Popeye (1980)

The adventures of the sailor man and his friends in the seaside town of Sweethaven.

Director:

Robert Altman

Writers:

Jules Feiffer (screenplay), E.C. Segar (based on characters by)

Stars:

Robin Williams, Shelley Duvall, Ray Walston

3 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robin Williams	...	Popeye
Shelley Duvall	...	Olive Oyl
Ray Walston	...	Poopdeck Pappy
Paul Dooley	...	Wimpy
Paul L. Smith	...	Bluto
Richard Libertini	...	Geezil
Donald Moffat	...	The Taxman
MacIntyre Dixon	...	Cole Oyl
Roberta Maxwell	...	Nana Oyl
Donovan Scott	...	Castor Oyl
Allan F. Nicholls	...	Rough House (as Allan Nicholls)
Wesley Ivan Hurt	...	Swee'pea
Bill Irwin	...	Ham Gravy, the Old Boyfriend
Robert Fortier	...	Bill Barnacle, the Town Drunk
David McCharen	...	Harry Hotcash, the Gambler

Storyline

Buff sailor-man Popeye arrives in an awkward seaside town called Sweethaven. There he meets Wimpy, a hamburger-loving man; Olive Oyl, the soon-to-be love of his life; and Bluto, a huge, mean pirate who's out to make Sweethaven pay for no good reason. Popeye also discovers his long-lost Pappy in the middle of it all, so with a band of his new friends, Popeye heads off to stop Bluto, and he's got the power of spinach, which Popeye detests, to butt Bluto right in the mush. Watch as Popeye mops the floor with punks in a burger joint, stops a greedy tax man, takes down a champion boxer, and even finds abandoned baby Swee'pea. He's strong to the finish 'cause he eats his spinach!

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Plot Keywords:

troubled production | disney | popeye | sailor | spinach | 

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Taglines:

The sailor man with the spinach can!

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 December 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Popeye - Der Seemann mit dem harten Schlag

Filming Locations:

Anchor Bay, Malta

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$49,823,057

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$60,000,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Walt Disney Productions, Robert Evans Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Vistasonic

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Popeye Meets Sindbad the Sailor (1936) which was the first animated Popeye special in color was nominated for an Academy award for Best Animated Short. It is also routinely called one of the best cartoon shorts of all time; having recently been placed #50 in the Greatest 100 animated films of all time list. It was also deemed "culturally significant" by the National Film Registry. Conversely, Robert Altman's 1980 live action version of Popeye was slammed by the critics and was a box office bomb.

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Goofs

When Bluto is beating up Popeye and making threats of how taxed the Oyls were going to be, Bluto's mouth is not moving at all.

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Quotes

Poopdeck Pappy: Cut me down. Cut me down.
Popeye: [Grabbing a knife] Cut ya down, cut ya down.
Poopdeck Pappy: Cut me down.
[Popeye does. Pappy lands flat on his face and breaking the chair]
Poopdeck Pappy: Ugh, you idiot.
Popeye: You said cut you down.
Poopdeck Pappy: I didn't say *cut* me down. I said *get* me down, *get* me down. And don't you ever pick up another knife, if you do, I'll make you eat it. You'll be known as the Sword Swallowin' Sailor.

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Crazy Credits

The film opens and ends with the Sailor's Hornpipe, a famous nautical song. This song is heard as part of Popeye's theme song in the opening, then is heard in its full form at the end of the film.

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Connections

Referenced in Brows Held High: Twilight of the Ice Nymphs (2011)

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Soundtracks

Swee'pea's Lullaby
(uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Harry Nilsson
Performed by Robin Williams

User Reviews

wonderful!

This is one of my all time favorites. It is both over the top and subtle. There is so much going on...that you can watch it many times and see something new each time. The acting, the sets, the costumes and most of all Harry Nielsen's music, give so many layers to this underrated movie. Shelley Duval's song, He's Large, is such a gem. She can say nothing positive about her beau...much as she tries and wants to impress her friends...except that...he is large!