| “Viva Forever” | ||||
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| Single by Spice Girls | ||||
| from the album Spiceworld | ||||
| Released | 20 July 1998 | |||
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| Recorded | Summer 1997 | |||
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| Length | 5:09 (album version) 4:10 (radio edit) |
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| Label | Virgin | |||
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| Spice Girls singles chronology | ||||
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“Viva Forever” is a song by the Spice Girls from their second album, Spiceworld. The song was released on 20 July 1998 in the United Kingdom and received critical acclaim. The song also charted fairly well becoming the band’s seventh UK number one single gaining a Platinum certification whilst also topping the charts in New Zealand. The single was a commercial success despite poor promotion.
An accompanying music video directed by Steve Box was released featuring the five band members as animated fairies that interact with two friends in a forest. The video was commissioned months before Geri’s departure, and as such she appears in the video and the accompanying single artwork. The four remaining members performed the track on shows Top of the Pops and on the National Lottery television show. An adapted duet version was performed with Pavarotti at his annual charity event Pavarotti and Friends. The song was also performed live as a five-piece on their return concert tour, Return of the Spice Girls. “Viva Forever” is widely considered as the best work of the Spice Girls in their career. In the book The Spice Girls Revisited by David Sinclair, it was confirmed by the co-writers/producers of the song Matthew Rowe & Richard Stannard that Geri Halliwell was the main songwriter of “Viva Forever”.
| Spice World | |
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UK theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Bob Spiers |
| Produced by | |
| Screenplay by | Kim Fuller |
| Based on | “An idea” by the Spice Girls and Kim Fuller |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Paul Hardcastle |
| Cinematography | Clive Tickner |
| Edited by | Andrea MacArthur |
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| Distributed by | Universal Pictures (UK) Sony Pictures Releasing/Columbia Pictures (USA) |
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Release date
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Running time
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93 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $25 million |
| Box office | $151 million |
Spice World is a 1997 British musical comedy film directed by Bob Spiers and written by Kim Fuller. The film stars pop girl group the Spice Girls who all play themselves. The film—made in a similar vein to The Beatles‘ A Hard Day’s Night (1964)—depicts a series of fictional events leading up to a major concert at London‘s Royal Albert Hall, liberally interspersed with dream sequences and flashbacks as well as surreal moments and humorous asides.
This is the second feature-length film directed by Spiers, following That Darn Cat (1997). The film features Richard E. Grant, Claire Rushbrook, Naoko Mori, Meat Loaf, Barry Humphries, and Alan Cumming in supporting roles. Filming took place in London for six of the eight filming weeks and also inside Twickenham Studios, as well as at over 40 famous British landmarks. Shooting featured several fourteen-hour shooting sessions and a constant, heavy media presence due to the Spice Girls’ large popularity at the time.
The film premiered on 15 December 1997 and was released to British cinemas on the British holiday Boxing Day (26 December). In North America, the film was distributed by Columbia Pictures, PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, and Icon Entertainment International and premiered on 23 January 1998. In the United States, Spice World became a box office success and broke the record for the highest-ever weekend debut for Super Bowl weekend with box office sales of $10,527,222. The film grossed $151 million at the box office worldwide and over $100 million including DVD sales. Despite being a box office success, the film received primarily negative reviews.
To celebrate its 20th Anniversary in 2017, Spice World was given a limited release across the United Kingdom showing at Odeon Cinemas. The film grossed just shy of £1 million bringing the total gross income $151 million worldwide. Spiceworld is the highest-grossing movie of all time by a musical group.
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