Grease is the word

 

By: Jade Bolte, 10

 

Songs like Greased Lightning and Summer Nights can strike nostalgia in just about anyone. The musical film from 1978 was always one of my favorites growing up –and still is. The movie portrays life in high school in the 1950s. It is a classic movie and great intriguing entertainment.

 

The plot follows the lives of two main characters, Danny (John Travolta), a greaser and Sandy (Olivia Newton –John), a good girl from Australia. Danny is the leader of the T-Birds group. Sandy is in the Pink Ladies group, led by Rizzo. The beginning scene shows the two lovebirds spending a day at the beach together during the summer. When school starts again at Rydell High School, they find themselves unexpectedly reunited. Throughout the movie, they find their way to each other. Ultimately, the try to change themselves to be like the other and end up together.

 

While all of this is happening, other supporting characters have their own storyline also. Frenchie (Didi Conn) drops out of high school her senior year. The Beauty School Dropout attempts to fulfill her dream of being a beautician. Rizzo (Stockard Channing) and Kenickie (Jeff Conaway) find interest in each other. They start dating and eventually, Rizzo ends up pregnant. Jan (Jamie Donnelly) and Putzie (Kelly Ward) can be considered the goofier characters. They eventually end up dating. They all struggle with their own problems. The way they deal with them or solve them may not be the most positively influential, but they tell a story and they do it with talent.

 

The songs add a certain energy to the movie that make the story seem more hopeful. The singing and dancing could be seen as a bit cliché but I think it just makes it more fun.

 

Watching this movie with my cousins and grandparents, I used to daydream about living in their times. The styles and songs and dancing were just so fascinating.

 

The musical experience attracts a wide crowd. Young or old it is easy to get lost in the crowd at Rydell High. It is definitely a film worth watching.

 

“To you from me, Pinky Lee!” –Rizzo