Stop the World, I Want to Get Off

In Stop the World -- I Want to Get Off, all the world is Littlechap's stage -- and the beleaguered, wisecracking hero of this captivating "new-style" musical by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley is your guide for the tuneful life's journey of an average bloke seeking love, wealth and career success. Shot on its original circus-ring set during a performance at the Lyric Hammersmith, the film offers a front-row seat for the charming mummery and incisive commentary of the London/Broadway hit. Tony Tanner (who followed original star Newley) makes a lithe, raffish Littlechap, whose learning curve for navigating life's curveballs is devilishly steep. Two-time Tony nominee Millicent Martin blithely incarnates the typically English/Russian/Japanese and all-American women who confound him. And the score by the future collaborators on Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory -- including beloved standards "Gonna Build a Mountain," "Once in a Lifetime" and "What Kind of Fool Am I?" -- is the show- and world-stopping centerpiece that'll make you glad to get on.

• drama
• musical
• romance