At the goading of the ominous and omnipresent Leading Player, Pippin, the eldest son of King Charlemagne, samples life's pleasures to discover his place in the world and the meaning of his l... Read allAt the goading of the ominous and omnipresent Leading Player, Pippin, the eldest son of King Charlemagne, samples life's pleasures to discover his place in the world and the meaning of his life.At the goading of the ominous and omnipresent Leading Player, Pippin, the eldest son of King Charlemagne, samples life's pleasures to discover his place in the world and the meaning of his life.
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- TriviaAfter Chicago (2002) became a big hit, Miramax bought several Bob Fosse-related musical properties, Pippin among them. The feature project is reported to be in development as of 2013.
- GoofsThe Lead Player sings during the song "Simple Joys" that wouldn't you rather be... "a twig on a fig in Galilee." The line from the song that is supposed to be sung is "a fig on a twig in Galilee".
- Alternate versionsThe latest video release was the production cut for television. The initial video release contained the complete production as performed (although slightly abridged from the original stage script). The complete "War Is A Science" number is there, along with all the profanity.
- ConnectionsReferenced in The Nanny: Pishke Business (1994)
Featured review
Extraordinary? Not quite...
I first saw this movie while I was acting in a production of the show...just to get a feel for the songs and the choreography, not really paying much attention to the quality of the performances or the show as a whole. On repeated viewings since, however, I can say that...well, frankly, it doesn't make a very strong impression on me. I suppose there are several reasons for this; first of all, there's a lot of the script missing. But which script? There were actually two different "Pippin" scripts, which shared most of the songs and basic structure, but very little else. This production seems to be a mishmash of elements form both versions.
There are certain things I liked... Ben Vereen, of course, whose Leading Player was nearly flawless. William Katt did not sing as prettily as John Rubenstein, the original Pippin, but he seems to have a level of guts and passion that was missing earlier, as well, so that's okay, too. The nauseating "I Guess I'll Miss the Man" was cut (thank God). All good things.
But outweighed, unfortunately, by some negative aspects. First, casting...Chita Rivera has no place in the show. She doesn't sing it well, and the dance break seemed to be so that the producers could say, "Hey, look! We've got Chita Rivera!" The editing left a lot to be desired as well...there were whole expository scenes missing, and some really unnecessary ones left in. And most of all, it was just so FAST! Everyone spoke as if they would be penalized if the show ran over two hours...Ben Rayson as Charlemagne is most indictable for this, but all of the cast (even the incomparable Vereen) are guilty of it from time to time. I also felt that the ending was WAAAY too abrupt...there's so much more to be done with one of the most powerful final scenes in musical history, and they took the easiest possible exit.
All in all, I own it and watch it simply because there are way too few filmed stage versions of musicals available (the only others I can think of are Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George, Jeckyll and Hyde, Putting It Together, and Sweeny Todd).
I like movie musicals, but I like seeing them done on stage more than anything. I just wish there was a better reason than that for owning this one.
There are certain things I liked... Ben Vereen, of course, whose Leading Player was nearly flawless. William Katt did not sing as prettily as John Rubenstein, the original Pippin, but he seems to have a level of guts and passion that was missing earlier, as well, so that's okay, too. The nauseating "I Guess I'll Miss the Man" was cut (thank God). All good things.
But outweighed, unfortunately, by some negative aspects. First, casting...Chita Rivera has no place in the show. She doesn't sing it well, and the dance break seemed to be so that the producers could say, "Hey, look! We've got Chita Rivera!" The editing left a lot to be desired as well...there were whole expository scenes missing, and some really unnecessary ones left in. And most of all, it was just so FAST! Everyone spoke as if they would be penalized if the show ran over two hours...Ben Rayson as Charlemagne is most indictable for this, but all of the cast (even the incomparable Vereen) are guilty of it from time to time. I also felt that the ending was WAAAY too abrupt...there's so much more to be done with one of the most powerful final scenes in musical history, and they took the easiest possible exit.
All in all, I own it and watch it simply because there are way too few filmed stage versions of musicals available (the only others I can think of are Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George, Jeckyll and Hyde, Putting It Together, and Sweeny Todd).
I like movie musicals, but I like seeing them done on stage more than anything. I just wish there was a better reason than that for owning this one.
helpful•30
- rdedirektor
- Jul 27, 2003
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Top Gap
By what name was Pippin: His Life and Times (1982) officially released in Canada in English?
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