"Like a fever dream" is probably a good summary. No denying the brilliant performances from Williams and Duvall - their resemblance to the cartoon characters in appearance and voice is incredible. With a simple plot line the film staggers about abd despite holding my interest and having some funny moments, I wasn't really sure what was happening. I only gave it a 4th star as think it needs to be seen to be believed.

Sure, it has its flaws, but it has excellent performances by Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall, which I felt were accurate to their cartoon counterparts. Their chemistry really brought the characters to life, making the film feel vibrant and authentic. Despite some shortcomings in the storyline and pacing, the humor and heart they infused into their roles made it a memorable experience. It's a unique take that taps into nostalgia while still managing to entertain a new generation.

As part of my quest to watch all of Robert Altman's films, Popeye was one I approached with low expectations. Honestly, I selected it early on... simply to get it out of the way. When the film was released, the reception was far from enthusiastic, and at the time, I didn't have the film-viewing acumen to fully appreciate the immense talent of Robin Williams or Shelley Duvall. Because of that, I always had a nagging sense that I would hate it. But now that I've seen it, I can honestly say that not only did I NOT hate it… I found it surprisingly charming! While it's not without its flaws, Popeye ultimately serves as a heartfelt and well-executed tribute to the classic Fleischer Studios Popeye the Sailor cartoons from the 1930s and 1940s. One of the standout strengths of Popeye lies in its remarkable casting. Robin Williams, riding high on the success of his breakout role as the exuberant Mork in Mork & Mindy, delivers a subdued yet captivating portrayal of the iconic Popeye. He wisely keeps his character’s comments just below the volume of everyone else, embodying Popeye’s charming curmudgeon persona with subtlety. Williams also puts his unique stamp on the beloved Popeye voice, originally made famous by Jack Mercer in the animated shorts, capturing both its gruffness and tenderness. Shelley Duvall’s performance as Olive Oyl is nothing short of brilliant. She brings the character’s awkward physicality, signature exasperated lilted sighs, and headstrong spirit to life, completely embodying Olive's essence. The supporting cast shines just as brightly, with Paul L. Smith bringing a menacing yet comical edge to Bluto, Paul Dooley as the hamburger-obsessed Wimpy, and Bill Irwin portraying the bumbling Harold Hamgravy. For a fun bit of trivia, Popeye was originally a minor character in the Harold Hamgravy comic strip, which debuted in 1919, with Olive Oyl as Harold’s girlfriend. However, as Popeye’s popularity soared, he gradually took over the strip—along with Olive—and Harold was written out. One of Altman’s strengths as a director is filming large ensemble casts and making sure that each and every character is important to the scene. He employs this skill seamlessly throughout this movie. His appreciation of the source material shows from the film’s opening to its inevitable closing. This film is an outstanding example of bringing animated cartoons to life while not expelling the absurdism that animation allows. There are two main factors that hinder the overall success of this film. The first is the excessive reliance on musical numbers. While the original Fleischer-animated Popeye shorts did include songs, these were brief, often featuring only one or two. In contrast, Popeye the movie has 12 musical numbers, which feels excessive—three or four too many. While a few of the songs, like He’s Large, He Needs Me, and I Yam What I Yam, genuinely enhance the characters, many others feel more like filler. Several songs seem tacked on merely to occupy space, rather than serving any meaningful purpose. The second thing that doesn’t work is the film’s plot, primarily its ending. One spinach-fueled punch and suddenly things are wrapped up. It almost feels like someone said, “Hey, we’ve filmed enough to make a movie, so let’s wrap this up!” Defeating Bluto should have been more satisfying. The bottom line is that Popeye has much more going for it than going against it. I’m sincerely glad that I watched it. Were it not for my goal this year to see all the films that Robert Altman directed I would never have watched this film. And that would have been my loss. This was a truly enjoyable two hours of pure escapism!

Robin Williams does his best, but overall it’s a bloated mess. Songs were underwhelming

I enjoyed the film and thought the characterizations were great. I've seen Robin Williams put this film down saying it didn't have an ending but I think he missed with his judgment on his own film. The film created its own world and allowed us to visit for a while with Popeye and Olive oil

Under appreciated gem. Popeye is a fantastic film!

Totally charming and a must see for children of all ages, up to 100. Shelley Duvall and Robin Williams make a fantastic pair and bring to life these wonderful characters. Listening to their duets and the delightful lyrics is a sure escape from the sad depression of life on the planet these days. if you're a child at heart, don't miss it. The acting of all is superb.

Despite the musical numbers being god-awful and lazily written, they don't entirely sink this film. There's an odd charm and timeless quality to the whole bizarre tale that might make it more appealing to adults than to children.

10% rating ... Hard pass. This was not a very good film. You should definitely skip this one.

these songs are still stuck in my head. never thought Popeye would make such a great Musical! and the Cast is 100% Perfect!

I'll be honest; I actually went to the Sweethaven set as a wee lad but, having little understanding of film production back then, had no idea that Popeye Village was from a movie and just assumed it was some mini-theme park dedicated to the iconic sailor man. And I've only just recently seen the live-action adaptation of Popeye. And when setting aside the set's popularity among tourists in Malta, is this film any good? Eh, it's okay. The actors do a good job bringing the characters to life, the songs are memorable and its basic concept as an origin story for Popeye works well enough. But the film is also somewhat slow-paced, the struggles to translate the slapstick humour in a live-action context results in the jokes being rather hit-or-miss and its laid-back tone results in a film whose plot goes all over the place. From Popeye trying to fit in, to being an adoptive parent. The whole "Search for Pappy" thing is mostly just an excuse to get him to Sweethaven. Let's face it, this is more if a "hangout" film which audiences in 1980 understandably might not have wanted for a Popeye film with real people. The opening scene doesn't help with regards to the confusion that this is supposedly an adaptation of the comic strip, not the cartoons. While not as good a first impression as it could've been for Robin Williams' first major starring role in a movie, as excellent a job as he does playing the titular character, this film is a harmless enough watch. It's certainly much better than half of the live-action adaptations of cartoons or comics done in a cartoony art style that would show up in the latter half of the '90s and especially the 2000's anyway.

This movie has powerful sounds🤩

"Popeye" the movie yam what it yam and that ain't much. The songs and dances are clumsy and most of the gags stumble along. Stay with the Popeye comics and cartoons from the 1930s into the 1950s.

What...the....actual....So I know nothing about Popeye beyond he's a sailor from a classic cartoon who eats spinach to get strong and has that laugh. And after this...I BARELY know more and am more confused than anything. Superman The Movie type origin story this isn't. The jokes are just bizarre half the time. The slapstick is just I don't even know half the time. There really is no plot here half the time also. It truly feels like stuff just happens and half the time you don't understand why because we break out into random song and dance or a weird joke that doesn't make sense gets in the way. The editing and pacing are horrifcally bad here. It's a weird combo of a musical out of nowhere at times and a live action comedy that never works in the slightest. There is BARELY a story here. For every 1 minute of story I say we get about 2-3 minutes of dragging things out with bizarreness, unfunny jokes, songs or nonsense. The cinematography is bad but has so much production value and looks really faifthful to the cartoon. They nailed the asetics but they use it in such bizarre unfunny ways half the time. It's such a dissappointment because at first it really grabs and immerses you right from the start and you think your gonna be in for a great time. But a compelling story and humor never comes along with it. The acting is tierrible also mainly weighed down by terrible jokes and some surreal side character performances. Williams and Duvall are ok and have good moments but the humor, story, and some weird nonsensical scenes weigh it down too much as the runtime progresses. It's a shame because they are perfectly cast it feels like for the roles too. And the music is a ok mess. It's catchy but than there are weird slap stick tracks that feel out of place and the musical numbers just don't really work. Duvall isn't bad and is clearly trying singing but her voice is inconsistent. And most of the time the musical numbers feel out of place to begin with because the humor never works and the story is beyond shaky. So adding musical elements makes it worse. This is such amisfire on so many levels you wonder how Walt Disney & Paramount both green lit this. Skip This Bizarre Mess.

Worst movie ever. No kidding

Bad movie. Altman completely missed the whole point of the character. This isn't Popeye...It's a bunch of weirdos shouting gibberish at each other, singing awful songs...That's Nashville...Not Popeye. (Or maybe the Star Wars Christmas Special or something!..) And the songs...are...so...freaking...bad...The WORST songs in any musical I've seen, hands down...I mean it sounds like they're trying to make them bad...Siskel and Ebert INEXPLICABLY gave this a good review, saying "this is a different Popeye...It's a gentle Popeye..." Excuse me? A gentle Popeye? That's like saying it's a gentle Rocky, or a gentle Superman. Popeye is a revenge drama about overcoming bullies. It SHOULDN'T be gentle!! All this is just more evidence that Altman did NOT KNOW what he was doing when he made this movie. And I'm tired of hearing all the apologists defending it. It's all I can stands, and I can't stands no more!! I mean it's garbage. Pure and Simple. Case Closed. It is what it is. And that's all that it is...

One of my favorite movies as a child and it is continues to be one of my favorites! The music is nostalgic, fun and well written. I'm shocked at the low audience score. Where's has the imagination and wonder in the hearts of man gone? Did you all hate Jesus Christ Superstar too? If your answer is yes then we're not friends ;)

Quite literally the greatest animation-turned-live action film ever made. The characters are brilliantly brought to life. The town is an architectural marvel. Nillsen's soundtrack is arguably in the top 20 film soundtracks of all time.

I get why it's not well liked, but I really do appreciate the film's unique weirdness as a mishmash of cartoonish antics and Altman's style.

LOL, the funniest 01 hour: and 54 minutes ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!