Bugsy Malone ( Bugsy Malone: Sing-A-Long Edition ) ( Bugsy Malone - Sing A Long Edition )

Bugsy Malone (DVD) (*)

~~$24.99~~ $18.97

Original Title: Bugsy Malone: Sing-A-Long Edition
Alternate Title: Bugsy Malone - Sing A Long Edition
Screened, competed or awarded at:
BAFTA Awards
Cannes Film Festival
Golden Globes
Oscar Academy Awards

Language Selections:
English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 )

Product Origin/Format:
United Kingdom ( PAL/Region 2 )

Running Time:
89 min

Aspect Ratio:
Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)

Special Features:
Anamorphic Widescreen
Biographies
Commentary
Interactive Menu
Photo Gallery
Production Notes
Scene Access
Trailer(s)
Booklet

Movie filmed in 1976 and produced in:
United Kingdom ( Great Britain, Ireland )

Directed By:
Alan Parker

Written By:
Alan Parker

Actors:
Albin 'Humpty' Jenkins ..... Fizzy
Andrew Paul ..... O'Dreary
Davidson Knight ..... Cagey Joe
Donald Waugh ..... Snake Eyes
Florrie Dugger ..... Blousey Brown
Jeffrey Stevens ..... Louis
Jodie Foster ..... Tallulah
John Cassisi ..... Fat Sam
Martin Lev ..... Dandy Dan/Priest in Finale
Michael Jackson ..... Razamataz/KG Joe
Paul Chirelstein ..... Smolsky/Oscar/Boxer
Paul Murphy ..... Leroy Smith/Gangster
Peter Holder ..... Ritzy
Scott Baio ..... Bugsy Malone/Violin Player
Sheridan Earl Russell ..... Knuckles/Looney Begoneze (as Sheridan Russell)

Synopsis:

Written and directed by Alan Parker, Bugsy Malone is a gangster musical set in New York, a world of would-be hoodlums, showgirls and dreamers. A world where you never see an adult - kids play the entire film, including Scott Biao as Bugsy and Jodie Foster as Tallulah. Bugsy Malone is totally unique: quite simply there has never ever been a movie like it!

Bugsy Malone is nothing if not unusual. Very few other films have featured a cast comprised entirely of children, and possibly no other film has called upon those children to play adult roles, let alone adult gangster roles. There's a curiosity value to this concept, but there doesn't seem to be any real reason for its existence -- what's the purpose behind the children as gangsters metaphor? Director/screenwriter Alan Parker has not developed the idea so that there's a real payoff, and as a result the joke wears out long before the film is over. Parker also hasn't developed the 'universe' in which these children exist beyond the basics (whipped cream instead of bullets, pedal-driven cars, etc.). Were the rest of the film more involving, this wouldn't matter, but since it isn't, one keeps waiting for more 'kid-oriented' devices (in much the same manner that one waits for amusing anachronisms when watching The Flintstones.) Paul Williams' score is undistinguished (and often is distinctly not of the period), and though the actors try hard, most lack the experience to pull off what is required of them. Jodie Foster is the major exception, marvelous but wasted in a supporting role. She's the only one who really seems to be an adult caught in a child's body rather than a child overwhelmed by adult clothes. Martin Lev is almost as good, filling his role with more quiet power than one would expect of someone his age. The physical production is attractive, and Parker has shot some of it with great care -- particularly the 'Ordinary Fool number and the expertly-edited finale. There's enough here to make Bugsy Malone palatable, but it still feels like an over-extended skit.

Bugsy Malone is a 1976 musical film, very loosely based on events in New York City in the Prohibition era, specifically the exploits of gangsters like Al Capone and Bugs Moran, as dramatized in cinema. Featuring only child actors (with singing voices provided by adults), director Alan Parker lightened the subject matter considerably for the children's market; the film received a G rating. This film was Parker's feature-length directorial debut, introduced actor Scott Baio, and featured veteran actress (at age 13) Jodie Foster.

This product was added to our catalog on Friday 15 January, 2010.

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