On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Grease, cult musical comedy with John Travolta and Olivia John Newton, Universal reissues in a beautiful remastered version Grease, as well as for the first time on blu-ray its sequel (much less loved) Grease 2.
No need to talk for very long about Grease 2. Following having experienced a real failure while its predecessor was the biggest success of 1978, Grease 2 is the lame duck of the (short) Grease franchise. Without the original cast and especially without John Travolta, with music and choreography much less striking, the film is not an undeserved failure. Still, the release of the work in high-definition version gives the film a chance.
Obviously a restoration will not improve the defects of a film. Whether in HD, 4K where VHS quality a movie remains the same. Given the failure and quality of the film, it could have been understandable that it remains in the collective memory as an accident of course. The opportunity for this blu-ray release is to be able to reflect on the interest of restoration. For if it obviously seems noble and legitimate to promote the restoration of the great classics of cinema, what about mediocre films that are released every week in theaters and disappear without making any noise?
The release of Grease 2 is a reminder that the past of cinema is not only composed of great classics to see. But also too many failed films. The purpose of seeing a bad movie, on purpose, is the same as taking a history lesson. It is to learn the past, in order to better understand man and remember his mistakes. And that's the case with Grease 2. A film that was made to take advantage of the Grease cardboard, making it one of the ancestors of the opportunistic sequels we all know (dedication to Speed 2).However, the fate of cinema is made in a strange way. It often happens that films considered totally failed at the time of their release become cult over time. Who knows if the same fate does not await Grease 2, which finally has an opportunity to rub shoulders with the general public. If this is not the case, then it can always be used by budding directors, in order to understand how to succeed in a sequel by comparing Grease 2 to Terminator 2.
We therefore recommend the acquisition of Grease 2, simply to give it a chance to finally find its audience. Or at least use it as an object of analysis in order to understand how a bad suite works. The one where producers, directors and writers say to themselves:
"Oh the first one worked so well that the 2 will necessarily be a cardboard."
Fatal error!
For all these reasons Grease 2 has a real interest for all videophiles, as well as for Grease fans. In addition, it is also the first role of the mythical Michelle Pfeiffer and just for this presence, the film is worth a look.
