The First Nudie Musical
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| The First Nudie Musical | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Mark Haggard Bruce Kimmel |
| Written by | Bruce Kimmel |
| Produced by | Jack Reeves |
| Starring | Stephen Nathan Cindy Williams Bruce Kimmel Alan Abelew Leslie Ackerman Diana Canova |
| Cinematography | Douglas Knapp |
| Music by | Bruce Kimmel |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 97 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $200,000[2] |
The First Nudie Musical is a 1976 American musical comedy film directed by Mark Haggard and Bruce Kimmel.[2]
Overview
[edit]The movie is a comedy starring Cindy Williams, Stephen Nathan and Bruce Kimmel. Nathan plays Harry Schechter, heir to a Hollywood studio forced to make a musical comedy porno in order to stave off bankruptcy. The movie features a series of farcical lewd musical numbers in the style of classical Hollywood musical comedies including: "Orgasm", "Lesbian Butch Dyke", and "Dancing Dildos."
An early staple of Cinemax, it has become a cult film since its initial release and was released on DVD in 2001. The film is featured in Cult Movies II by Danny Peary, and has a long entry in the book about 1970s film musicals, We Can Be Who We Are by Lee Gambin. It was one of several farcical musical-comedy collaborations between Kimmel (who also co-starred in the movie) and Williams, along with The Creature Wasn't Nice in 1981. Originally distributed by Paramount Pictures in 1976, it was picked up by World-Northal in 1977.
Reception
[edit]The film was panned by Janet Maslin of The New York Times, who described the concept of the film as "a losing proposition" and found the music "tuneless."[2] Arthur D. Murphy of Variety wrote, "A few clever bits are drowned in a larger sea of silliness, forced gags and predictable cliche."[3] Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film half of one star out of four, calling it "juvenile" and "flaccid."[4] Alan M. Kriegsman of The Washington Post panned the film for "crude photography, bad editing, sophomoric story and forgettable music."[5]
Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times was more positive, writing, "Silly, sophomoric, at times downright inept, this little low-budget venture picked up by Paramount is more often than not hilarious, offering good, tonic laughter to those not offended by nudity and blunt language."[6] Leonard Maltin's film guide gave it two stars out of four and noted, "Basically a one-joke idea that wears thin despite an air of amiability."[7]
The First Nudie Musical holds an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on seven reviews.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ "'The First Nudie Musical' Opening During March". BoxOffice. March 1, 1976. p. 6.
- ^ a b c Maslin, Janet (July 25, 1977). "The First Nudie Musical (1975) 'First Nudie,' New Film, Sets Sex to Music". The New York Times.
- ^ Murphy, Arthur D. (March 10, 1976). "Film Reviews: The First Nudie Musical". Variety. 22.
- ^ Siskel, Gene (March 16, 1978). "'Gray Lady' brings new depths to disaster movies". Chicago Tribune. Section 2, p. 8.
- ^ Kriegsman, Alan M. (September 5, 1977). "'Nudie': Cinematic Piffle". The Washington Post. B4.
- ^ Thomas, Kevin (May 6, 1976). "Laughs Dominate 'Nudie Musical'". Los Angeles Times. Part IV, p. 20.
- ^ Maltin, Leonard, ed. (1995). Leonard Maltin's 1996 Movie & Video Guide. Signet. p. 430. ISBN 0-451-18505-6.
- ^ "The First Nudie Musical". Rotten Tomatoes.