Xanadu (1980)
58%RT Audience Score: 58%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 10 nominations
Not even spandex and over-the-top musical numbers can save Xanadu from questionable acting, unimpressive effects, and a story unencumbered by logic
Xanadu is a movie that’s so bad, it’s good. It’s like a train wreck that you can’t look away from, but instead of a train, it’s Olivia Newton-John on roller skates. The special effects are cheesy, the acting is wooden, and the plot is nonsensical, but that’s what makes it so entertaining. It’s a disco fever dream that you won’t soon forget. So grab some popcorn, put on your roller skates, and get ready for a wild ride.
Production Company(ies)
Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment,
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Pan-Pacific Auditorium – 7600 W. Beverly Boulevard, Fairfax, Los Angeles, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
PG
Year of Release
1980
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 36m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 8, 1980 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 24, 2008
Genre(s)
Fantasy
Keyword(s)
starring Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly, Michael Beck, James Sloyan, Dimitra Arliss, Katie Hanley, directed by Robert Greenwald, written by Richard Christian Danus and Marc Reid Rubel, fantasy, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Tom Shales, William Thomas, Jeff McLaughlin, Eric Henderson, James Berardinelli, Saffron Maeve, Larry Vitacco, Jesús Fernández Santos, Raquel Stecher, Lorien Haynes, TV Guide Staff, PG, roller-skating disco, Greek muse, ELO, musical numbers, special effects, choreography, tacky, campy, 80s film, Grease, album covers, struggling artist, anonymous woman, ageless, logic, intravenous marzipan, questionable acting, unimpressive effects, story unencumbered by logic, Lawrence Gordon, produced by Universal Pictures, surround sound mix
Worldwide gross: $22,762,571
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $85,549,461
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,090
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 9,329,276
US/Canada gross: $22,762,571
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $85,549,461
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 827
US/Canada opening weekend: $1,471,595
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $5,530,753
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,085
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $20,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $75,166,782
Production budget ranking: 559
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $40,477,312
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$30,094,634
ROI to date (est.): -26%
ROI ranking: 1,543
Gene Kelly – Danny McGuire
Michael Beck – Sonny Malone
James Sloyan – Simpson
Dimitra Arliss – Helen
Katie Hanley – Sandra
Director(s)
Robert Greenwald
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Lawrence Gordon
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 win & 10 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (42) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (12) | Rotten (30)
“Xanadu” cannot possibly be described as a good movie, but it can be recommended to those who can tolerate large amounts of intravenous marzipan.
April 1, 2019
Tom Shales
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
This modern musical with tunes written by Where Are They Now pop band ELO falls flat on its face simply because the premise is so utterly ludicrous.
April 1, 2019 | Rating: 2/5
William Thomas
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
The acting is wooden, the direction and cinematography confused, the special effects largely out of place, the dramatic interest nonexistent.
April 28, 2018
Jeff McLaughlin
Boston Globe
TOP CRITIC
Stupendously bad.
March 26, 2009
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
While the movie is every bit as garish and overly shellacked as the other bomb musicals of its era, at least this one looks like irresponsible amounts of money were thrown around.
June 25, 2008 | Rating: 2.5/4
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Conventional wisdom decrees that Xanadu is a horrible film. In a sense, conventional wisdom may be correct, but it ignores one key ingredient: viewed in the right frame of mind, this movie can be a lot of fun.
June 10, 2008 | Rating: 3/4
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
TOP CRITIC
It was never designed to age well and oddly, because of that fact, it remains relevant to this day. It’s this impermanence that makes Xanadu feel significant; a then-product now-relic of the 1970s that celebrates the disco-era long after its demise.
March 13, 2021
Saffron Maeve
Film Inquiry
Xanadu offers a wealth of special effects entrancingly strung out along a rather impoverished screenplay.
May 27, 2020 | Rating: 3/4
Larry Vitacco
Philadelphia Gay News
The excessive effects and music are the main protagonists in this story where the best part is the choreography. [Full Review in Spanish]
August 13, 2019
Jesús Fernández Santos
El Pais (Spain)
Xanadu is total confection. It’s 100% ridiculous. Very little of it makes sense…. They really should have nixed the idea of finding a Gibb look-a-like and went with a song-and-dance man instead.
August 11, 2019
Raquel Stecher
Out of the Past
A laugh if only for its mind-boggling awfulness.
April 1, 2019 | Rating: 1/5
Lorien Haynes
Radio Times
Though meant to be a throwback to old-style Hollywood musicals, XANADU merely replaces style and substance with flash and glitz…
April 1, 2019 | Rating: 1/5
TV Guide Staff
TV Guide…
Plot
In Los Angeles, artist Sonny Malone reluctantly returns to his job at Airflow Records
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The cast of Xanadu includes Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly, and Michael Beck.
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