Hacker Cinema
Grease
1978 · Film · 110 min
Part of Grease Collection
Directed by Randal Kleiser
Australian good girl Sandy and greaser Danny fell in love over the summer. But when they unexpectedly discover they're now in the same high school, will they be able to rekindle their romance despite their eccentric friends?
3 positive1 negative14 neutralfrom 18 commenters
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18 comments on Hacker News
> Now we teach them… conform at all costs so you never have to risk being bullied or lonely?
Literally every kid/teen-targeted movie has championed or contradicted this for decades. Yes even “back in the day.” Hell what is the end of Grease? Sandy literally changes who she is and everyone cheers including her man who allegedly liked her as she was? I don’t even get what they’re saying at the end.
Conform, be an individual, the message is always shifting and always has. You’re a jock, you’re a nerd. Jocks beat up nerds and get the girls. Oh wait in this movie the nerds actually win and are rewarded for being themselves though.
There wasn’t some special time where you were taught the right lesson that everyone now is missing out on, and they were plenty of lessons passed on to you that we have thankfully eradicated I imagine.
Growing up is complicated. Social dynamics are complicated. The way they are portrayed is also complicated. We’re all having to adapt and try our best here, no one has the exact answer
As immortalised in the 1978 song "Greased Ligthnin'" from the film Grease:
Well, this car is automatic It's systematic It's hydromatic Why it's greased lightnin' (greased lightnin')
I am pretty sure that "hydromatic" there is actually "Hydramatic" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydramatic).
The 50s resurgence actually started in 1969 with the creation of Sha Na Na (who even played at Woodstock, weirdly enough). Grease was more of a result than a cause of the trend (and Sha Na Na actually performed in the movie of the musical as the fictional band "Johnny Casino and the Gamblers")
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sha_Na_Na
The fact that Valli topped the charts again in 1978 with “Grease” still boggles my mind.
Not if you were living through the 1950s nostalgia revival which was going strong at the time and lingered through the early 80s. It was on TV (Happy Days and Sha Na Na), the movies (American Graffiti, Porky's) and a bunch of retro musical acts (The Stray Cats) or retro projects by established artists returning to the music they grew up with (Robert Plant's The Honeydrippers).
The sound of rock music undoubtedly changed between the beginning and middle of the 1960s. But by looking at the Billboard Hot 100, we can see if that change in sound was being made by a fleet of new groups or a bunch of older acts adapting.
This methodology leaves out a lot of bands, and not just the long tail that never cracked the top 100. There are MANY locally popular bands that never broke out nationally and therefore never made it to the Billboard Hot 100. There were also bands doing types of music that never charted particularly well yet were influential in their own way. For a sampling of this, go to the MIT/WMBR archives (https://wmbr.org/cgi-bin/arch) and listen to "Lost and Found" which highlights a lot of these types of music. Or search for things like "60s garage bands" "60s funk" etc. on YouTube.
The author also mentions the 1991 change to the Billboard methodology which really calls into doubt a some of the "hits" that came before. In a nutshell, music charts in the United States were based on a sample of self-reported sales from record store managers. You can imagine the bias and BS that went on with those numbers.
Then there was manipulation further up the funnel. Record companies weren't supposed to give outright cash payments to DJs (wink wink) but there were many other ways of exerting influence on influential media gatekeepers.
Some of the influence was obvious. Picking artists that had the "right" look. Promoting "safe" artists. Forcing hitmaker producers on new and established artists. Selective access and backroom benefits for powerful DJs and music journalists and other influencers. Ignoring, sidelining, or co-opting trends bubbling up from the underground, from proto-metal in the late 60s to punk in the 70s to rap in the 80s.
As soon as Soundscan was implemented, there was an immediate realignment, with rap and grunge and techno and country storming the pop charts.
Background on the 1991 Soundscan change is here, if anyone is interested: https://ultimateclassicrock.com/billboard-soundscan/
To be an incel, particularly to label oneself an incel, is a declaration of sexual frustration. "That person has no sex life and that isn't their choice".
And if someone has many sexual partners, they are not incels.
Ergo, what I think the article means to say is "extreme misogyny probably not caused by being an incel".
I can understand the assertion, though, that being a shithead to women is about trying to look tough, be an alpha Chad, seem independent and incapable of emotion (like the main character in grease or so many teen movies of yesteryear). It's just easier to spread online now.
As a person who dislikes musicals, I concur that Grease is an amazing movie. The songs were relatable in an innocent way (i.e. finding summer love). The songs I hear in movies today... they aren't innocent. They talk about things like hating the person you love, and other similarly unhealthy concepts. It is a stark departure from the songs of old.
Another couple of musicals that I think most people will like even if they generally don’t like musicals:
- Grease (1978) https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0077631/
- Hair (1979) https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0079261/
Not to mention the movie Grease lol. 1978. Humans have als ways been a mix of social and antisocial. Or think of A Clockwork Orange, 1962, presenting an anxiety of youth gang violence.
Grease the movie came out in '78 and fronted a mid 50s revival.
But yeah before that the eras dull for a while. Guessing WWII was popular in the 60s though.
Midnight in Paris explores nostalgia in two periods... 1920s and 1890s if memory serves.
Counter arguments:
While there are a ton of lost movies, we also live in a world in which services like Criterion Channel, Mubi, and Shudder make more film available than ever. The other week, I got curious and watched a movie from Ulrike Ottinger, loved it, and when I get around to it I can watch any of a dozen more of her movies.
Likewise, I just bought a boxed set of folk horror movies from Severin Films. I miss good video rental stores, but even pre-Netflix there weren’t more than a dozen US cities with video stores where you could rent stuff like that.
The top grossing lists are mostly dominated by blockbusters, it’s true, but let’s look at (say) 1978. Grease, Animal House, Close Encounters, Every Which Way But Loose, and Heaven Can Wait (a remake!) are the top five. It’s been a blockbuster-driven market for 40+ years, with the occasional breakthrough art house film and, more frequently, a big non-franchise genre film (The Martian, Us, etc.) None of this has prevented great directors like the Coen Brothers, Soderbergh, or del Toro from making very good movies.
There’s a market for super-hero movies. There’s also a market for “real” film. These two things are sometimes in tension, but I think at the moment they’re both viable.
To give you a glimpse of reality:
https://ayende.com/blog/Images/Windows-Live-Writer/Pair-Programming-at-Hibernating-Rhinos_BBD1/IMG_1809.jpg
EDIT: Wow i clicked on #Coding and it is like i taught about it...pure waste of time with Rainbowhairs and talking needle slim guy's with more grease on top than the hole movie 'Grease'
And in "Go Grease Lightning" from the film Grease (I shouldn't admit to knowing this).
A fuel injection cutoff and chrome plated rods oh yeah (I'll get the money I'll kill to get the money)
With a four speed on the floor they'll be waiting at the door
You know that ain't no shit we'll be getting lots of tit
In Grease Lightning
Yes. Also in ‘Grease’, ‘Drive’ and a bunch of other films: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_River#Entertainment_setting
>Are the people who blame "black culture" right?
No. Those people are at best misguided, at worst, racist. If white American culture is the standard against which black American culture is judged, I am still waiting for the evidence that white culture prizes scholastic achievement and general intelligence. The only reason geeks and nerds became cool in America is because, suddenly dotcom riches! Until then there was a long history of media & movies that praised jocks and misanthropes above all else. (Hello, Molly Ringwald, hello Grease.) Today's college sports industrial complex is another sign. So is Fox News. So are the yahoos being elected to Texas schoolbook committees. So are creationists. I could go on....
I think it's an illusion. If you look at culture today, there are a bunch of influences from the 80s. (For example, Taylor Swift's latest album is titled '1989' and has an 80s-influenced feel to many of the songs.) In the 80s, there was a bunch of 50s influence. Billy Joel had released "Uptown Girl" and the rest of an album of almost doo-wop pop hits. Grease was a hit movie in 1978, just a few years earlier. You could still catch shows like Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley, and Hee-Haw on TV. So I think it's just a matter of what you remember. I watched and listened to all that stuff and the 50s still seemed like ancient history to me. (My parents were barely teenagers in the 50s!)
I think this is a bit extreme.
Firstly, this Melbourne Age piece is syndicated from The Telegraph, a British newspaper from my home country. As a regular visitor to Australia, with relatives living there, I had presumed that the article was syndicated even before I reached the byline. This due to a clarity of language unusual in locally written newspaper articles.
It sounds atrocious, the treatment of your wife, and if her treatment was as widespread as I'm inclined to take on trust from what you say, then I'll need to reassess a thing or two.
Australians know virtually nothing about Americans as people, and that's a pity. Their television is acutely americanised, and their culture inculcated with American influence, but I've noticed that hardly any Australians have actually met an American. It's hardly polite or even civil to blame the rare American they meet for the perceived wrongs of the US body politic. And I can empathise with your experience somewhat.
It can be parochial. I watched Grease the movie on Australian TV recently, and it reminded me that Australians love John Travolta because he loved Olivia Newton John, who's really a Brit anyway. He's in if he can say g'day. On the other hand Mel Gibson was Aussie and became American. He's not claimed anymore.
But I haven't found hate as you appear to have. Australia is a lot bigger than the left wing inner city self styled intellectuals you apparently met too many of.
Go to country NSW and they all dress and sing like Chet Atkins.
Hi peter,
Thanks for taking the time to give us some feedback!
Jenknis has been around forever, and probably will be. It's one of those pieces of software that just keeps on going. Like the movie Grease - sure it's rough around the edges, but it's still pretty damn good - and future generations will still watch it.
People will still write these tools in a weekend - and that's totally cool! They don't have to use Buildbox if they don't want to.
There are varying skill levels out there. Some devs are really happy to install Ruby on Ubuntu, but often have gripes installing Jenkins, managing permissions, etc. And for those "young coders" - Jenkins looks very dated. It's very difficult to navigate, and managing plugins is usually a pain.
Buildbox is a middle-ground between managing Jenkins, and having your CI run entirely for you in the cloud by other services.
Cheers,
Keith from Buildbox
> Working out or wearing a suit or getting a good job or listening to a marriage counselor or acting more assertive are all examples of "changing yourself to suit her/women"
Wrong. Dead wrong. If you do everything to please your wife, you have a serious personality disorder. I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean it as a statement of something you might not realize.
I like dressing up because I like dressing up. I've worn a suit around the house on a lark, I wear ties to a n office where T-shirts are the norm. I absolutely do not do it because I'm trying to please or attract women. On the contrary, it probably seems stuffy and uninviting.
I work out because I want to be in good shape, so I can go on cycling trips, and live a longer and healthier life. I don't do it because I want women to stare at my abs (they're coming along, promise).
I saw a counselor while I was in a relationship to work through my issues independently. I ended up leaving my girlfriend, who I still love dearly, because I needed space to work through my own pathologies.
If I act assertive (and I usually don't), it's because I'm confident that I'm right, and I feel something is urgent. I don't push incorrect opinions on people just for the sake of being manlier than the other person. I try to be considerate of everyone's opinion, and make reasoned decisions. I frequently say 'I don't know', and then go and find out.
> According to society women should instead want men who are caring, sensitive listeners
The Ryan Gosling school of thought. Unfortunately, as much as you think you're working against society, you've just described a different caricature: James Bond. There are as many bad boys in movies as good ones, and the bad ones usually get the girl.
The whole premise of your post is that you live your life and define yourself to optimally please/attract women. If you define yourself only in terms of other people's opinions, you likely suffer for poor self-esteem. As much as the blog you linked is funny, it's not helping you work through your issues.
edit:
I forgot about
> Shrug.
You're honestly so afraid of a little introspection that you've resorted to writing out gestures of indifference. Rather than consider your own life and marriage, you're looking for a quick-fix that sounds like a movie ( Grease, specifically, but you're Oliva Newton John).