Product Description

Johnny Slade, a not so popular lounge singer is hired to open up the hottest new club in town. There is one catch: each night Johnny is given new, and usually horrible songs, to sing. Unbeknownst to him, the songs are filled with hidden messages from a high profile mob boss who has gone into hiding. When the scenes in Johnny's songs begin showing up consistently in the next morning's news reports, he discovers he is the middleman of a crime spree.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #111063 in DVD
• Brand: UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP
• Released on: 2008-05-20
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 88 minutes

Features

• Johnny Slade, a not so popular lounge singer is hired to open up the hottest new club in town. There is one catch: each night Johnny is given new, and usually horrible songs, to sing. Unbeknownst to him, the songs are filled with hidden messages from a high profile mob boss who has gone into hiding. When the scenes in Johnny's songs begin showing up consistently in the next morning's news

Customer Reviews

Not bad at all
I was kind of tempted to give this four stars, but I think it just misses the mark. Don't get me wrong; this is a solid comedy with a great premise. It's just that the execution falls a tad short of really good, but still is enjoyable and entertaining.

A lounge singer desperate for success somehow hooks up with a mob boss in hiding who's just opened a new nightclub/lounge and who wants the singer (Johnny Slade) to be his main act. The reason? Slade has to sing songs with coded messages written by the mob boss for select audience members (the mob boss' soldiers) to go out and deliver hits to specific individuals. Very clever. The mob boss writes the lyrics; Johnny writes the music.

There's a framing device, which also works well, of a bunch of mob soldiers sitting around a restaurant table debating who the best singer is. Of course Sinatra comes in numero uno, but there's a lot of debate about number 2, and that's where the story of Johnny Slade kicks in.

There's some truly funny stuff here and it's great to see so many actors from the hit cable TV show The Sopranos in attendance here. This is a fun movie, definitely worth watching. I would definitely give it three and a half stars. It's not stupid at all; it's neato.

HIt Parade
Originally entitled "Johnny Slade's Greatest Hits" (I think a better and less generic title) this comedy is a blast to watch.
John Fiore (Law and Order, The Sopranos), as Johnny Slade, plays a comedic role very well, especially in scenes with Vincent Curatola as Mr. Samantha, the mafia boss in hiding. Samantha's only recourse for getting orders out for mob hits are through his strange lyrics for songs voiced by Slade, hired just for this purpose. Of course, Slade knows nothing of the real reason behind his sudden success and hefty paycheck. He just thinks he's finally hit it big after a long series of unsuccessful ventures into other genres of music. (Amusingly and efficiently portrayed by a series of hilarious album covers shown in the opening titles.)

The story is told via the reminiscences of a dinner table full of what we presume to be wiseguys, portrayed by a host of actors from "The Sopranos."

Director/writer Larry Blamire's talent for unique and playful dialogue, skewed characters and unimpeded pacing makes for a fun time. This film is especially interesting to watch when contrasted with or added to Blamire's previous works. ("The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra" "Trail of the Screaming Forehead") At present, only "Meet the Mobsters" and "The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra" are available to the public but his other films now in post-production ("Dark and Stormy Night", "The Lost Skeleton Returns Again") will hopefully be released in a timely manner. Keep an eye out for these at various film festivals.

If you're a Blamire fan, a Fiore fan, or a Sopranos fan this is a worthwhile addition to your DVD library

Fun Movie
I recently purchased this movie and I thought it was hilarious! I found it entertaining and enjoyable. If you want to curl up with a fun comedy and be entertained by the guys from the Sopranos... then I definitely recommend it.