Musical Mondays Week 11 Repo! the Genetic Opera

[Cameron H. 23786]

I just watched this on Amazon Prime.

Amazon Prime?

Amazon Prime.

Now I'm going to need to pay for some therapy.

 

 

...therapy.

 

 

We watched...

 

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

Okay, I'll start us off, and point you all to a resource that might fill out some of your knowledge about Repo! (thanks, Repo!) - the always useful Repo!pedia - http://repopedia.freewiki.in/index.php/Main_Page

 

I've searched a bit for evidence of the stage play that this film was based on, but there's not much around. I would have thought that the cult status of the film might have seen lots of revivals, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

 

[Cameron H. 23786]

I appreciated that this movie was trying to open the Musical/Opera genre to other types of music. That's a very difficult thing to do, and do well, especially when an art form become so entrenched in its own status quo. It's not unlike what Lin-Manuel did with hip hop.

 

I guess what I'm really trying to say is, Repo! Is just like Hamilton and Miranda should be sued for plagiarism.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

I appreciated that this movie was trying to open the Musical/Opera genre to other types of music. That's a very difficult thing to do, and do well, especially when an art form become so entrenched in their own status quo. It's not unlike what Lin-Manuela did with hip hop.

 

I guess what I'm really trying to say is, Repo! Is just like Hamilton and Miranda should be sued for plagiarism.

I know you're mostly joking, but I really, really do wonder what this would have been like if it was performed by an actual opera company. It's still horrifying and the subject matter is difficult, but if we were able to get past the mediocrity of some of the performances by having really world-class performers, I really wonder if it would have worked.

 

And yes, I'm aware that Sarah Brightman is by definition a world-class performer. I mean amazing performers T to B.

 

Basically, I'm saying I'd like to see Baz Luhrmann's production of this script at the Met.

[Cameron H. 23786]

 

I know you're mostly joking, but I really, really do wonder what this would have been like if it was performed by an actual opera company. It's still horrifying and the subject matter is difficult, but if we were able to get past the mediocrity of some of the performances by having really world-class performers, I really wonder if it would have worked.

 

And yes, I'm aware that Sarah Brightman is by definition a world-class performer. I mean amazing performers T to B.

 

Basically, I'm saying I'd like to see Baz Luhrmann's production of this script at the Met.

 

I didn't find it "difficult" exactly. If anything, I found the plot to be just as superficial as the subject matter.

 

Ooh..,

 

 

 

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

I didn't find it "difficult" exactly. If anything, I found the plot to be just as superficial as the subject matter.

 

Agreed, it wasn't exactly La Boheme (that was Rent). But the Troma-style shock elements of tearing out organs and leeringly indulging Paris Hilton and her brothers really handicapped the film. And Alexa Vega et al couldn't really sing the material. I guess it's like wondering what Moulin Rouge! would have been like if the two leads were actual singers and not just actors who sing sometimes (note: that's fully one of my favourite movies, no diss there).

 

There were enough catchy things in a few (not many, but a few) of the songs to keep me watching. The things that made me switch off were mostly the visuals and gratuitous shock-gore and the CGI sets. I wonder, if someone started with the music and rebooted from scratch with a big budget, if it would make a difference.

 

I'm trying to find a foothold for a positive entry into this film rather than the entire thread being all,

[SaraK 1980]

 

Agreed, it wasn't exactly La Boheme (that was Rent). But the Troma-style shock elements of tearing out organs and leeringly indulging Paris Hilton and her brothers really handicapped the film. And Alexa Vega et al couldn't really sing the material. I guess it's like wondering what Moulin Rouge! would have been like if the two leads were actual singers and not just actors who sing sometimes (note: that's fully one of my favourite movies, no diss there).

 

If anyone in this movie could sing, it might be more captivating. The brothers especially were terrible voices. Paris did better than I thought, but that's not saying much

 

Not to dwell too much on the medicine of this world, but why would Shilo have plastic sheets all around her bed when she's allowed to just get up and walk around her room and house? And she wears a mask for that weird tunnel between her house and mom's crypt, but never outside and not in the crypt itself?

 

Also, the song about turning 17 made me legitimately laugh out loud when it started. And then the slap made me laugh again.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

Also, the song about turning 17 made me legitimately laugh out loud when it started. And then the slap made me laugh again.

 

It's this generation's

[Cameron H. 23786]

 

 

It's this generation's

 

I get the joke, but I can't help thinking that when making this the filmmakers were like, "This is the music of the future!" and less than ten years later it all feels kind of dated and silly.

 

Anyone else feel that way?

 

ETA: I also laughed at the song and the slap.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

I like how we now have to preface our responses with 'yeah yeah I see you're dicking around but I am going to respond on a tangent' just in case anyone's accused of not getting each others' dumb jokes. (since we've both done it already in this thread)

[Cameron H. 23786]

I like how we now have to preface our responses with 'yeah yeah I see you're dicking around but I am going to respond on a tangent' just in case anyone's accused of not getting each others' dumb jokes. (since we've both done it already in this thread)

 

Yeah, I get what you're saying, but it's better to be safe than sorry

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

 

Yeah, I get what you're saying, but it's better to be safe than sorry

Ok, ok, so I totally get where you're heading with this, but here's my unrelated point.

[FisterRoboto 7499]

So, I didn't totally hate this.

 

It's pure garbage, but I thought it was fun. The music is terrible, the dialogue is nonsensical, and the whole thing is shot like a fucking Evanescence video.

 

But it had enough that was pulled from various grindhouse/trashy genre movies to keep me interested. I didn't zone out during long stretches like I did with, say, JCS or find myself completely repulsed by long sequences involving baked beans and chocolate. (Also, Sarah Brightman is a treasure, and she should have played every role...even Paul Sorvino's)

 

The only thing I really didn't like was the stuff between the siblings, and that was because it was so tonally different from everything else.There were Looney Tunes-style sound effects with everything they did. I understand it was trying to pull some kind of levity from them, but every time they switched to their subplot, I was just like, "Am I still watching the same movie?"

[Cameron H. 23786]

So, I didn't totally hate this.

 

It's pure garbage, but I thought it was fun. The music is terrible, the dialogue is nonsensical, and the whole thing is shot like a fucking Evanescence video.

 

But it had enough that was pulled from various grindhouse/trashy genre movies to keep me interested. I didn't zone out during long stretches like I did with, say, JCS or find myself completely repulsed by long sequences involving baked beans and chocolate. (Also, Sarah Brightman is a treasure, and she should have played every role...even Paul Sorvino's)

 

The only thing I really didn't like was the stuff between the siblings, and that was because it was so tonally different from everything else.There were Looney Tunes-style sound effects with everything they did. I understand it was trying to pull some kind of levity from them, but every time they switched to their subplot, I was just like, "Am I still watching the same movie?"

 

I don't have a problem if someone likes it. That's totally cool. It just didn't do anything for me. What I will say, though, is this is kind of movie that makes Musical Mondays fun. It doesn't matter to me if I like every Musical. What matters to me is being exposed to as many different Musicals as possible.

 

I will also say that I think it's funny that you mention JCS, because this reminded me of it in a way. Particularly how they tried to have as little spoken dialogue as possible so there would be moments between songs that felt very much like, "I'm just singing atonal nonsense until the next big number."

[SaraK 1980]

 

The only thing I really didn't like was the stuff between the siblings, and that was because it was so tonally different from everything else.There were Looney Tunes-style sound effects with everything they did. I understand it was trying to pull some kind of levity from them, but every time they switched to their subplot, I was just like, "Am I still watching the same movie?"

 

The siblings were really out of left field - especially in the warehouse/stockroom scene where one murders a woman for fun but its treated like a joke- but I also was very confused by their parentage. Are they kids of the woman that Giles stole from their father? Or did their mother die?

[tomspanks 9039]

Not to dwell too much on the medicine of this world, but why would Shilo have plastic sheets all around her bed when she's allowed to just get up and walk around her room and house? And she wears a mask for that weird tunnel between her house and mom's crypt, but never outside and not in the crypt itself?

 

Other people wore gas masks too (sometimes). It made me wonder if the mysterious organ failure disease was airborne.

[EvRobert 1684]

I have so much SO MUCH to talk about this movie...

 

A) As I mentioned in the announcement thread, I have a very tenuous relationship with this show but I didn't go into a lot of details. I have some friends that absolutely love this movie (they also love Otep and I can't stand her either, but at least she has talent). They love this movie to cult-like levels.

 

Okay, you know that scene at the "Genetic Opera" (oh that's so clever! We're going to call it the genetic opera, even though they say they can't make you sing like Mag [which is true, god bless Sarah Brightman] but they can give you super-cool Geordi LeForge eyes--even though no one else's body parts have some super tech ability.) but the openingnumber where the nurses come marching in and everyone is testifying? That's my friends. They fucking worship this show. AND I DON'T GET IT!

 

It's like Steampunk and mid 2000s Emo/Goth culture threw up and had a baby. The goth kids that South Park makes fun of? This is their wet dream.

 

YOU HAVE SARAH BRIGHTMAN AND GIVE HER ONE SONG!

 

YOU HAVE JOAN JETT AND SHE _JUST_ PLAYS GUITAR!

 

YOU HAVE PAUL SORVINO, who can fucking act, AND HE'S TRYING TO SING (bless his heart).

 

Bill Mosley and the other brother have no point. LIke okay they are arguing the whole time about who is going to take over Geneco and then the post-credit FOR NO GODDAMN REASON THEY ARE OKAY WITH PARIS HILTON TAKING OVER! Oh and the face wearing brother wears her face? But no reason is given for this change of heart. Because she performed and her face fell off?

 

The whole Zydate Anatomy song says that Paris Hilton is addicted to Zydate and to surgery, but if her family runs the company, why does she need to go to the Gravedigger for the drug? Why does she get it there and then never go into surgery? And for someone addicted to the surgery, other then the ruined face scene and the face falling off scene, she never shows signs of having crazy surgery.

 

As much as i hated Bill Mosley's role, I loved him. He seemed to be one of the few that got what this was.

 

Why was Giles sometimes portrayed as being an amoral, I have no problems repossessing these organs and other times so conflicted. It made no goram sense.

 

Alexa Vega actually didn't bother me, except for her big I Am 17 number.

 

I hated the comic book intros to the songs, BECAUSE THE SONGS TELL US EVERYTHING THE COMIC BOOK PANELS TOLD US! They literally served NO POINT. It got to the point that as soon as I saw the comic book stuff I was joking about how the next song would tell us everything.

 

The gravedigger role, pointless. But hey the co-writer got to look "sexy and dark and brooding or whatever."

 

Sorry for the long rant...I hated this movie, but it was the PERFECT HDTGM movie. Great pick EllenMC, even though it made me sick. It gave me so much to rant about and I will probably keep ranting about.

[EvRobert 1684]

I also do kind of wonder what this would be like with actual musical theater people. I want to imagine what this show would be like with some dramaturgy work. There is a genesis of a nugget of an idea here that I want them to explore, but there's some tonal and story shifts that I think hurt it, but could be overlooked (for example, in GOTG2 there is a character called "Taserface", I don't question why in a galaxy far, far away they know what a "taser" is...or a douchebag or the like. I just accept it because the actors are good and just roll with it.) IF the performance was good. But since they decided they wanted to make this operatic and sing as much as they can, and they didn't get people who can sing, it makes all the flaws that much clearer and sharper.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

Hey, you know those 'Rocky Horror' comparisons?

 

I've found the Rosetta Stone...

 

[kateacola 2440]

So I was reading this article about the whole Repo! & Repo Men controversy.. and it was pretty interesting.

 

http://www.huffingto...g_b_505173.html

 

But my main take-away was:

 

Bousman began a very successful horror film directing career. His first three films opened at number one at the box office — part of the massively popular franchise Saw II, Saw III and Saw IV. And since, Bousman made the fairly unusual step for a working director of wanting to do something less commercial. Bousman said, “My dream growing up wasn’t to make sequels. My favorite film as a kid was The Who’s Tommy, a film that’s pretty hard doesn’t really fit into any category easily.”

 

Makes perfect sense to me..

[EvRobert 1684]

Ugh that whole "controversy"

 

OMG different people had a similar ideas!

 

I hate how some of the fans (my aforementioned friends/roommates) would make this argument and I would just roll my eyes. And I really hated the response Terrance Zdunich's response on his website. It has this whole...."well we know it's possible but ours is SO much better."

 

Listen, Repo Men SUCKED, but Jude Law and Forrest Whitiker are a lot better at making me suspend my disbelief then a drunk Paul Sorvino, Paris Hilton and an overacting Anthony Steward Head are.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

So, I posted the above clip of Giles as Frank-N-Furter (sorry, I can't hate him no matter what he does. If he's revealed to be a war criminal who eats live bunnies, I'd still love him) as a precursor to this post about his ability to be in this project.

 

As Wikipedia's told us all, Giles was cast in this movie based on the strength of his performance in the iconic episode of Buffy, 'Once More With Feeling'. In that episode, he absolutely holds his ground and even gives a nuanced, sensitive performance.

 

 

What you might have missed is that Giles is part of a musical family: his brother, Murray Head, had a big hit in the 1980's, with a radio-friendly track from another musical, which (OF COURSE) was a show about a board game, written by the guys from ABBA. Of course.

 

Still a great song (with some questionable racial lyrics, granted) that still holds up today.

 

 

Usefully, this song was also co-written by Tim Rice, who of course wrote the lyrics to JC Superstar. Everything is connected, yo.

[EvRobert 1684]

Also, just for fun, I looked up some ages...

 

There is only a 12 year age difference between Paul Sorvino and Bill Moseley. Now I don't discount that a twelve year old Paul Sorvino could have sired a son, it just seems...when it's supposed to be shocking that a 13 year old had surgery and started turning tricks, it just doesn't quite work.

 

Ogre is a 23 year age difference, and Paris Hilton is a 42 year old age difference.

 

So the MUCH older brothers are going to willingly and happily turn over their billion dollar empire to their MUCH younger baby sister?

[kateacola 2440]

Ugh that whole "controversy"

 

OMG different people had a similar ideas!

 

I hate how some of the fans (my aforementioned friends/roommates) would make this argument and I would just roll my eyes. And I really hated the response Terrance Zdunich's response on his website. It has this whole...."well we know it's possible but ours is SO much better."

 

Listen, Repo Men SUCKED, but Jude Law and Forrest Whitiker are a lot better at making me suspend my disbelief then a drunk Paul Sorvino, Paris Hilton and an overacting Anthony Steward Head are.

Oh I know, it is possible for two people to have similar independent thoughts. Which seems to be the case here since both ideas were probably originated around the same time.

 

From the same article I mentioned..

Repo! The Genetic Opera.. film had its origins as a stage play by Darren Smith & Terrance Zdunich that they performed in small theater spaces around Los Angeles starting in 2000.

 

and for Repo Men:

Garcia wrote the story that contains the premise of repossessing body parts in 1997...the screenplay based on Garcia’s then unpublished novel..

[FisterRoboto 7499]

I don't have a problem if someone likes it.

 

I mean...let's not get carried away. I just didn't hate it

 

I will also say that I think it's funny that you mention JCS, because this reminded me of it in a way. Particularly how they tried to have as little spoken dialogue as possible so there would be moments between songs that felt very much like, "I'm just singing atonal nonsense until the next big number."

That's funny. There were times where I felt like the music was going for a real Rent vibe, but maybe that's just because I was thinking, "Man, I wish I was watching Rent right now instead of this..."