The 1980 movie became a hit for Neil Diamond, largely due to his rendition of the songs "Love on the Rocks" and "America." As for Laurence Olivier's performance as a Jewish cantor in the 1980 movie, watch the movie and decide for yourself what you think of his performance. The 1980 movie also features Neil Diamond performing in black face, just like Jolson did fifty-three years earlier. Question: Have things really changed? Although the movie is rife with cheesy acting and dialog that makes one wonder if the script was perhaps improvised, nevertheless in its own inimitable way it succeeds in telling a story about America, which is something. Now if the movie only had a decent screenplay to go along with movie's underlying theme, then maybe the movie could be taken more seriously. But such improvement will have to wait till the next remake.
Review of The Jazz Singer
