Grease 2 Deserves a Second Look
A forgotten sequel with great songs, surprising chemistry, and a cult soundtrack worth collecting
Written by Scarlett StrattenI was recently asked what the wackiest record I own is. I had to think about that, because “wacky” has not been the motivation behind my vinyl purchases. Frankly, outside of “cool old shit”, I don’t know what the driving force behind my collection is. But in my hunting, I have managed to pick up a few albums that could feasibly fall into the “wacky” category.
Chief among them would probably be the Grease 2 soundtrack.
Listen to the Grease 2 Soundtrack
Firstly, yes this is real. I am not making it up, it’s not a parody, it was a theatrical release that came out in 1982 and stars a young Michelle Pfeiffer, English actor Maxwell Caulfield, and even Judy Garland’s daughter Lorna Luft. The story centers around Michael (Caulfield), the British cousin of the first film’s Sandy, and his quest to win the heart of Pink Lady Stephanie (Pfeiffer). He does this by learning to ride a motorcycle and disguising himself as the mysterious “Cool Rider”. Shenanigans and songs ensue and eventually everyone lives happily ever after at the big graduation luau.
And that’s pretty much it.
Watch Grease 2
In case you hadn’t guessed, this film failed to live up to the hype of the original from 1978. It received dismal reviews from critics who saw it as a lesser retread of the first one, and while it did make a small profit, taking in $15.2 million against a budget of $11.2 million, it opened the same weekend as ET: The Extra-Terrestrial. That all but guaranteed it was going to sink. And drowning right alongside it were the careers of several of its actors, most notably Maxwell Caulfield. He had been hailed as the next big thing, but once Grease 2 was released, as he put it, “nobody would touch me”. The only things that saved Pfeiffer from a similar fate were a combination of the positive notices she received for her performance and her casting in Scarface the following year.
With all that being said, it’s really not that bad. I mean it’s not a masterpiece, and there are plenty of clunky moments and blatant attempts to cash in on what people liked about the first one. But it certainly isn’t bad enough to warrant the reputation it garnered at the time. As crazy as it may sound, there are things I actually like better in this movie versus the first. For starters, the chemistry between the two leads is better. Danny and Sandy were great, but I never really bought that they were actually in love. Michael and Stephanie though? I fully believe they are crazy for each other and that the motorcycle wasn’t the only thing that got ridden after graduation. I also find the time period easier to believe. Cars and poodle skirts notwithstanding Grease reeks of the 70s in every frame. But Grease 2? It’s the 60s, Kennedy is in the White House, and I will hear no arguments.
Most importantly, I like the music better. I know this is subjective and everyone is entitled to their opinion, but for my money, the songs in this movie SLAP. Where the numbers from the original film, while classic, never fully escape feeling like pieces from a musical, almost all the songs in the sequel listen like radio hits and get stuck in your brain accordingly. My particular favorite is “Cool Rider”, sung by Pfeiffer giving major 80s rock diva energy. And while cheesy, “(Love Will) Turn Back The Hands of Time” is a solid romantic ballad. Honestly, most of the singing is great throughout, and while Maxwell Caulfield isn’t quite up to the level of the rest of the actors, he’s enjoyable enough and it’s clear he’s trying. His overall performance is enough to make me sad that his career stalled after the film because he truly deserved better (shout out to Netflix for putting his silver fox ass in The Merry Gentleman; highly recommend).
This all brings me to my vinyl copy of the soundtrack. When I stumbled across it I was at a local record store that specializes in having a little bit of everything; used, new, whatever you might be looking for. I was pawing through their bins of discounted vinyl when I found it. As soon as I saw that cover, Maxwell’s pouty lips and smouldering eyes staring back at me, I knew I needed it. Because it was in a box with other recently received inventory, it didn’t have a price tag, so I took it up to the counter to inquire how much it would be, trying my level best not to skip the whole way. The guy took it from me and slipped it from the cover to look at the record itself. He examined it and informed me that because it was slightly damaged, they would just give it to me for free.
Needless to say that was a banner day in my collecting life.
Luckily for me, while the record does skip a bit on certain songs, overall it works enough to be enjoyed and I am thrilled to have it in my collection. If I’m being honest, even if it didn’t work at all I would still treasure it. In all of my previous record store searches, I have never seen another copy of this soundtrack anywhere. By and large, this seems like a forgotten movie, so I count myself lucky to have found this album at all, let alone in as good of condition as I did. Happily, it seems that there is a slow but steady reevaluation of the film coming about and I hope this trend continues. Whether it was a victim of its own hype or simply couldn’t step out of the shadow of its predecessor, Grease 2 is one of those gems that truly deserves another look. It has fun songs, likeable performances, and its own flavor that make it something special. In short, it and its soundtrack both deserve another ride.
