Product Details

• Actors: Dick Van Dyke, Ann-Margret, Janet Leigh, Maureen Stapleton, Bobby Rydell
• Directors: George Sidney
• Writers: Irving Brecher, Michael Stewart
• Producers: Fred Kohlmar
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English, Russian
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: March 12, 1996
• Run Time: 112 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (135 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6303962661
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #133,188 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When Elvis-like rock & roll star Conrad Birdie is drafted into the military, the teen nation is united by a contest in which the winner bestows a farewell kiss upon their idol while on the Ed Sullivan Show. Ann-Margret (in her film debut) is the lucky little lady from Sweet Apple, Ohio, who wins the contest, much to the chagrin of her steady beau (Bobby Rydell) and miserable parents (Paul Lynde and Mary LaRoche). Dick Van Dyke and Janet Leigh are an older couple kept from marrying by his meddlesome mother, played to the hilt by Maureen Stapleton. Lightweight but fun, this features an exuberant soundtrack with such memorable ditties as "Put on a Happy Face" and "Kids" and the title track. This is a much better choice than the lackluster, 1995 made-for-TV version. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Satire, Sex, The Cold War...And Rock & Roll!, June 20, 2002

By 

Michael A. Quebec (Union City, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bye Bye Birdie [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This movie is an excellent time-capsule for the end of the late '50's/early'60's rock n' roll era. (It came out in 1963, just a few months before the Beatles hit our shores & changed everything forever.)

It's got everything:

An Elvis-like rock n' roll sex-machine on a motorcycle, check!

Cold War political satire, check!

A spoof of middle-class American values, check!

Young, gorgeous Ann-Marget, check & check again!

I was born too late to experience this time period & I haven't actually seen the Broadway original from 1960 with Chita Rivera in the Janet Leigh role. But this movie is a fast-paced, witty musical-comedy. I know the 1995 version sticks closer to the original story, but I think that version plays too much into the whole "nostalgia"-thing....an element that was NOT a part of any show actually made back then. That version was also slow & not very funny.

This version is great! A lot has been said about the music, but the comedy hasn't got much attention. The humor manages to be suggestive without being vulgar. It's kind of like reading an old issue of MAD Magazine, but this is acted out!

If you want laughs every second, great songs & great dancing, as well as a humorous glimpse as to what American attitudes were like back then, then this 1963 version is for you!

It's "Honestly Sincere!"

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE This Musical!!!, August 20, 2005

By 

Katie "book worm" (PA , USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bye Bye Birdie (DVD)

I actually played "Kim" in my middle schools rendition of Bye Bye birdie, and since then, this has been my absolute favorite musical of all time - I'm sure this is partly due to my great memories of being in this play, but regardless of that, the songs are great and I love the story line.

Bye Bye Birdie is about an Elvis-type guy who has just got word that he's being drafted into the army. Because of his popularity as a singer, they decide to run a contest where 1 lucky girl will be chosen to have "one last kiss" with him. Kim wins the contest, and will be given her kiss live on the Ed Sulliven Show (a show that was really popular in the 1950's).

Much of the story surrounds the excitement about Kim winning the contest & the fact that her father and boyfriend don't want the kiss to happen. Will they be able to stop it?

Then there's "Albert" played by Dick Van Dyke - an on & off again songwriter, and his girlfriend "Rosie" who wants nothing more than for Albert to propose to her. Unfortunately, Albert is such a "mommas boy" that he can't seem to make any decisions for himself, and his mother is not about to suggest that he get married and leave her all alone! Will he ever step up and pop the question?

Overall, I would highly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys musicals. It will remind you of a much simpler time - with the music and outfits in classic 1950's style. A great movie for "family night"!

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love Ann Margret.I love One last kiss &One boy., August 7, 2006

By 

Shinichirou Kurihara (Kanagawa pref Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bye Bye Birdie (DVD)

I am japanese and can understand English a little.But I can enjoyed this movie very much.