list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around The Apple on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/The_Apple/1567/default.aspx Title: The Apple
Year: 1980
Director: Menahem Golan
Plot: Unleashed just as the disco phenomenon had peaked and was slipping out of public favor, this one-of-a-kind pop musical is set in 1994, when a Mephistophelean entrepreneur named Mr. Boogalow (Vladek Sheybal) controls the international recording industry through the Worldvision Song Contest. Boogalow's wildly theatrical protégés, a decedent dance-pop group called Bim, seem a sure bet to walk off with the grand prize and worldwide fame, but at the last minute Alphie (George Gilmour) and Bibi (Catherine Mary Stewart), a folk duo from Canada, nearly steal their thunder with their song "Love, the Universal Melody." While Boogalow rigs a victory for Bim, he sees moneymaking potential in Alphie and Bibi and offers to sign them to a contract. Alphie, suspicious of Boogalow, declines, but Bibi leaps at the chance, and is soon remodeled into a stylish pop star while heart-broken Alphie throws in his lot with a gang of hippies living in the park. Bibi comes to regard fame and wealth as hollow and empty, but discovers walking away from Boogalow is easier said than done. Featuring an inarguably remarkable finale, The Apple was shot primarily in Germany, despite being set in the United States; while George Clinton is credited with writing lyrics for several of the original tunes, be advised it's not the same George Clinton who led Parliament and Funkadelic in the 1970s and '80s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 3
Number of Lists: 4
Number of blog posts: 1
SpoutRating: 2
]]>Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:06:09 GMTThe Apple1980Menahem GolanUnleashed just as the disco phenomenon had peaked and was slipping out of public favor, this one-of-a-kind pop musical is set in 1994, when a Mephistophelean entrepreneur named Mr. Boogalow (<a href="/players/P____65278/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Vladek Sheybal</a>) controls the international recording industry through the Worldvision Song Contest. Boogalow's wildly theatrical protégés, a decedent dance-pop group called Bim, seem a sure bet to walk off with the grand prize and worldwide fame, but at the last minute Alphie (George Gilmour) and Bibi (Catherine Mary Stewart), a folk duo from Canada, nearly steal their thunder with their song "Love, the Universal Melody." While Boogalow rigs a victory for Bim, he sees moneymaking potential in Alphie and Bibi and offers to sign them to a contract. Alphie, suspicious of Boogalow, declines, but Bibi leaps at the chance, and is soon remodeled into a stylish pop star while heart-broken Alphie throws in his lot with a gang of hippies living in the park. Bibi comes to regard fame and wealth as hollow and empty, but discovers walking away from Boogalow is easier said than done. Featuring an inarguably remarkable finale, The Apple was shot primarily in Germany, despite being set in the United States; while George Clinton is credited with writing lyrics for several of the original tunes, be advised it's not the same George Clinton who led Parliament and Funkadelic in the 1970s and '80s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide3Slightly Tagged (1-5)412http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t45135yxwdj.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/The_Apple/1567/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/blogs/minerwerks/archive/2008/10/17/36450.aspx Post By: minerwerks
Post To: minerwerks Blog
Post Date: 10/17/2008 1:04:09 PM
Body: Oh... my... God. I have a friend obsessed with the most obscure and bizarre movies ever seen, and when I happened by the other day, he was starting to watch this 1980 musical about a couple of kids from Canada seduced by a music business empresario. The female lead is Catherine Mary Stewart, known affectionately to many fans of 80s films from her roles in 'The Last Starfighter,' 'Night of the Comet' and 'Weekend at Bernie's.' The Male lead is some generic pretty boy with terrible acting skills and a resemblance to Bryan Singer (yeah, odd). The film is set in "the future" of 1994, where big corporations control the citizens. The master of it all is Mr. Boogalow, who surrounds himself with androgynous servants. Almost everyone in the film speaks with either a monotone or an exaggeratedly effeminite tone - until the middle of the film where we inexplicably are given a stereotypical Jewish mother character for a few scenes. At the beginning, we get the simple "seduction of the innocent" plot - the female gives in, but the guy resists - but eventually everything gets bogged down in repetitive musical numbers and nonsensical twists. This is a movie where the hero takes a strange drink from the people he thinks are holding his girlfriend hostage. This dumdum gets what he deserves. And evidently what he deserves is to live under a bridge with exiled hippies. The girlfriend escapes and joins them all, but the film isn't satisfied with this weakly played resolution. No, when the army of baddies show up to take on the hippies, we are treated to one of the most ridiculous deus ex machina moments ever committed to celluloid. Brought to the hippies by a giant white car in the sky is Mr. Topps, a godlike figure who just takes everyone away to start over without Mr. Boogalow. Have I mentioned this was a musical as well? Contributing to the completely unbelievable plot are a string of wretched, screeching songs. You could never believe that the evil corporation would control the people through song because their "anthem" is so overbearingly repetitive and chaotic. You could never believe that the hero and heroine's "retro" love song could appeal to the people because it's so trite and laughable. Don't even get me started on the fantasy musical number set in hell where, for some reason, there are vampires and guys with dog masks. Did I mention that the hippie leader sings in a grating low baritone? Anyone who thinks 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' is the worst of this era's musical attrocities hasn't seen 'The Apple.' 'The Apple' was a product of the production machine known as Cannon Films, which thrust upon the world 'Superman IV' and most of the 1980s Chuck Norris ouvre ('Missing In Action' and 'The Delta Force,' for example). This desperate attempt to cash in on both the cult movie and musical phenomenons of the 1970s smacks of that cheap, rushed mentality that earned the filmmakers the nickname of "The Go-Go Boys." It's ample proof that one must actually believe in what they are creating for it to carry any resonance whatsoever.
]]>Fri, 17 Oct 2008 17:04:09 GMTminerwerksminerwerks Blog10/17/2008 1:04:09 PMOh... my... God. I have a friend obsessed with the most obscure and bizarre movies ever seen, and when I happened by the other day, he was starting to watch this 1980 musical about a couple of kids from Canada seduced by a music business empresario. The female lead is Catherine Mary Stewart, known affectionately to many fans of 80s films from her roles in 'The Last Starfighter,' 'Night of the Comet' and 'Weekend at Bernie's.' The Male lead is some generic pretty boy with terrible acting skills and a resemblance to Bryan Singer (yeah, odd). The film is set in "the future" of 1994, where big corporations control the citizens. The master of it all is Mr. Boogalow, who surrounds himself with androgynous servants. Almost everyone in the film speaks with either a monotone or an exaggeratedly effeminite tone - until the middle of the film where we inexplicably are given a stereotypical Jewish mother character for a few scenes. At the beginning, we get the simple "seduction of the innocent" plot - the female gives in, but the guy resists - but eventually everything gets bogged down in repetitive musical numbers and nonsensical twists. This is a movie where the hero takes a strange drink from the people he thinks are holding his girlfriend hostage. This dumdum gets what he deserves. And evidently what he deserves is to live under a bridge with exiled hippies. The girlfriend escapes and joins them all, but the film isn't satisfied with this weakly played resolution. No, when the army of baddies show up to take on the hippies, we are treated to one of the most ridiculous deus ex machina moments ever committed to celluloid. Brought to the hippies by a giant white car in the sky is Mr. Topps, a godlike figure who just takes everyone away to start over without Mr. Boogalow. Have I mentioned this was a musical as well? Contributing to the completely unbelievable plot are a string of wretched, screeching songs. You could never believe that the evil corporation would control the people through song because their "anthem" is so overbearingly repetitive and chaotic. You could never believe that the hero and heroine's "retro" love song could appeal to the people because it's so trite and laughable. Don't even get me started on the fantasy musical number set in hell where, for some reason, there are vampires and guys with dog masks. Did I mention that the hippie leader sings in a grating low baritone? Anyone who thinks 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' is the worst of this era's musical attrocities hasn't seen 'The Apple.' 'The Apple' was a product of the production machine known as Cannon Films, which thrust upon the world 'Superman IV' and most of the 1980s Chuck Norris ouvre ('Missing In Action' and 'The Delta Force,' for example). This desperate attempt to cash in on both the cult movie and musical phenomenons of the 1970s smacks of that cheap, rushed mentality that earned the filmmakers the nickname of "The Go-Go Boys." It's ample proof that one must actually believe in what they are creating for it to carry any resonance whatsoever. http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/music/MemberTagFilms.aspxmusic
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