Paramount (USA)
2.35:1 1080p
110 minutes
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English, DD 5.1 French; DD 2.0 mono Spanish
Subtitles: Optional English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Extras: director’s intro; audio commentary; Rydell Sing-Along; deleted/extended/alternate scenes; The Time, The Place, The Motion: Remembering Grease; The Moves Behind the Music; Thunder Roadsters; Grease on DVD Launch Party; Grease Memories from John and Olivia; “Grease Day” Interviews; theatrical trailer; photo gallery
Released: 5 May 2009
Originally a hit Broadway musical, Grease became a hit film musical in 1978 starring John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, and Stockard Channing. The movie cemented Travolta’s rising star, and Newton-John’s fame as a singer lent the project welcome authenticity.
At the beginning of Grease, we see Danny Zuko (Travolta) and Sandy (Newton-John) enjoy the final moments of their summer fling. He’s about to start his senior year in high school, and she’s going back to Australia. However, when the fall term begins, Sandy appears at Danny’s Rydell High. Apparently, he never told her about his belonging to the “T” Birds, the local greasers, so he gives her the cold shoulder at school in order to maintain his reputation. Didn’t you know? Greasers don’t hang out with preppies. The rest of the movie charts their tentative steps toward being more like each other, thereby recapturing their summer love.
The actors exhibit a great deal of energy in well-choreographed song-and-dance numbers, and there’s also a great deal of physical humor as well. For example, there’s a scene where Sandy gets out of Zuko’s car, and he tries to follow her. She slams the door, hitting him in the groin, and he collapses. Travolta’s face neatly expresses the pain and clumsy horror of being nailed where it hurts most.
For me, the most surprising thing about watching Grease is witnessing how well Travolta can dance. He’s all over the place, twisting and turning his body until it seems like his skeleton was made of cartilage, not bone. The actor has opted to make action films like Face/Off in recent years, but it’d be a treat to see him in go-for-broke dancing again.
Video:
This is a handsome presentation of the movie. The 2.35:1 1080p image is bright, colorful, and nearly pristine. There are a few moments when grain is a bit heavy (such as during the early beach-side scenes), though this is to be expected of pre-1990s productions. Contrast is excellent. The Blu-ray is light-years beyond the quality of the 2002 DVD.
Audio:
The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 English track sounds comfortably wide across the front stage, but there’s not much for the rear speakers to do. Despite the loud music, dialogue and singing voices can be heard clearly. Bass levels and the track’s dynamic range are not as impressive as those offered by recent productions, but they are adequate for a 30-plus-year-old film.
Extras:
First up are a director’s intro and an audio commentary by the director and the dance choreographer. You can also watch the movie with the “Rydell Sing-Along” text track, karaoke-style. There are several deleted/extended/alternate scenes, which should please devoted fans and completists.
“The Time, The Place, The Motion: Remembering Grease” is a skimpy, superficial look back at the production. “The Moves Behind the Music” explore the dance numbers, and “Thunder Roadsters” glorifies the movie’s hot rods.
“Grease on DVD Launch Party” shows footage from the event that celebrated the movie’s appearance on DVD back in 2002. “Grease Memories from John and Olivia” offers additional comments by the movie’s leads at the DVD Launch Party.
There are two “Grease Day” Interviews, one each with the movie’s leads from the movie’s 1978 premiere.
Finally, you get a theatrical trailer and a photo gallery.
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