Resisting A Replay of Xanadu

I cried when I left the movie theater. I walked to the car with my parents and their friends, bawling with large tears and large voice, all emotional after Xanadu. Granted, I was ten. The music and love story must’ve been too much for my pre-teen self. The parking lot was dark enough that had I not been making such a fuss the world wouldn’t have known, but I wanted to make a fuss. I was highly sensitive after all the movie magic.

Mom and Dad looked dumbfounded. They let me have my moment, but their faces asked, why on earth are you carrying on this way?

I played this one over and over again. (Wikipedia)

Mom bought me the album. It came with two records, one that featured the Electric Light Orchestra, another that featured all the other songs in the movie. I played the latter a lot, acting out the scenes from the movie. My favorite scene included Bing Crosby and Olivia Newton John’s duet “Whenever You’re Away From Me,” since at the time, I felt more enthralled with big band music than ELO.

I want to watch the movie again to learn why I cried when I left the theater. A ten-year-old shouldn’t be bawling herself into a running nose and heavy sobs after a movie. As an adult, though, I barely remember the plot.

I worry watching the movie will ruin any memory I have of it. Technology, mainly special effects, has changed. How plot unfolds has changed. Will the 1980s transcend into 2015? Olivia Newton John could do no wrong when I was a kid, and I’d like to leave that image intact. I’m sure, if Xanadu was a terrible movie back then, I didn’t notice. Olivia Newton John led the cast perfectly.

How about you? Were/are you a fan of Olivia Newton John? Did you have a favorite movie as a child? Would you watch that movie again?

 

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Inspired by the letter X in the A to Z Challenge for the month of April.