Customer Reviews

Grease 2 [VHS]

5 star:		(89)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(24)
2 star:		(22)
1 star:		(35)

 

 

GREASE 2 is a guilty pleasure of mine. It is not really a good movie. But I can't help myself -- I simply enjoy watching it!

The opening number ("Back To School") fools you. It is so energetic and arresting that you think the rest of the movie will be that good. It won't. I can watch the opening number over and over again. Patricia Birch's choreography and direction really shine here. And all the fun secondary characters get their introductions: the goody-goody twins; Connie Stevens sex-pot teacher; the lettermen.

The film picks up speed again with the bowling alley number ("I Wanna Score Tonight"). Hilarious! Lorna Luft plays a Marilyn Monroe-esque Pink Lady and gets to sing her one solo line in this scene. ("Hey, Johnny, Johnny, let's bowl that strike - and I just may be your baby tonight...")

From here it's down hill (but what a spectacle). We get to see Michelle Pfeiffer climb a ladder and sing "Cool Rider". There is an unbelievable number with the students called "Reproduction" ("Where does the pollen go?") that will have you wincing and yet strangely unable to take your eyes away from the screen.

Then, a Thunderbird seduces a Pink Lady with "Let's Do It For Our Country". Oh my!

And finally, Maxwell Caufield shows up in a fabulous motorcycle-leather outfit.

No, not a classic. No, not as good as GREASE. But, oh, so bad it's good!

What can you say about this movie that hasn't already been said? I LOVE this movie. It's definitely a Guilty pleasure of mine. I watch the first one and well...you just want to watch this one after.

It an overall feel good movie, campy fun with laughter and tears. You get a little bit of everything in this movie.

Not much like the first, some of the same characters, but still that same feeling of high school back when! And it has Michelle Pfeiffer in it in one of her earliest roles! She does a tremendous job!

A great movie for so many occaisions! Watch it! I bet you'll love it just as much as I do. It's silly humor and characters that you can't help but love make this movie a winner from begining to end.

It's great for so many age groups too!

The sequel to Grease and closely modeled after it, Grease 2 takes place in 1961 during the John F. Kennedy administration at Rydell High School. Some of the same faculty members are still there such as Miss McGee (Eve Arden), Blanche (Dody Goodman) and Coach Calhoun (Sid Caesar) along with some new faculty members such as Miss Mason (Connie Stevens), Mr. Stuart (Tab Hunter) and Mr. Spears (Dick Patterson). The main difference between Grease and Grease 2 is the students. Since the original Pink Ladies and T-Birds graduated in the last picture, Grease 2 contains an all new cast of students except for one, Frenchy (Didi Conn), who failed her senior year. The main plot in this musical is that a new student Michael (Maxwell Caulfield) falls in love with Pink Lady Stephanie (Michelle Pfeiffer). She is off-limits until he can prove himself as a leather-clad biker. Michael then buys a motorcycle, a helmet and becomes a mysterious stranger, appearing to Stephanie at different places such as the gas station where she works. In the end, he sweeps her off her feet.

Grease 2 was considered to be a typical sequel that would do terrible at the box office and not live up to the name it was carrying. It starred two actors, Michelle Pfeiffer and Maxwell Caulfield, who were unknowns in 1982 playing sexual reversal roles from the original. Pfeiffer played the Travolta role and Caulfield played the English version of the Newton-John role. This was the first criticism of the movie from reviews and the general public when it was released. With a sequel, the audience feels more comfortable watching the same characters from the first movie in the second one. Another problem or dislike of the film is that it runs out of story. The main point of the story is how Michael delays revealing himself to Stephanie until the climax of the movie. The filmmakers didn't give Caulfield enough to do, like dancing, which is one of the most important aspects of the Grease movies.

"But what undoubtedly counts are the musical numbers. Tunes were penned by various hands and most of them are well conceived and reasonably clever." (Variety, T. McCarthy, June 9, 1982). The songs are what gives the movie its energy and try to highlight the points of the film when the storyline was drifting. There is a raising ensemble number called "Back to School to start the movie off with a bang, a enlivened bowling alley number called "Score Tonight" and a dirty-minded number called "Reproduction" that turns a biology lesson into an outbreak about adolescent desire. Director and choreographer, Patricia Birch, found the most interesting places to stage the musical numbers such as a bomb shelter ("Let's Do it For Our Country") and a bowling alley ("Score Tonight") and uses some sharp, rapid, short sequences that gives liveliness to most of the dances.

Despite all the bad reviews, I found this musical as enjoyable as Grease. The film's original goal was to appeal to the pre-teens and teenagers, not to the adults. The storyline was simpler and lighter than Grease and the songs were more upbeat and creative. I was not discouraged from seeing this film because Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta were not in it. I usually have an open mind about sequels and consider seeing any one that is made, no matter if it's different.

As a sequel to a mega-hit movie this was a stinker. The thing I loved about the original was how it captured the late 50's with music, custumes, and attitudes and yet this sequel seemed to fall flat on it's face in all those categories. The songs are so out of place with lots of 80's ish themes being played during certain scenes. The producer couldn't even focus on one time period with the music which ranged from 50's, 60's, 70's and even 80's metal at one point. The mood and feel of the movie was wrecked by this alone, without including the fact that the songs themselves were utterly boring. One or two songs were ok, like "Reproduction" and the biker song by Michelle Pfeiffer.
If you buy this thinking it's a real sequel to Grease you are sadly mistaken. There's not alot in common at all with the first movie other then a few characters and the "T-birds" and "Pink Ladies". The plot is totally cheesy also. I'm not sure what I hated worst, the fact that some of the hairstyles and music reminded me more of the 80's or the predictable plot of the movie. "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" , "The Breakfast Club" & "Sixteen Candles" are so much better movies at representing the 80's if you are looking for a movie like that. The last thing I wish to see is a movie suposedly set in 1961 is for it to coming off in all respects to be 1982.
When I watch movies like this, I like to be transported back to a place in time and feel the period completely. Unfortunately Grease 2 leaves me wondering exactly what time period it was supposed to represent.
The only saving grace of this movie is watching a young Michelle Pfeiffer with brown eyes instead of her usual and what I thought was her natural blue eyes.

I saw this movie as a child when it first came out and I have loved it ever since. The music and the characters are loveable and laughable. The storyline is simplistic but charming. Love at first sight. However before the 2 main characters can get together they have to overcome the obstacles of young love and high school rules along with peer pressure. However the secondary characters are what make this movie move and flourish. On a personal level my 2 favorite characters as well as my favorite couple are Louis and Sharon. They provide the best musical number in the movie. Let's Do It For Our Country, has to be the one of the funniest songs in the movie. As well as the song Reproduction. This one of my favorite movies, and in my opinion much better than the original. The original did not have the amusing songs and making fun of high school like Grease 2 does:) I like the original but not as much as the 2nd. The secondary characters offer a great FOIL of themselves. Sharon the virtious and self-righteous pink lady has to fight Louis off with a stick and on the other side of the spectrum Paulette literally throws herself at Johnny. Also, they make Sharon look like Jackie Kennedy and Paulette look like Marilyn Monroe. Very clever. They even mention it at the begining of the movie.
Thats my 2 cents worth. I recommend this movie to anyone who likes musicals. I am so glad that this movie comes to DVD in a week. Once again Maureen Teefy does a great job.

Quite possibly the WORST film ever made. EVER! Michelle P. is surprisingly good given the overall stupidity of the script and music. But she alone cannot save this movie. The few redeeming qualities of this film are that it IS hysterical in a campy, "what were they thinking" kind of way. Also, a humorous blast from the past if you are over 25. I was about 12 when this came out in theaters. I was so excited given that I was a Sandy and Danny groupie back in elementary school. I even bought the soundtrack immediately after watching the movie. Looking at it years later I have to ask, "What was I thinking??" No comparison to the original Grease, a true classic. But, in some strange way the complete idiocy of the sequel almost makes it charming. Almost

As much as I love the original, this one is almost as good, and has great songs in it too! Michelle as Stephanie & Maxwell Caulfield make a sweet couple, although I hated the T-birds in this. They were godawful weren't they?

The best songs in this are "Cool Rider", "Reproduction", and the start song "Back To School". I hated the two songs that the T-birds sing - really what was the point? - and Didi Conn comes back as Frenchie.

Grease 2 has got bad reviews, cos it doesn't compare to the original etc. There are no great stars in this film, unlike John Travolta from the original, although Michelle would go on to be a great star. There is something so lovable about this movie, although it might have its slightly dodgy scenes and dodgy styles (most of the clothes scream 80s, despite being set just a couple of years after the original was set). The film is a cash in, in every way, but yet it seems to work, and it becomes your guilty secret when you watch it, you don't want to admit it.

Although it may not be as great as the original, this is a must see, and the guys will like Michelle in all the leather stuff she wears.

I have been a big fan of the original Grease movie since it first came out in the '70s and figured maybe Grease 2 would be similar, but no. In Grease, the 2 main characters (John Travolta and Olivia Newton John) could actually sing. In Grease 2, the main characters (Maxwell Caulfield and Michelle Pfeiffer) can sing, but not very good. A couple of the songs are ones that will play over and over in your mind, some of the songs would have been better off to have not been sung at all. The actress that played Sharon (one of the other Pink Ladies) has a voice that hurts to listen to. She is so out of key it is almost like watching the try outs for American Idol.
Parts of the movie are down right dumb while the rest is enjoyable/funny. The acting is ok, about as good as the first one.
It is similar to the first Grease in that it takes place at Rydell High School and there is music involved other than that they aren't similar at all. Don't get me wrong I bought this movie and I have watched it now about 5 times. Rent it first before you buy it here. Also, don't be shocked if you start hearing Reproduction and Cool Rider, 2 songs in the movie, over and over in your head.

Where should I start...Okay..Grease 2 is very interesting to watch..It's a fun movie to watch...But it's not nearly as good as Grease. This movie has some great songs and great actors but the dialogue isn't the greatest...But this movie is definitely a movie to watch if you are grumpy..It's just so corny that you will absolutely love it...It's the kind of movie where when around people your like: Omygosh..this sucks..but when alone your sitting there belting out "Let's Bowl".I will admit I have seen it atleast 50 times.

I'm embarrased to state that I really love this movie. I must have watched it 15 times one summer vacation when it was on heavy rotation on HBO. I was about 13 at the time, which may go a long way towards explaining my opinion... this one is right up a pre-teen's alley.... motorcycles, pink ladies, romance. I have to say that, if I were to see the movie for the first time as an adult, I would probably only give it a two-star rating. The songs are really cheesy, especially "who's that guy" and "let's do it for our country", but I know all the words to every song, and loved "cool rider". I thought Michelle Pfeifer prancing and singing on the ladder was the epitome of cool. (Remember, I was only 13) But it's a feel good kind of movie, and it still makes me smile every time I watch it. The sexpot teacher is a stand out now that I didn't notice as a kid, and Adrien Zmed is hysterical as the insecure and overcompensating leader of the T-birds. Stephanie's character is kind of whiny, and Maxwell Caulfield doesn't have much personality, but he's cute, and that serves the purpose for this film. Bringing Frenchie back didn't really contribute anything to the film, but overall I found the T-Birds and Pink Ladies really amusing. I still watch the re-runs on V-H1. High rating if only for the sake of nostalgia.