Staying Alive Movie Review

The movie was directed, co-produced and written by Silvester Stallone. Staying Alive released on 15 July 1983 in the United States. The star cast of the film was John Travolta John Travolta is a true legendary figure as he was >> Read More... as a dancer named Tony Manero, Cynthia Rhodes, Finola Hughes, and Steve Inwood. Paramount Pictures did the film distribution. Staying Alive is a follow-up film of the Saturday Night Fever. The Bee Gees song was the title track of the movie which gave it its name.

Plot: The story of Staying Alive begins six years from the events occurred at the end of Saturday Night Fever. Antony "Tony' Manero is the former disco king who currently lives in Manhattan. He works as a dance instructor. He is a waiter at a dance club and waits for his big break in the Broadway at the modern dance productions. The personality of Tony improvises as he stays away from his family and friends for years now. He changed his habits of drinking alcohol and blasphemy. But his behavior towards Jackie (the role played by Cynthia Rhodes), his girlfriend, did not change at all. He likes to be a macho playboy amongst women but disapproves of Jackie being with any other men. Tony in search of his big break tries to use the lead dancer, Laura, in Jackie's show, where she performed as a background dancer. The lead dancer dismisses Tony which makes him furious.

She intended their meeting to be a one night stand. She even justifies Tony's act of getting close to her by saying that "Everybody uses everybody" and so Tony was also doing the same. Tony ignores Jackie which made her decide to break up with Tony and to get involved with the lead guitarist in her band where she worked. Laura's refusal hurts Tony's ego making him more arrogant. All three of them audition for the role in the Broadway production Satan's Alley. Laura becomes the lead role of the production whereas Tony and Jackie gets a side role in the production. Tony then realizes how he was treating Jackie and goes back to Brooklyn. He spent his Saturday night there in gay club realizing how his life has changed. He then meets his mother and apologizes for his actions.

Tony moves back to Manhattan and tries to fix everything between him and Jackie. Tony in his rage against Laura practiced hard for the lead male role against Laura and succeeded in it. Laura shows her infuriation towards this which pleased the director of the production. They successfully presented their first act which is liked by everyone. They director warns them to keep their personal issues away from the stage. Laura tries to manipulate and demeans Tony by saying "he does not have what it takes to be a lead dancer." In the second show, Tony abandons Laura and performs a solo dance in resentment. At the end, Tony finishes the show by asking Laura to jump in his hands. The audience cheers and Tony leave with Jackie to celebrate the success.

Analysis: The movie did not gain any positive response from the critics and audience. It was considered the worst sequel of all time. Staying Alive got a negative response from the box office and the critics as well. According to the critics, the movie was not at all close to its forerunner movie Saturday Night Fever. It did not contain the realism and roughness that was a major feature of Saturday Night Fever. It is enlisted in the list of 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever Made of The Offical Razzie Movie Guide book. 

Star performances: The performance of the stars was not up to the standards of the precursor movie. The expectations with the movie were all in vain. The actors performed imperfectly accompanied by the weak story line of the movie. The actors and actresses were nominated for the worst category at the Grammy Awards, Golden Globe, and Golden Raspberry Awards. The actors in the film Saturday Night Fever also acted in Staying Alive but their roles were cut in the final edition.

Verdict: Despite the negative responses, the movie aggregated an amount of 65 million US dollars against the making budget of 22 million US dollars.