Linbeymusol Wonderful character development!

SeeQuant Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Java_Joe Without a word of a doubt, this has to be the gayest movie I've ever seen. I don't mean that in a bad way but there is just so much gay in this movie that it's practically overflowing with rainbows. The movie is a fictionalized explanation of how the Village People came to be. Their prime audience, at least at the start, were gay men and the outfits they wore were supposedly gay fantasy material. But in this movie the whole thing about the band being gay was really toned down to the point where it was never even mentioned. Every time you see one, he's with a woman. It might be his sister or a friend but it's never a lover and they're never alone especially with another man. Maybe this was the movie's way of being subtle. But then they throw in the tryouts for their final member and I swear they're trying to say something. Remember, this is a tryout for a singing position so explain the reasons for tumblers, muscle men who sing to their muscles and I swear a flaming gay stereotype twirling flaming batons which set off the sprinklers. Focus movie! Either they're gay or they're not. What are you trying to say with this?Of course there's Bruce Jenner in his first, and thankfully last, starring role. The man wasn't a good actor. And he's parading around at some point in shorts and a t-shirt with a bare midriff. Do you think they knew something about him even back then?Then there's the scene in the YMCA where they sing YMCA. And again, it's full of buff young men doing sports, changing clothes, swimming and eventually they all tumble down into a giant Y on the final strain of the song. This is giving out mixed signals. It's uneven. It serves as not only a vehicle for the Village People to play some songs but to see if former decathalete and Wheaties spokesperson Bruce Jenner could carry a movie. It failed in both regards.By the time the movie had come out, disco was no longer a thing and that more than anything else, killed it. It's even been said that this movie killed movie musicals for decades afterwards but I don't think that's fair. There were others that came afterwards that were worse. The movie itself is rather unremarkable. It's a bunch of bits tied together by Village People songs and performances. It's not a movie I'd recommend to anybody unless you're into bad movies or movies with heavy gay subtext in them.

Kingkitsch Today, October 28 2014, is Bruce Jenner's 65th birthday. One wonders what he'd say to his 31 year old self if he could travel back in time? "Please turn down "Can't Stop the Music!" Stay on the Wheaties box!" Alas, we shall never know, but one thing's for certain, Bruce did appear in this shiny disco ball and we're all better for it, 34 years later.CSTM remains the final nail in the coffin of what we call disco. Released too late to fully cash in on the ebbing national dance craze, this astoundingly bad movie hit every wrong note and cemented itself in memory as a wreck the size of the Titanic. So, what's really it's appeal all these years later? THE VILLAGE PEOPLE. Three little words that finally showed all the good folks in the heartland what was going on in NYC's Christopher Street area. Ostensibly a biopic of how the People got together, the plethora of wooden acting and gay denial is so thick you could cut it with a knife. What was once refused is now revered, camp has triumphed, and the People became a national treasure. No one in their right mind who finally sees this unintentionally hilarious mess can believe that the "G" word is never spoken. Despite being a near-documentary about life in the gay district, everyone is presented as heterosexual. Perhaps someone living under a rock in North Dakota believed this, but no one else did. Today, the clues and innuendos are all out there ( pun intended) and we can enjoy the gloriously horrendous acting by everyone on screen. Of course, "YMCA" went on to become as well known as the national anthem, played at every wedding reception since the song first appeared. Of note here are:The auditions for the "new singing group". Featuring Leatherman Glen Hughes belting out "Danny Boy" in full leather drag while standing on a corporate boardroom table. He gets the job, while the real star of the audition, Mr.Flaming Baton twirler is sent packing. Hughes, who has since passed away, has the movie's best line. When he arrives for the audition in his leathers, Valerine Perrine asks what he does for a living. He tells her he's a ticket taker on a toll highway. When she replies "Do all ticket takers dress that way?", he snaps "Only the HOT ONES!" Construction worker David Hodo is given a weird solo song called "I Love You To Death". He gyrates around a number of women who throw red glitter on him. Seeing as how AIDS would present itself in the gay community not too distantly after this movie was released, this song takes on a whole new meaning that no one could have foreseen.Bruce Jenner in a crop top taking the gang to a place for "young men". Steven Guttenberg rollerskating through New York and not getting mugged.Director Nancy Walker, "Rhoda's mother" and Bounty paper towel hawker never directed another movie. Sad, seeing the genius she brought to CSTM.The all-white versions of the People's street drag while they do the Milkshake.Fun Fact: Despite the events depicted in CSTM, music man Jacques Morali resorted to advertising in the want ads of the Village Voice to find singers for a new group. After stating was was needed by applicants, the ad ended "must have mustache". That pretty much described every man wandering Christopher Street at the time.Just try to not to sing along while watching! Oh, by the way, the "Cop" Victor Willis was the only straight man in the lineup. He was briefly married to Phylicia Allen (who became Phylicia Rashad "The Cosby Show") and left the People because he allegedly didn't like the image of the group. You can't stop the music. Really.

Blueghost Yet I'm reviewing it anyway. I saw it on HBO airing, and can't remember too much about it. Valerie Perrine was a hot commodity coming off of her stint in Superman, and I'm guessing the producers wanted to see if she could be a draw at the box office as a star. She gave it her all, but she's not leading lady material, and the production wasn't that sterling in the first place. It was more or less a dud of a bomb. There were crowds on opening weekend, but word of mouth carried the day for the great disco flick that almost was.Perrine teams up with the Village People for a disco romp. I can't think of much else to add. If you were into 70s disco (a French creation no less), then you might want to check this film out. But don't say I didn't warn you.Watch at your own risk.

wadechurton Yes, 10 stars. I know when I'm beaten. This movie is just as bad as everyone says, but it has one thing going for it. It doesn't care. You can say what you like about bad scriptwriting, acting and direction, but this thing is just going to damn well party down, no matter what you think. Gay? 'CSTM!' is so 'festive' that the DVD should come wrapped in a pair of gold lame shorts (although there's Valerie Perrine and those remarkably sexy dancers in the outlandish 'Milk Shake' sequence to unashamedly ogle). 'Bad'? Think 'Plan 9 From Outer Space' bad. In other words, if you appreciate 'good' movies (and a beer or two) then you'll definitely enjoy this total affront to all things 'good' (and 'tasteful'). There's something wrong everywhere you look; watch out for such choice moments as the 'recording session' held in Valerie Perrine's back yard. Most musicians and producers prefer purpose-built soundproof recording studios, but not these guys. I've been a musician for over 30 years and every few minutes had me doing another face-palm. The songs (e.g. 'Magic Nights', 'Milk Shake' etcetera) mostly sound like they were written on the back of a beer coaster after an all-nighter, and the crazed 'audition' sequence has to be seen to be believed. You don't have to know anything about music to have fun with this movie (although it certainly helps); there's plenty for everyone. How about the insanely amateur camera angles covering the big San Francisco concert at the end? When you're not staring directly up the wildly gyrating Ritchie Family's skirts (and their song goes on for an utterly ridiculous time), you're looking at five of the six Village People on the stage. That's after seeing them arrive on stage in spectacularly excitement-stifling middle distance. Look, I genuinely could go on for several pages listing stuff like this, but you're better off witnessing it for yourself. Imagine a 1940s screwball comedy put through a concrete mixer and brought to fruition by well-intentioned Martians with a less-than-firm grip on Earth culture circa 1980 and you're there. You can't stop the music; it'll run you down and leave you in stitches.