Bugsy Malone [DVD] [1976]

Product Information

Kelly, Matthew (31 December 2003). "Bugsy Malone". After They Were Famous. Season 3. Episode 18. ITV.

A kid’s fantasy: You get to dress up as gangster, you get to shoot guns that fire whipped cream, you get to drive cars with pedals that look like real cars, and you get to talk like a grown-up. I mean, you couldn’t ask for a better first big gig. Talk about getting you hooked on a business! It was fantastic. [13] Reception [ edit ] Paramount’s Blu-ray for Bugsy Malone is #23 in their Paramount Presents line. It features a slipcover with a flap which opens out to show the original poster art, as well as Digital Copy code on paper insert. Extras include the following, all in HD: Bugsy Malone is an ambitious and largely successful example of creative world-building, with all of the standard gangster film tropes translated into a childhood milieu—right down to the pedal-powered cars. The songs by Paul Williams are hardly accurate for the period, but they're catchy and they work surprisingly well. What doesn't work is that the singing voices are dubbed by adults, which sounds disconcerting when coming out of the kid’s mouths. It’s a rare example of the film not being true to its concept, and while neither Parker nor Williams were happy with the results, they simply ran out of time to do anything differently. The cast is uniformly excellent, even the inexperienced actors, with kids like Babyface (Dexter Fletcher) really standing out—it’s no accident that he was one of the few in the film to make a career out of acting. At 93 minutes long, Bugsy Malone doesn't wear out its welcome, but it does end abruptly and somewhat awkwardly—it feels like Parker ran out of ideas and had to just bring things to a close. Still, the final number by Paul Williams is a classic, and it sends the film off on an upbeat note. During the prohibition era, a mobster named Roxy Robinson is "splurged" by members of a rival gang, using rapid-fire cream-shooting "splurge guns". Once splurged, a gangster is "all washed up... finished". Mob boss Fat Sam Staccetto introduces himself in the opening narration, as well as introducing Bugsy Malone, a penniless boxing promoter who is 'a little too popular with the broads... but a nice guy' ("Bugsy Malone"). Sometime in the 2000s, Coca-Cola Ltd. (Canada) made an animated ad using "You Give A Little Love" that was only screened in movie theaters before any trailers.

What to know

The song "Ordinary Fool" has been covered by numerous artists including Ella Fitzgerald and The Carpenters.

The "splurge firearm" proved to be problematic. After initial experiments with cream-filled wax balls proved painful, Parker decided to abandon the idea of filming the firearms directly. Instead, the firearms fired ping-pong balls, and a fast cut to a victim being pelted with "splurge" was used to convey the impression of the rapid-firing firearms. [12] [16] Siskel, Gene (19 November 1976). "... and 'Bugsy Malone,' where kids cut the custard as adults". Chicago Tribune. Section 2, p. 1.Bugsy Malone is a 1976 gangster musical comedy film written and directed by Alan Parker (in his feature film directorial debut). A co-production of United States and United Kingdom, it features an ensemble cast, featuring only child actors playing adult roles, with Jodie Foster, Scott Baio and John Cassisi in major roles. The film tells the story of the rise of "Bugsy Malone" and the battle for power between "Fat Sam" and "Dandy Dan".