“Popeye” (1980) 4K UHD Review

The adventures of the famous sailor man and his friends in the seaside town of Sweethaven. (from IMDb)

Although Popeye released in cinemas mere months after I made my debut in the world, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the film from start to finish. I believe I’ve seen parts of it over the years, but it wasn’t until it landed on our doorstep for review that I decided to finally take the time to watch it. The end result? A very ambitious and heartfelt attempt at bringing the beloved cartoon character to life that ultimately falls flat from its shoddy execution.

One thing that instantly stands out about the production of Popeye is how elaborate the seaside town of Sweethaven is. A quick Googling revealed that, not only was the entire town built from scratch for this film, but the town still stands on the shore of Malta and can be visited still to this day. Incredible. The sets are amazing and they alone help make Popeye seem like a legit production. Then there’s comedian Robin Williams’ devoted portrayal of the character. Williams absolutely nails the live action Popeye really well. Even The Shining‘s Shelley Duvall embodies the lanky Olive Oyl perfectly. The filmmakers certainly knew what they were doing when they were casting this thing.

I was also surprised that the film is a sort-of musical. It opens with the Sweethaven townsfolk singing about life there, and how God must love them, when Popeye rows up to the dock in his dingy. The song works, but, unfortunately, none of the following songs really work all that well. Bluto’s anthem about being mean isn’t too bad, but pretty much anything Olive Oyl sings feels incomplete at best. The movie would have worked better if it would have ditched the songs after the opening. The movie also has no business being almost 2 hours long. Scenes like a random boxing match and some dinner table moments feel like filler that just drags on a movie that is based on a 20-minute cartoon show (or shorter). This movie could have benefited greatly from losing 30 to 40 minutes of its runtime.

Then there’s the random content. For the most part, violence and such is slapstick and silly, but then an older character says the phrase “haul *ss” a dozen times during the film’s last act. And a group of kids say “Give ’em h*ll, Popeye!” at one point. There’s also a brief scene where a handful of what look to be prostitutes are just hanging around, and Popeye mutters “Don’t touch them, they might give you a ‘venerable’ disease.” Other than that, the movie is quite clean… so why these little pockets of edgier content? It’s really odd.

But I guess “really odd” is a pretty good sum-up for 1980’s Popeye. It boasts great sets and inspired casting, but has really poor execution. The movie does look excellent in this 4K transfer, though, so fans with 4K viewing capabilities will find this new transfer to be a real treat. Other than that, though, Popeye is so weak, I don’t think even a can of spinach could save it.

– John DiBiase (reviewed: 8/18/26)