Over the past ten years it has been a common trend to turn movies from the 70s, 80s and 90s into hit broadway musicals. Evil Dead: the musical, Young Frankenstein, Spam-a-lot (Monty Python and the Holy Grail), Pee Wee’s Playhouse, and even the dreadful adaptation of Tom Hank’s Big. However, it seems like some very obvious choices were skipped over. Here is my list of top 80s movies that should have been adapted into broadway musicals.
- Three Amigos
This cult film, written by Steven Martin, Lorne Michaels and Randy Newman, has all the greatness of a broadway musical built into it; comedy, drama, and a more than a dozen songs. What audience member could resist singing along with “My Little Buttercup.” - Adventures in Baby Sitting
Elizabeth Shue’s toure de force that rivals Sergei Rachmaninoff’s collective work. I’m sure if the money was right Vincent D’Onofrio would even reprise his role as Thor. Come to think of it, they could probably get Elizabeth Shue too. Not for as much money as D’Onofrio of course; you know that guy’s mortgage is paid in full. - Anything by Arthur Rankin & Jules Bass
You really can’t miss with these guys. They shaped like 60% of the childhoods of generations X and Y, respectively. Besides, Disney has too much of a strangle hold on broadway. Since we’re going the route of “Family Entertainment”, let’s go for the whole spectrum. The darker the better. Who saw the Last Unicorn or the Hobbit/ Return of the King movies and didn’t feel uncontrollably sad afterwards. Let’s just forget about the number “Frodo of the nine Fingers (and the ring of doom)”. - Something from the Bakshi collection for good measure
Since we are on the topic of LOTR, let’s just get to Ralph Bakshi; not his Lord of the Rings acid trip of ground breaking live action and animation that Peter Jackson ripped off shot for shot in his opus, but something like his overly risque Cool World or Fritz the Cat. It would be like You’re a good man Charlie Brown meets The Book of Mormon. Even if it is a total train wreak, I still would pay for a ticket. It might even transcend the awfulness to become totally meta like the Producers. - The Lost Boys
Undoubtedly the best work of actors Keifer Sutherland, Jasaon Patrick, Ed Herrmann, Alex Winter, Corey Feldman, and the late Corey Haim. Can you image how awesome this would be? I’m picturing all songs sounding like something a cheap knock-off of Joy Division’s Ian Curtis would have written if he had absolutely no talent, like Cold Play’s Chris Martin. On second thought, Chris Martin should totally write all the songs, the cheese factor on this production will need to be well over expectation and the majority of the set will resemble the Santa Monica Pier. Little known fact, the Santa Monica Pier is just as creepy as it is portrayed in the movie. I honestly think they pay people to keep it looking so bad.