Redartz: Greetings, pop culture fans! Here at BitBA, we frequently engage in that fond reverie about the past known as nostalgia. Well, nostalgia is certainly not exclusive to our present era. 'Back in the Bronze Age', the 70's specifically, there arose a craze for 1950's popular culture. It manifested itself in music (top 40 reappearances by such 50's acts as Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis). It was represented on television (most notably in the hit shows "Happy Days" and "Laverne and Shirley"). But two of the biggest examples of the Fifties' influence were films: "American Graffiti" and "Grease".
"American Graffiti" was a big hit in 1973, and really helped amplify the popularity of "Happy Days". The film, by George Lucas (who had some later big films, incidentally) was a rich look back at a teenage weekend, and featured many of the faces who became icons later in the decade: Ron Howard, Cindy Williams, Harrison Ford). The film was also critically praised, earning a Best Picture Oscar nonimation.
"Grease", released in 1978, was a box office monster. Starring John Travolta (at the height of his popularity) and Olivia Newton-John, it adapted the popular Broadway play about late 50's teen life. The film soon became a classic, and had an incredibly successful soundtrack as well.
So today, let's compare and contrast the two. Which film was your favorite? Which holds up the best some four decades later? How about the soundtracks, the casts, the plots? I'll meet you at the malt shop and we'll compare notes about "Graffiti" and "Grease"...
