Grease 2 (1982) Paramount/Musical-Comedy RT: 115 minutes Rated PG (mild language, suggestive material including gestures) Director: Patricia Birch Screenplay: Ken Finkleman Music: Louis St. Louis Cinematography: Frank Stanley Release date: June 11, 1982 (US) Cast: Maxwell Caulfield, Michelle Pfeiffer, Adrian Zmed, Lorna Luft, Maureen Teefy, Alison Price, Christopher McDonald, Leif Green, Peter Frechette, Pamela Segall, Eve Arden, Didi Conn, Sid Caesar, Dody Goodman, Connie Stevens, Tab Hunter, Dick Patterson, Eddie Deezen, Matt Lattanzi, Jean and Liz Sagal, Dennis Stewart, Brad Jeffries. Box Office: $15.1M (US)
Rating: ****
Everybody knows that Grease 2 is widely considered one of the worst sequels and worst musicals of all time. Critics tore it apart mercilessly. Audiences jeered and laughed in derision. It ultimately bombed at the box office making only a fraction of what the original Grease took in. None of this matters in the slightest to me. I absolutely LOVE it!
I saw Grease 2 the day it opened at the Barclay Square Theater. That’s where I watched the first movie two out of the three times I saw it at the cinema. It was a Friday afternoon and school had just let out for the summer. There weren’t too many others in attendance at the showing my friend JB and I attended. The few that were there didn’t seem all that impressed. They actually looked bored. Me, I thought it was great. I couldn’t explain why I liked it at the time; I just knew that I did.
Without realizing it, Grease 2 reinforced a love of great bad movies that began with seeing Xanadu two years earlier. It was soon thereafter that I acquired a used copy of the book The Golden Turkey Awards at a flea market. Reading it, I understood why I loved Grease 2 so much. I know the book doesn’t mention it specifically (it was published two years before it came out), but it does mention the 1978 musical fiasco Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. At that moment, it became clear that much of my life’s joy would be derived from watching the best of the worst Hollywood has to offer.
Set in 1961, it’s a new school year at Rydell High. The new group of seniors includes an exchange student from the UK, Michael Carrington (Caulfield, The Boys Next Door). A straight-A, straight-laced type, he’s the cousin of Olivia Newton-John’s character from the first movie. This is NOT an important plot point. It’s mentioned only once and only to establish a connection to the original movie.
ANYWAY, it doesn’t take Michael long- mere minutes after the big opening number “Back to School Again”- to clash with the T-Birds now led by Johnny Nogerelli (Zmed, Bachelor Party). He still can’t accept that it’s over between him and his ex-girlfriend Stephanie Zinone (Pfeiffer, The Witches of Eastwick), the leader of the Pink Ladies. Michael is instantly smitten with Stephanie, but he’s not her type. She makes clear what she wants in a guy when she belts out “Cool Rider”. Besides, there’s that pesky Pink Lady code stating they’re the exclusive property of the T-Birds.
What’s a clean-cut guy to do in a case like this? Taking a page from his cousin’s playbook, Michael changes his image by creating an alter ego. He buys a motorcycle with money he earns writing term papers for the T-Birds and learns to ride in what seems like record time. In a matter of mere screen minutes, he’s trick riding all over the place in the guise of a mysterious lone biker in a mask. Of course, Stephanie falls head over heels for him without realizing it’s really Michael. It must be the goggles. It’s no weirder than Lois Lane not figuring out Superman is Clark Kent without his glasses. On his part, Michael struggles with revealing his true identity to the girl he’s crazy about. Oh, I forgot to mention an important plot point. The drama all takes place while the student body prepares for the big school talent show at the end of the school year.
It’s odd that a movie directed by a choreographer features some of the clumsiest choreography ever committed to film. I dare say it’s an almost amazing feat on the part of Patricia Birch who does double duty on Grease 2 as director and choreographer. She served in the latter capacity on the first Grease and did a first-rate job. This time, not so much. In some numbers (“Back to School Again” and “Reproduction” in particular), it’s more crowd control than choreography. Much of the time, the dancers are filmed from the waist up. Maybe it would have helped if Birch hired actors who could actually sing and dance. Let’s face it, Maxwell Caulfield and Michelle Pfeiffer are no John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. Hell, I can’t recall Caulfield dancing even once. Oh well, at least Zmed knows how to belt out a tune. “Prowlin’” is AWESOME!
Despite the many failings in this area, I do like several numbers in Grease 2. “Score Tonight” is great with the dancers sliding down lanes and twirling obviously fake bowling balls around. Yes, the title’s double meaning is intentional. More open about its subject matter is “Reproduction” led by Tab Hunter (Damn Yankees!) as a substitute biology teacher. Caulfield, who’s not that bad of a singer, does an internal number called “Charades” where he laments over his romantic complications with Stephanie. At the talent show, the girls perform an elaborate number (“Girl for All Seasons”) capped by Stephanie doing a lament of her own (“Love Will Turn Back the Hands of Time”). BTW, who doesn’t love “Cool Rider”? Come on, you know you do!
On the other hand, there’s this one truly heinous number called “Do It for Our Country” (meaning crystal clear!) in which T-Bird Louis (Frechette, The Kindred) tries to trick his girlfriend Sharon (Teefy, Fame) into going all the way by faking a nuclear attack by the Russians. It’s just stupid. At the same time, it’s in perfect keeping with the low-IQ tone of the whole dumb affair.
One of the cool things about Grease 2 is the returning and new cast members that make up the faculty at Rydell. Eve Arden (The Mothers-in Law) and Dody Goodman (Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman) are back as stern Principal McGee and her dotty secretary Blanche. Sid Caesar (Your Show of Shows) pops up a few times as Coach Calhoun. Singer Connie Stevens (Palm Springs Weekend) joins the cast as Ms. Mason, a busty teacher who teaches either Music Appreciation or English or maybe both. It’s not clear. She does have this amusing (albeit slightly disturbing) exchange with Johnny and his gang:
Ms. Mason: “I’d really love to see all of you in Music Appreciation this year.”
Johnny: “I’d like to see all of you in Music Appreciation this year.”
Ms. Mason: (giggles) “You just might.”
A couple of students return as well. Former Pink Lady (Conn) comes back to finish high school so she can get her cosmetology license. No more hair for her and for good reason. Eddie Deezen returns as nerdy Eugene because all high school-set movies need a reliable nerd. I like Deezen very much; I wish there was more of him in Grease 2. Twins Liz and Jean Sagal have some good scenes as a pair of slightly annoying rah-rah twins. Basically, they’re Patty Simcox times two.
Caulfield makes an interesting lead. The haters say he lacks the necessary charisma to be an effective leading man. I say give the guy a break, it’s his first movie. Maybe he wasn’t ready for a big role in a major movie. He had some big shoes to fill. He seems unsure of himself a lot of the time, but he doesn’t do too bad a job of it all things considered. Pfeiffer, in her first big role, fares better. Actually, she’s pretty great as an independent type sick of being somebody’s girl. She’s had it with being ordered around and following stupid codes dictating who she can and can’t date. That’s another thing Grease 2 is responsible for, my crush on Pfeiffer.
As for chemistry between the two leads, it’s more lukewarm than sizzling hot. Then again, how do you follow an act like Travolta and ONJ? Zmed is great as Johnny even if he never comes off as dangerous. He’s pretty innocuous for a biker gang leader. Lorna Luft (Where the Boys Are ’84) is also good as Paulette, a bleached-blonde Pink Lady with the hots for Johnny.
Grease 2 is one of my greatest guilty pleasures. I LOVE it! How much do I love it? When it aired on cable, I watched it every time it was on. I rented the video more than once. I still have my vinyl copy of the soundtrack. I break out the DVD whenever I need to boost my spirits or have a few laughs. Does that answer the question?
Sure, most people love Grease 1. It’s great, but I like Grease 2 better. I know I’m in the minority but not alone in my love for this awesomely bad movie with its dopey dialogue, corny jokes and double entendres, hammy acting, bad singing and dancing and silly plot. I still can’t get over Stephanie’s failure to recognize Michael as the “Cool Rider” once he’s up close. Oh well, who cares? It’s a fun movie for reasons right and wrong.
