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From: tgd@clyde.UUCP (Thomas G. Dennehy)
Newsgroups: net.movies
Subject: Bad Films and Musicals
Message-ID: <170@clyde.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 23-Sep-83 09:26:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: clyde.170
Posted: Fri Sep 23 09:26:43 1983
Date-Received: Mon, 26-Sep-83 00:08:47 EDT
Organization: Bell Labs Whippany NJ
Lines: 38

Why Camelot limps on film:

The first temptation when adapting a musical is to make it
bigbigbig.  The second temptation is to get rid of the
performers who created the roles on stage and to cast with
"names" who will sell the film in the burbs.  Why else would
Clint Eastwood have been in "Paint Your Wagon"?

Camelot fell into both of these traps.

It's a one-set show.  Fly in some trees now and again, cart
around some furiniture, but it's still only one set.  Can't
have that on film.  Look what they did the Equus.  Can't have
a chorus, either (if you want to be taken seriously)  So jump
around to individuals singing in widely spaced locations (France
to England at one point).  Can't do anything stagey (Equus again)
Cinematically, Morgan's enchantment of Arthur is pretty dull stuff.

Richard and Vanessa may have "put their hearts into the roles"
but can't find four notes between them - they'd have to rent a
complete octave.  If we're soing musicals, let's have some voices
for chrissake.  Performers like Len Cariou have been given miserable
film roles, but are powerful musical animals.  Put them on film -
a good musical will sell itself - and let THEM become household
names.

It's long.  It's real long.  On stage, it's even long.  Act I alone
takes an hour and something.  The film mercifully cut "The Seven
Deadly Virtues", but dragged "If Ever I Would Leave You" out to
rival "The Winds of War" for sheer tediom.  Tighten that baby up!

I love musicals.  I like listening to the score time after time, I
like watching them,  I LOVE performing in them.  Just wish they would
be done better on film.

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	Tom Dennehy	BTL Whippany	{clyde!tgd}