The narration was done with a heavy dose of comic book-style melodrama in the Marvel Comics tradition (bear in mind that this is the same outfit that gave Capt. American and The Fantastic Four to the known world). Unfortunately, the art worked looked rushed. The fact that Marvel was contracted at the last minute might had a lot to do with how the comic turned out. The final product is an interesting yet uneven read. (#5)
The second part was devoted to the background and making of the film. These pages are crammed with bios, behind-and-front-of-the scenes photos, information on the SFX and the animation. Also featured were large sections on the music and costume designs by Bobbie Mannix. Undoubtedly, this publication is a must for anyone who's seriously into Xanadu. The cover price is two 1980 dollars but according to the Oversheet Comics Price Guide (THE bible of comic collecting), you can get it much cheaper; though the ones offered through E-Bay goes anywhere from six to twenty dollars! Good Luck!
Thanks to the brief fad called picture discs, another set of records that were released. In the UK, Magic and All Over The World was released as a limited edition picture single. Probably the rarest disc in this collection is the promotional picture disc of the soundtrack. There were only 100 made, sealing its highly collective fate.
It's interesting to note that Xanadu was the last film to receive the GP rating from the MPAA. It would be officially re-rated with a PG rating just in time for the advertising material, like the official movie poster. You can see the old GP bumper at the very end in the laser disc and early videotape copies.
Then came the opening weekend..........
There's on old proven Hollywood axiom that states if a film opens without that all important screening for the critics and the media, it is assumed that the studio knows the film is terrible and suddenly becomes desperate to "unload" the film past critical scrutiny (be it from the critics to the equally important word-of-mouth circles). That way, the studio can at least earn some money off the film before the naysayers have a chance to take some shots at it.
A lot also depends on just how "bad" the film really is. A film might not be worth much to the eye of elitist and/or overly opinionated critics may very well strike a cord with the public in general. Contemporary film history is replete with such examples; films that appeal to the "cult" audiences like Wizard Of Oz, Phantom of The Paradise, Rocky Horror Picture Show, the latter two films gained a reputation in the 'underground', making it's mark first as a cult phenomenon before reentering the mainstream only to make a bigger mark.
However, the promises that Xanadu boasted of were never delivered in the eyes of the many. The disharmony that was prevalent behind the film was, in many ways, apparent in the final result. The critical response was pretty much universal. A movie critic from the London (UK) Evening News panned the film as "the most dreadful, tasteless, movie of the decade. Indeed, of all time." You didn't have to go far beyond the title to understand Newsweek's opinion: 'Aw, Shut Up, Muse!'. One of the more interesting write-ups was one critic's observation that it was useless to offer any energy to criticize Xanadu as "it would be noting more than shooting arrows at a ghost; this film is so transparent'.
CHAPTER 4