Customer Reviews

Don't Knock the Twist / Twist Around the Clock

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is a review for the double featured DVD of DON'T
KNOCK THE TWIST and TWIST AROUND THE CLOCK.

There was a flurry of Twist movies that came out around 1961
attempting to capitolize on the enormous dance craze that swept and
reswept the country in 1960 and 1961. The Twist was so pervasive
it was even danced at White House parties, make thet Camelot
White House parties.

So here are two of the movies that without trying to be are something
like time capsules of what you might call "the Twist Era." and
luckily both of them feature the great popularizer of the song and dance,
Chubby Checker who was a very good performer.

IN the first one, TWIST AROUND THE CLOCK the story, just the same as
1956's ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK, has two rock'n roll veterans accidently
stumbling on a new dance and music at a small town dance and immediatly
hit on the idea of importing it all to the big town for a sure fire success.

That is pretty much what happens but there are a few complications along
the way. In the meantime we get to see Chubby Checker perform his megahit,
"The Twist," among other songs and Dion performs "Runaround Sue" as well
as "The Wanderer." And The Marcells perform their holiday attempt,
"Merry Twistmas."

There is one thing that's a little bothersome in TWIST AROUND THE CLOCK.
Some of the characters take pains to put down rock'n roll and seem to be
pointing to the twist and its music as something particularly different.
But myself and everyone I knew all considered the Twist to be rock "n roll
and the records were definitely rock records . In fact, at parties, we twisted to
practically every rock 'n roll record available, it was all the same
so far as we were concerned.

In DON'T KNOCK THE TWIST we again have a movie a little like
DON'T KNOCK THE ROCK but again, instead of Bill Haley and the Comets we
have a fine performance by a much more confident and assured Chubby Checker.
By this time Mr. Checker was Twistmaster General of the United States
and he wore the crown with grace and dignity.

Also in the musical cast are rock royality, The Duke of Earl, Gene Chandler,
MOR popster Vic Dana, The Dovells and the finely voiced hitmaker, Linda Scott.
Of course Gene Chandler had many R&B hits besides his Top Ten smash, Vic Dana
was a staple of mor radio and Linda Scott recorded "A Thousand Stars" and
"Happy Birthday Blues," two early rock/pop classics.

In DON'T KNOCK THE TWIST a small tv network wants to have a summer twist spectacular
but they have to hurry and beat the big time network before they sign
all the popular acts. But Chubby Checker comes to the rescue and the coast to coast
Twist Spectacular is on the air as ascheduled. In the meantime we get to see
performances by all of the above artists and maybe do a little unsupervised twistin'
at home, on our own.
So in the end everything is cool.

These two films are a lot of fun and as I said before, early sixties time capsules.
Four Stars.

. . . will have a great time watching these DVDs. Both of these performers are fun to watch. Because they are having such a good time, they automatically make you happy. People who are sensitive to the nuances of their performing style will appreciate this. I enjoyed all of the musical performances (which included other singers and groups as well).

Now this film will always hold its charm, good old music. Music that will still be heard today and for many years to come

If you love music from the 60s, you will love this movie. The storyline is almost predictable but it was very enjoyable to watch. A nice old movie to watch with young children, so they can see how grandma and grandpa used to dance.

The transfer is crisp and clear. These classic predecessors of music videos have been restored to pristine condition and are a joy to watch. You'll get to see and hear many classic rock 'n roll groups of the late 1950's and the early 1960's in beautiful black and white!

Best of all, it's a double feature, just like the days of the drive-in theaters! Although the plots are a bit corny in these movies, the music is fantastic to listen to--I play these movies on mainly for the soundtrack. Amazon had this DVD on sale so I got it for only $7.49!!! What a steal!!

I recommend these films for all baby boomers and for anybody who loves music from the 1950's and 1960's, or for those people who love cheesy drive-in flicks. As a little kid, I remember doing the Twist to Chubby Checker with my babysitter. These films bring back great memories!

"Twist Around the Clock" (1961) was hurriedly made to capitalize on the new dance craze, the Twist. Columbia was in such a hurry to cash in that producer Sam Katzman simply took the script of the 1956 smash hit "Rock Around the Clock" and refilmed it almost verbatim. Most of the storyline and many entire dialogue sequences are lifted bodily from the older film. If you know "Rock Around the Clock," you'll find yourself reciting "Twist Around the Clock."

"Twist Around the Clock" is pretty low-voltage, despite guest-star turns by Dion (who lip-synchs "Runaround Sue," "The Wanderer," and "The Majestic"), The Marcels (not shown to best advantage with a mediocre rendition of "Merry Twist-mas"), Vicki Spencer (a Connie Francis wanna-be), and top-billed Twistmaster Chubby Checker. Chubby only has a few lines of dialogue but he is quite ingratiating in his limited role; his fans will be disappointed that he doesn't show up until the middle of the movie, and he doesn't sing his record hits "The Twist" or "Let's Twist Again." The plotline is handled by uninspired unknowns; John Cronin and Mary Mitchell do not distinguish themselves as the romantic leads, although Alvy Moore of "Green Acres" gets a chuckle or two in a deadpan comedy-relief role.

If you have to choose between the "Twist Around the Clock" and "Rock Around the Clock" DVDs, "Rock Around the Clock" is easily your better bet. "Twist Around the Clock" fares badly on all counts: the music is monotonous (not one of the "twist" numbers is memorable), the story portions between numbers are leaden, and the predictability of the whole enterprise will have you reaching for the fast-forward button. All this has going for it is an archaeological value: curious viewers can observe the Twist phenomenon in its original context, and film buffs can see for themselves just how much was stolen from an older and better movie.

I found Twist Around The Clock to be a mediocre film. The story is an exact copy of Rock around the clock. The supporting acts, again mediocre. The star is really Chubby Checker, whose performance of The Twist especially in the finale is awesome and I will emulate some of his actions the next time I Twist at a party! The same for "Don't knock the Twist", again Chubby is most entertaining. They fail to capture the brilliance of "Rock around the clock" where every act is a winner.

This movie is virtually a complete copy of Rock Around the Clock. It looked ordinary, the songs were quite boring- apart from the title track.
Did not really enjoy any of it - acting was poor - songs were poor - being
a copy of the rock movie I felt like I was watching the same movie but with poor preformances . Very disappointed.

Two Lousy Movies For The Price Of One..Watch Out For The Stampede At Your Local Box Store..!..After Stealing Hank Ballards Original, Former Chicken Plucker, Ernest Evans,,aka Chubby Checker..Walks On His Back To A One Hit Wonder Career..Add Some Fifth Rate Talent For The Most Part..And Wal-lah..A Teen Movie..Vic Dana..?..Strictly Squaresville Man..!..His "Talent" Took Him Far..He's Now A Used Car Salesman In Paducah, Kentucky..Drop By And Pick Yourself Up A Classic 58 Edsel..Or A Pink Rambler Ambassador With Push Button Drive..Me, IDrive A 1950 Merc Lead Sled..See Ya'll At The Soda Shoppe, TO All You Cat's & Chicks,Skip These Dumb-Assed Flicks..!..Your Cool Daddy-O Has Spoken..Slide Me Five, Clyde..!

There's some good songs but the dancing is embarrassing compared with the lindy hop in "Don't Knock The Rock"/"Rock Around The Clock" dvd's. Compare the dancing in "The Fly" number with the dancing in "Rip It Up" and you'll see what I mean.

To be fair, this set does have its moments; e.g., Dee Dee Sharp appears with Chubby Checker to sing "Slow Twistin'".