Olivia newton john physical movie#

Olivia newton john physical movie#

Universe had surpassed Stallone and arguably become the biggest movie star in the world. Sylvester Stallone, already a star, got more juiced-up and became an even bigger box-office attraction. That aesthetic started to take over blockbuster movies with 1983’s Flashdance, a film that will prove important to this column. Gyms popped up across suburban strip-malls, the same way that discos had done in the late ’70s.Īlong the way, someone figured out that jacked-up muscles fit well with MTV-style cocaine-haze editing. A whole lot more aerobics videos followed. The Jane Fonda’s Workout video came out in 1982 and became the biggest-selling VHS tape of all time. People have always been into bodies, but sculpted, oiled-up musculature - and the work necessary to sculpt and maintain that musculature - became a pop-culture fixation during the Reagan years. In the ’80s, people got really into bodies. It does not store any personal data.In The Number Ones, I’m reviewing every single #1 single in the history of the Billboard Hot 100, starting with the chart’s beginning, in 1958, and working my way up into the present. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category 'Performance'. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category 'Other. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category 'Necessary'. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category 'Functional'. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category 'Analytics'. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Despite that, the clip for “Physical” made a lasting impression, becoming arguably one of the most iconic music videos of the era. It’s all pretty shocking to see in a video from the ’80s-so much so that MTV initially cut off the homoerotic ending before airing it on the network. Screenshots: “Physical,’ Olivia Newton-John Well, it turns out, they’re gay! We see the men distracted by their own muscles before they grab one of their beefy workout classmates and head out the door, hand in hand. When she returns, she’s shocked by the results, but has trouble coaxing any of the insta-studs to be her doubles partner in tennis. No, the real surprise comes at the video’s end: At a certain point, Newton-John steps off the workout floor and into the shower, and that’s when all the men suddenly get ripped. It’s more than a little bodyshame-y, but hey, it was 1983 are you surprised?

In a headband and a blue shirt tied over her white-and-purple leotard, Newton-John plays flirty instructor to a group of not-so-jacked men who struggle with the workout equipment. Though the video starts with a few shots of well-oiled muscle men deep into their workout routine, it’s basically a fake-out, giving way to a more comedic conceit. With a rollicking guitar solo and giddy synth accentuations, “Physical” was an immediate hit and has endured as her signature song. Of course, its lyrics feel a little PG these days (“There’s nothing left to talk about unless it’s horizontally”), but the cheeky suggestiveness was a major change for Newton-John. Originally intended for Rod Stewart and, at one point, offered to Tina Turner, the track represented a very intentional shift for the Aussie singer, allowing her to step into her power and own her sexuality. Related: Olivia Newton-John Is Still The One We Wantīut, in her first solo release post- Xanadu, Newton-John surprised her fans and shook up the charts with “Physical,” the pop-forward lead single from her 1981 album of the same name. Take, for example, her first song to top the Billboard charts in the U.S., “I Honestly Love You” (from her fourth studio album), which was a breathy ballad all about professing a pure and innocent love. Much like Sandy at the beginning of Grease, Newton-John’s public image was pretty squeaky clean through most of the ’70s, and her music followed suit. But for our purposes today, we’d like to take a moment to reflect on her award-winning music career, and particularly the song and video that changed its trajectory forever: “Physical.”