Disney musicals that follow more of a pattern of alternating song-with-no-plot/dialog-with-all-the-plot. And maybe I wouldn’t pay to see it on Broadway, but I’d voluntarily watch it again.
Notable songs: “Big Bright Beautiful World,” “Story Of My Life,” “I Know It’s Today,” “What’s Up, Duloc?,” “Travel Song,” “I Think I Got You Beat”
That’s everything I’ve got for now on the musical front. The library’s closed, so it might be time to consult Netflix since I’ve finished The Office.
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