Robert Stigwood Movies

Evita is based on the musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Actually, the film is more of an opera, with only short moments devoted to dialogue. "Evita" is the friendly, family version of the proper name "Eva," and this film tells the story of Eva Peron (1921-52), a woman whose name evokes powerful feelings in her native Argentina. Throughout this film, as in the musical, the story is explained and commented on by a character known as "Che," played here by Antonio Banderas. The film begins with the news of Evita's death, and then turns to a much earlier scene at her father's funeral. Eva (Madonna) was an illegitimate child (one of many) of a rural landowner and her seamstress mother. Hers is not a wealthy childhood by any means, and she is constantly discriminated against because of her lowly birth. She is refused admission to her father's funeral for this reason. This scene is contrasted with her own funeral, a spectacular affair, not different from the funeral of a beloved head of state. Eva Peron leaves her village at age 15, in the arms her lover Agustin Magaldi (Jimmy Nail), a traveling singer. With his help, she goes to Buenos Aires and begins her campaign to become a performer, actress, and public figure. Many men help her during these years, and she is reported to have given her favors freely. That changes when she becomes involved with Juan Peron (Jonathan Pryce). In 1944, when they meet, Peron is an ambitious young army officer, serving in the right-wing government of the time. When he falls afoul of the government and is imprisoned, Eva uses her position as a celebrity and radio performer to get him released. Peron marries his feisty mistress when he is freed from prison. Eva is a formidable supporter, and her help is crucial to his later becoming head of state. Once Juan Peron becomes the President of Argentina, Eva expects better treatment from Argentina's high society, but they snub her brutally. She, in response, diverts government money from society-led charities, and starts the Eva Peron Foundation. As its president, she works tirelessly to directly better the lot of Argentina's poor. For this work, and for having risen from poor origins to glory, she is beloved by huge masses of her fellow citizens, if not by those in high society. She also arranges for the enfranchisement of women in Argentina. Thus, her death of uterine cancer at age 33, while she was at the height of her power and influence, strikes the whole world as tragic. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Director Sylvester Stallone proves you really can't go home again in Staying Alive, the absurd sequel to Saturday Night Fever. The story finds Tony Manero (Travolta) six years later working as a waiter in a nightclub while he tries to realize his dreams of dancing on Broadway (what tough street kid from Brooklyn doesn't?) He eventually makes the cut as an extra for "Satan's Alley" (billed as "a musical trip through Hell") and immediately sets his sights on the show's snooty prima-donna star (Finola Hughes, decidedly unsuited for such dancing as her role requires). Meanwhile, the nice girl he's been seeing (Cynthia Rhodes) stands by her man, waiting patiently for him to come around. When the male lead can't cut it, Tony is offered the part, and tensions rise. The action culminates in the show itself and Tony's ultimate realization that he needs to please only himself. Indeed, the horrific dancing combined with Frank Stallone's inane musical score makes one wonder just how accurate the show's billing of "a musical trip through Hell" actually is. As long as one disassociates this film from its predecessor, Staying Alive is highly enjoyable for its schlock value; it may well be an inadvertent camp classic for Travolta's sweaty thongs alone. As for Stallone's direction and screenwriting abilities, he proves he is better off to remain an underdog prize-fighter/ commie-killer/mercenary cop/ double-fisted union leader/etc... ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide

Lauren Bacall more or less plays herself in The Fan. Cast as famous Broadway musical comedy star Sally Ross (with an astonishing lack of temperament!), Bacall finds herself the unwilling love object of psychotic fan Douglas Breen (Michael Biehn). As security around Ross tightens, Breen vows that if he can't have Ross, no one else can. James Garner and Maureen Stapleton are underused as, respectively, Bacall's ex-husband and mother-hen secretary. Based on a good novel by Bob Randall, The Fan comes off as a slightly more expensive "stalker of the week" TV movie. Still, the film proved grimly prescient in the light of John Lennon's assassination (which occurred after the film was completed, but before its release) and the ongoing dilemma of current Broadway stars (even the lesser lights) who are forced to hire bodyguards to protect them from worshipful wackos. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Two runaway teens face life on the streets in New York City with a devil-may-care attitude and a punk-rock image. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide

John Travolta played his first romantic lead in this drama about an ill-fated May-September romance. Trisha (Lily Tomlin) is a wealthy middle-aged housewife living in Southern California. Trisha's life has become dull and uneventful, and her long-term marriage to Stu (Bert Kramer) has gone stale. One day, a handsome young drifter named Strip (Travolta), nearly 20 years her junior, happens along the beach near Trisha's house. He finds Trisha attractive, and he approaches her. Soon the two have fallen into an affair, but while Trisha enjoys Strip's company and thinks that he's handsome, it's obvious that he's more interested in her than she is in him. Moment by Moment was written and directed by Jane Wagner, Lily Tomlin's longtime companion and frequent writing partner. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

John Travolta graduated from minor celebrity to superstar with Saturday Night Fever. Travolta plays Tony Manero, a Brooklyn paint-store clerk who'd give anything to break out of his dead-end existence. In life, Tony is a peasant; on the disco dance floor, he's a king. As the soundtrack plays one Bee Gees hit after another (including "Stayin' Alive"), we watch white-suited Tony strut his stuff amidst flashing lights and sweaty, undulating bodies. Tony's class aspirations are mirrored in his relationship with his dance partner, Stephanie (Karen Lynn Gorney), a secretary eager to move into the glamorous world of Manhattan. Saturday Night Fever's huge success grew meteorically thanks to the towering popularity of its soundtrack; during the first half of 1978, when the movie's disco songs saturated the singles charts up to four at a time, it was no longer clear whether the hit movie was feeding the hit songs or the hit songs were feeding the hit movie. This crossover between music and movies set the pace for many movies to come, as it also marked the rise and fall of 1970s disco culture. Two versions of this film exist: the original R-rated version and a PG version, edited down to more "family-friendly" fare and fed to the public with the tagline, "Because we want everyone to see John Travolta's performance." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The second Biblical epic to be turned into a musical by composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Tim Rice, this box-office disappointment recounts the last week in the life of Jesus Christ in rock-opera format and from the surprising point of view of Christ's betrayer, Judas Iscariot. Carl Anderson stars as Judas, who has begun to believe that Jesus (Ted Neeley) has sold out and started buying into the mythology that's quickly springing up around him. Particularly disturbing to Judas is the relationship between Jesus and his friend Mary Magdalene (Yvonne Elliman), a prostitute. When Jesus throws a temper tantrum at the moneylenders in a temple, Judas determines to work with the Pharisees who want to put Jesus on trial as a false prophet. Following his success with the adaptation of Fiddler on the Roof (1971), director Norman Jewison experimented with a hippie-influenced sensibility on Jesus Christ Superstar (1973). Among such touches are depictions of the cast arriving via bus to mount the show, modern high-tech weaponry in the hands of the ancient Romans, and on-location filming in Israel. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide