Cult Flops - The Vagabond King (1956)

Paramount, 1956

Starring Oreste Kirkop, Kathryn Grayson, Rita Moreno, and Walter Hampden

Directed by Michael Curtiz

Music by Rudolf Friml; Lyrics by Brian Hooker and Johnny Burke

Operetta made a comeback in the early 1950's when several classic operettas of the 1910's and 20's were recreated on TV and on record. Paramount saw the success of The Student Prince at MGM and "spectaculars" like The Chocolate Soldier on television and went looking for their own version of Mario Lanza. They thought they found him in Maltese opera tenor Oreste Kirkop, who, despite his limited knowledge of English, was handsome, manly, and possessed a marvelous singing voice. They picked up Kathryn Grayson from MGM and gave dancer Rita Moreno one of her first major roles, but then let it sit on the shelf for over a year before it was released to an indifferent public. Did this deserve that fate, or should this rousing color retelling of Francois Villon's story deserve another chance to rule? Let's begin with the scheming Duke of Burgundy (Tom Duggan) and his men just outside of Paris and find out...

The Story: Francois Villon (Kirkop) and his fellow vagabonds are arrested by Louis the XI (Hampden) and his men when they visit the tavern he frequents disguised as peasants. Louis anoints him the new provost marshal after his actual marshal Thibault (Leslie Nielson) is revealed to be a spy to Burgundy. He's hoping to enlist him and his fellow peasants, poets, and drinks in battling the Duke and his army. Earlier in the day, Francois had encountered the beautiful Princess Katherine (Grayson) at a church and had fallen hopelessly in love with her, despite already having a girlfriend in the tavern wench Hugette (Moreno). It's the ladies who are willing to lay down the line - and in Hugette's case, her own life - to make sure Louis stays on the throne and Francois stays off the hangman's noose.

The Song and Dance: The ladies are the stand-outs here amid the brilliantly colored pageantry of 15th-century France. Grayson is equally spunky and sweet, especially later-on, when she begins to fall for Villon. Moreno brings enough fire and passion to Hugette to power the entire City of Lights, and is certainly more realistic as a tavern wench than cutesy Lillian Roth was. The production benefits from the improved Technicolor, with lavish medieval costumes and fanciful headgear for both genders that would make the rainbow pale. We even get a medieval ballet near the end with a literal warring heaven and hell that gives us a good idea of court amusements among the rich in the fifteenth century. And at least if they had to have additional numbers, Friml actually got to write the music this time. 

The Numbers: Our first number is "Bon Jour," which introduces us to Francois and his men as they travel back to Paris, waving to the peasants they see along the way. Hugette joins the vagabonds for the swirling chorus number "Viva La You" at the tavern. Katherine performs "Some Day" in the courtyard as she dreams of the man she saw at the church. Francois, Hugette, and the Vagabonds make "Comparisons" between the wealthy and the poor and Burgundy and Louis just before Francois is arrested. "Hugette Waltz" takes us to the dungeons as Hugette laments the loss of her beloved rogue. 

"Only a Rose" is performed in the courtyard, with Francois telling Katherine how much he's fallen for her. "Watch Out for the Devil" is the big ballet depicting the fight between heaven and hell - or Louis and Burgundy in this case - performed by Katherine and Francois. We end with "Song of the Vagabonds" for Francois and the chorus as they rout the Duke of Burgundy and his men and a reprise of "Only a Rose" as Francois and Katherine drive off into the countryside.

Trivia: Final movie for Katherine Grayson and only movie for Oreste Kirkop. Kirkop didn't speak English at the time. His speaking voice was dubbed by Elliot Reid.

Rita Moreno's singing voice was dubbed by Eve Boswell. 

That's Vincent Price doing the narration in the opening sequence.

What I Don't Like: The men are the problem here. While Hampden isn't bad as opportunistic Louis, Jack Lord and Leslie Nielson are simply too modern to be believable as scheming medieval spies. Kirkop is a wonderfully lusty singer, but lacks the presence of either Dennis King or Mario Lanza (who had been considered for the role early-on). He has no chemistry with Grayson or Moreno and frankly belongs back in an opera house in Malta, not film. Not to mention, the dubbing on his voice is terrible, with Reid sounding nothing like his singing voice. The sets look spectacular but are obviously fake and give the film the feeling of an overripe stage play, and Friml and Burke's added songs are pleasant but unremarkable compared to the soaring "Some Day" and "Only a Rose" or the devastating "Hugette's Waltz." 

The Big Finale: Mainly worth checking out for operetta fans like me or fans of Grayson, Moreno, or the huge colorful musicals of the 50's and 60's. 

Home Media: At press time, this rarity can only be found on YouTube. 

YouTube

A Salute to TCM - It Happened In Brooklyn

MGM, 1947

Starring Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Jimmy Durante, and Kathryn Grayson

Directed by Richard Whorf

Music by Jules Styne; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn

Our first two reviews this week are in honor of cable channel Turner Classic Movies, who celebrate their 30th anniversary this month. TCM began as a way for Turner Broadcasting to show off its enormous catalog of vintage movies from MGM, Warner Bros, and RKO without commercial interruption. They became known for their unique interstile segments, their use of indie rock and jazz music in their station promotions, and for showing older films uncut and in widescreen before this was common on home media. 

They're also known for returning many lesser-known and neglected films to the public eye, including this small-scale musical from MGM. How does this sweet story of three talented friends in New York who search for fame while helping a teen in need look today? Let's begin in England, as Danny Miller (Sinatra) waits to go home to Brooklyn, and find out...

The Story: Danny does finally make it there, only to run headlong into the post-war housing shortage. Nick Lombardi, the kindly janitor for his old high school, gives him a room in the basement with him. He first meets music teacher Anne Fielding (Grayson) there. She doesn't share his positive outlook or his feelings about New York. She tried to become an opera singer, with no success, and ended up at the school instead. Also turning up at the school is Jamie Shellgrove (Lawford), a shy young Englishman whom Danny met before he left London. His grandfather thought Danny could show Jamie how to really live.

Jamie and Danny are too shy to try for a music career themselves. Danny initially ends up as a shipping clerk in a music shop, until Nick helps him to audition. He then adds words to Jamie's music, turning his funeral march into a lovely ballad. All three argue in favor of a teen in Anne's class (Billy Roy) for a music scholarship, but he's just a half-year too young. They end up getting him to give a concert in the music shop in order to show everyone in Brooklyn what he can do. Meanwhile, Danny is in love with Anne, but she's more interested in Jamie. He loves her, too, but doesn't want to hurt Danny's feelings.

The Song and Dance: I first saw this movie on TCM in college around 2001 and really enjoyed it. It's delightfully sweet and unpretentious for an MGM musical of the 40's and 50's. The black and white cinematography and Whorf's intimate direction gives it the feel of some of the better 50's sitcoms. It also has a surprisingly good score for one of MGM's smaller titles, including the standards "I Believe" and "Time After Time." 

While Sinatra and Lawford are adorable as the shy guys who try to work on breaking out of their shells, it's Durante who dances off with the movie. He's hilarious, whether explaining the post-war housing situation to Sinatra or joining Sinatra to help cheer up one of the kids at the school (Bobby Long). Sinatra even does a credible imitation of him in "Song's Gotta Come From the Heart." Look for Gloria Grahame in the beginning as a mouthy nurse who questions Danny being from Brooklyn. 

Favorite Number: We open with Danny briefly playing "Whose Baby are You?" in England on the piano. Jamie ends up having to encore the number at the music shop in Brooklyn for a group of swing-crazed teenagers. Sinatra sings "The Brooklyn Bridge" on the actual Brooklyn Bridge when he arrives home. He, Grayson, and her students turn a Bach song into "Invention Number 1" during a class. Danny and Nick encourage Johnny with "I Believe," as they remind him that there are many things we can't see, but still have faith in. Likewise, Nick encourages Danny to audition at the music shop by reminding him that "The Song's Got to Come From the Heart." Danny sings "It's the Same Old Dream" as a typical ballad...but teen singers the Starlighters aren't impressed and do their own swing version.

The big hit here was "Time After Time," which is first heard performed by Danny after he adds words to Jamie's music. Anne gets to do her own lovely rendition later when Danny announces that the music shop intends to publish it. Anne and Danny sing the opera duet "La Ci Darem La Mano" from Don Giovanni while out to dinner; Jamie accompanies them on piano. Near the end of the movie, Anne imagines herself performing the difficult "Bell Song" from Lakme in a fully-staged version of the opera. 

Trivia: That's a 17-year-old Andre Previn playing all of the piano solos in the film, including the one in the finale that cements that scholarship. 

Despite singing and dancing so well in "I Believe," Bobby Long apparently dropped out of show business shortly after the film's release and would join the Navy from 1951 to 1955.

What I Don't Like: First and foremost, this is not for those who prefer their musicals on the big, bold, and brassy side. It's small and quiet for a musical from this era. It's not even filmed in color. Grayson's first opera duet with Sinatra is cute, but her big fantasy "Bell Song" sequence late in the film comes totally out of left field and is never mentioned again. It was probably added to give Grayson more to do and show off her soprano. The producer was right that she can come off as a cold fish compared to the guys, even after she's supposedly thawed later in the movie. The story can come off as cutesy and trite, especially in the second half, when they're trying to help the teen get his scholarship. 

The Big Finale: If you're a fan of the four leads or are looking for a smaller-scale MGM musical, this is an underrated charmer that's worth buying the Brooklyn Bridge for. 

Home Media: On streaming and DVD, the latter currently from the Warner Archives.

DVD

Amazon Prime

Cult Flops - So This Is Love (The Grace Moore Story)

Warner Bros, 1953

Starring Kathryn Grayson, Merv Griffin, Joan Weldon, and Walter Abel

Directed by Gordon Douglas

Music and Lyrics by various

We continue our celebration of famous musical women with biographies of opera divas. Grace Moore is best-known today for the series of operettas and opera-based backstage films she made for Columbia in the mid-30's, but she began as a singer on the stage and in nightclubs. Her real ambition was to sing grand opera...and we see how she finally got there in this biography featuring another popular movie soprano. How does Grayson do with the life of the mercurial music star? Let's begin on the streets of Knoxville, Tennessee as the circus comes to town and find out...

The Story: Grace Moore (Grayson) has always had a beautiful voice...but it goes hand in hand with a rather nasty temper. She makes use of that temper to get herself singing lessons in Washington DC, where she meets chipper Buddy Nash (Griffin) at a nightclub. She manages to get a job singing there, but the combination of that and a poor teacher has damaged her vocal chords. A trip to a cabin in the country and not speaking for three months restores her voice, but it loses her Buddy, who marries before she returns.

Grace has far more luck with her career. She's hired as the understudy for star Marilyn Montgomery (Marie Windsor), then takes over her part when she's sick. That makes her a star on Broadway and nets her another boyfriend, Bryan Curtis (Douglas Dick). It doesn't impress the Metropolitan Opera, who find her too youthful and inexperienced for their stages. Moore, however, will become a star no matter what...even if she has to sacrifice her relationships to become the next great diva.

The Song and Dance: Whatever faults the movie had, it's not with the central performance. Grayson makes a wonderful Moore and does very well showing off her charm and her operatic temperament. She's equally adept at handling both the operatic solos like "The Jewel Song" from Manon and "I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate." Walter Abel and Rosemary DeCamp are the only other cast members who make any impression as Grace's blow-hard father who just wants her to behave and her doting aunt. 

Favorite Number: Little Grace (Noreen Corcocan) wows a crowd of black churchgoers with "In Dat Great Gitten' Up Morning." As an adult, she gets her first job singing "Ciribirin" onstage, only to be drowned out a man announcing the end of World War I. Grayson has a great time swinging her black beaded dress to "I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate," but her family is shocked at the lewd song. Merv Griffin gets to show off his other talent besides producing game shows with the lovely ballad "I Kiss Your Hand, Madame." 

"Oh Me, Oh My!" is one of Grace's numbers for the show she's supposed to be understudying. The other is the movie's sole major production number, "Time On My Hands." Grayson sings it as a bride before a ballerina in a magenta tutu and her partner in a tux take over, dancing off of what looks like a giant wedding cake. Grayson looks radiant in a frilly yellow gown and parasol for the romantic Irving Berlin ballad "Remember." The movie ends with Moore's Met triumph in the opera La Boheme, singing Mimi's solo "Si, mi chiamo Mimi." 

What I Don't Like: Though the movie is actually pretty accurate biography-wise, you really don't get to know Moore as a person beyond her ambitions...and you only get half the story. Hollywood took note of her success with the Met and called her to make two operettas in 1930. She returned to movies in 1934, doing a successful series of operettas and opera backstagers at Columbia. Even after her film career ended, she continued appearing on records and in radio, then entertained the troops during World War II before dying in a plane crash in 1947. We see none of this, probably because Warners didn't own the material from her MGM and Columbia movies, and it might have been a lot more interesting than her dull attempts to get into the Met. 

Casting is the other problem. Everyone else pales besides Grayson. Jeff Donnell and Joan Weldon are funny as her loyal buddies, but they really don't have much to do beyond a few gags. Griffin and Dick are so colorless in boring love interest roles, you understand why Griffin gave up any ideas of being a movie star and opted for hosting talk shows and producing game shows instead. 

The Big Finale: Only for the most ardent fans of vintage opera, Grayson, or Moore. Everyone else is just advised to seek out Moore's films or recordings. 

Home Media: Easily found on streaming and DVD, the latter from the Warner Archives.

DVD

Amazon Prime

Two Sisters from Boston

MGM, 1946

Starring Kathryn Grayson, June Allyson, Peter Lawford, and Jimmy Durante

Directed by Henry Koster

Music by Sammy Fain; Lyrics by Ralph Freed

During and directly after World War II, there was a burst of nostalgia for simpler times and less tumultuous eras. We already saw one example of how the musicals from this time celebrated the past in One Sunday Afternoon. MGM in particular did many musicals set in the immediate past, especially after the roaring success of Meet Me In St. Louis in 1944. They were also fond of musicals featuring opera or operetta stars with operatic music and sequences from operas. This one combines both those approaches into one story of a young woman who shocks her family by her choice of career. How does this turn-of-the-twentieth-century tale of class differences look now? Let's begin in Boston, as the ancient relatives of Miss Martha Chandler (Allyson) plays the piano, and find out...

The Story: Martha and her Aunt Jennifer (Isobel Elsom) and blustery Uncle Johnathan (Harry Hayden) rush quickly to New York when someone at the party claims to have seen Martha's sister Abigail (Kathryn Grayson) singing in the dive bar The Golden Rooster. Yes, she does perform numbers there with its proprietor Spike (Jimmy Durante) under the name "High C Susie." She wanted to become an opera singer, but the money her stingy uncle sent her barely paid for piano lessons. Working at the bar is her way of earning cash for lessons.

Spike sneaks her into a show featuring opera star Olstrom (Lauriz Melichor), but she accidentally ruins the show, to Olstrom's horror and her family's delight. Martha stays on to convince her sister to give up singing and marry the handsome art patron Lawrence Tyburt Patterson Jr. Not only does Lawrence fall for her instead, but after he gets Abigail an audition with his own stuffy parents, Martha has to convince them that she's the one singing at the Bowery to give her sister a chance.

The Song and Dance: The cast and the early 1900's atmosphere are the thing here. Allyson and Grayson both have a great deal of fun, with Allyson playing against type as the sheltered society girl who faints at the mere sight of bare skin. Ben Blue has a smaller part, playing a butler who can only remember things when he's drunk, but he does manage to get a couple of nice gags. He's especially funny in the very beginning, when he's ardently pursuing Abigail. Durante has a couple of nice moments claiming he knows people - including Olstrom - to get Abigail into the opera. The costumes and sets also do quite well recreating both the downtown and uptown New York in 1900.

Oh, and I really appreciate that they didn't try to match Abigail with anyone, which a lot of musicals would have done. Her real interest is in a career, not romance. 

Favorite Number: The movie kicks off with Durante introducing himself and Grayson and greeting a drunk and rowdy house in his own "Hello, Hello." That goes directly into Abigail's number as she more-or-less explains her predicament in the stripper chorus number "There are Two Sides to Ev'ry Girl." Durante gets a second number with Grayson, "Down By the Ocean," as he and Abigail spoof early 1900's courtship and Martha gets a look at her sister's (relatively) brief bathing costume. Martha tries to perform with the chorus girls in her brief costume without ending up fainting onstage as they sing about the men they'll meet "After the Show." 

The Lohengrin opera sequence starts out with Melichor in great voice as he performs before the dancing crowds of admiring peasants...but ends in chaos, thanks to Abigail's attempts to be noticed. The Marie Antoinette opera was written for the film and ends it in spectacular fashion as Abigail, in her gigantic ruffled gown and high wig, proves to Olstrom that she can, indeed, sing very well when she's not trying to show off. 

What I Don't Like: First of all, Lawford is basically a block of wood as the handsome art patron who nearly turns both sisters away. He's obviously not happy to be there and is dull as dishwater in a badly-written role. There's also the whole story revolving around how notoriously stuffy Boston was still considered to be in 1946...something that many people won't get today. Lawrence and Abigail's family come off as less well-meaning and more obnoxious and cold. Frankly, with a family like that, no wonder Abigail ran off to the big city.

And I'm a bit surprised this one isn't in Technicolor. This is the kind of thing that screams for color, especially from MGM in this era.

The Big Finale: The cast and some good numbers gives this one a bit of the zip that One Sunday Afternoon lacked, despite the dated story. Fans of the stars, opera, and musicals of the 1940's will want to check it out.

Home Media: Currently DVD-only from the Warner Archives.

DVD

The Desert Song (1953)

Warner Bros, 1953
Starring Kathryn Grayson, Gordon MacRae, Dick Wesson, and Raymond Massey
Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
Music by Sigmund Romberg; Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and others

With operettas popular on early TV, several of them saw big-screen remakes in the 1950's. As MGM did with Show Boat, Warners upgraded the swashbuckling sand saga with Technicolor, a glossy production, and Kathryn Grayson. Does it come off better than the Show Boat remake did, or should it be thrown down a sand dune? Let's go back to the Sahara, where the Riffs are once again at war, and find out...

The Story: This time, El Khobar (MacRae) and the Riffs are waging war with the French military and another tribe lead by the wealthy and corrupt Sheikh Youssef (Massey). When Khobar isn't living among the people of the desert tribes, he's Paul Bonnard, a nerdy young anthropologist who shares an apartment with reporter Benji Kidd (Wesson). The daughter of General Birabeau (Ray Collins), Margot (Grayson), arrives from school in Paris. She immediately flirts with every man at the garrison, to the dismay of her father and the handsome Captain Fontaine (Steve Cochran). Her father hires Paul to teach her history and keep her busy. He not only keeps her busy, he tells her about the Riffs and their poor treatment at the hands of Youssef. Youssef is an ally of the French...but he has his own plans for the garrison. El Khobar is determined to expose him and reveal the truth, even if he has to bring Margot and her father along for the ride.

The Song and Dance:  If nothing else, the movie returns the story to more-or-less the original plot. I actually like Margot being the General's feisty daughter and Paul being an anthropologist. It gives her more reason for being in Morocco and him more of an excuse to wander the desert. Grayson's having a marvelous time as the feisty Margot, Wesson's mostly funny as Paul's clueless buddy, and Massey makes a very menacing dessert ruler. The color here is gorgeous, glowing and jewel-like with its sandy vistas.

Favorite Number: "Gay Parisianne" is the only song retained from the 1943 film, and it's used as a chorus number here with Margot flirting with all the men at the garrison. Grayson also gets to sing a lovely "Romance," my favorite song from this score, as she reveals why she left Paris. MacRae leads the male chorus through a rousing "Riff Song" in the opening, and he gets a gorgeous "One Alone" when he serenades Grayson in the gardens.

What I Don't Like:  MacRae is stiff as a board as El Khobar and lacks the charisma Dennis Morgan showed in this role in 1943. He's slightly more believable as the shy scholar than the swashbuckler chieftain. In the original show, every character, including the stage versions of Benjy and Youssef, had a song.  Here, only Paul, Margot, and the chorus sings. Dancer Allyn Ann McLerie is Arabic dancer Azuri, and she's even less believable than MacRae as a passionate woman of the desert (and is stuck in dark skin makeup to boot).

The Big Finale: As much as I like the 1943 film, this one has its own charms, including one of Grayson's best performances and a story that gets at least a little closer to the original show. Either way, both movies are a lot of fun for fans of swashbuckling desert adventures or operettas.

Home Media: Like the 1943 film, this is currently only available through the Warner Archives.

DVD

Show Boat (1951)

MGM, 1951
Starring Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, Ava Gardner, and Joe E. Brown
Directed by George Sidney
Music by Jerome Kern; Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein

MGM bought the rights to Show Boat in the 1940's, hoping to make it into a vehicle for their then-stars Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. It took so long for them to get it off the ground, it was switched to featuring Grayson and Keel, along with the wildly popular Gardner. How does this glossy Technicolor retelling compare to other versions, including the one I reviewed on Tuesday? Let's return to the docks along the Mississippi as the Cotton Blossom is arriving and find out...

The Story: We kick things off with the boat's leading man Steve (Robert Sterling) and engineer Pete (Leif Erickson) fighting over leading lady Julie (Gardner), and Pete running off to tell the sheriff about them. Having gambled his ship ticket away, Gaylord Ravenal (Keel) tries to get passage on the ship as an actor. The head of the troupe Cap'n Andy (Brown) turns him down, but he still falls in love with Andy's stage-struck daughter Magnolia (Grayson). When Julie is discovered to be part-black, she and Steve are forced to leave the Show Boat, leaving an opening for Magnolia and Gaylord to become the new leads.

Magnolia and Gaylord are huge hits on the river. Over the objections of Magnolia's mother Parthy (Agnes Moorehead), they marry and move to Chicago, living the high life on Gaylord's winnings. Their "high life" ends abruptly when Gaylord's luck ends and he runs out, leaving a pregnant Magnolia destitute. She takes over Julie's job in a Chicago nightclub, making a big hit (with encouragement from Cap'n Andy) on New Year's Eve. She goes back to the show boat to bear her child, Kim. Gaylord is still gambling, but he never forgot his wife...and Julie's not about to let him abandon his woman like she was abandoned.

The Song and Dance: The movie mostly benefits from the bright and glossy Technicolor production. The jewel tones of the dancers and performers pop off the screen and make for a nice contrast with the less bold colors of the river workers, Magnolia and Parthy, and the river itself. Keel and Gardner have the best performances here. Keel is a far stronger Ravenal than Jones and handles the dramatic scenes a little bit better. Gardner, despite being dubbed, puts in one of her best performances as the tortured Julie.

Favorite Number: "Ol' Man River" is almost as strong here, with William Warfield's stirring performance matched by Roger Edens' simple and touching direction. (Sidney was sick and Edens took over the sequence.) Dancers Gower and Marge Champion have a blast with their adorable routines to two of my favorite songs from this score, "I Might Fall Back On You" and "Life Upon the Wicked Stage." Grayson and Keel's "Make Believe" and "Why Do I Love You?" are gorgeous and moving.

What I Don't Like: No amount of gorgeous scenery or cute dance numbers can mask the fact that this movie isn't as authentic or as interesting as the 1936 version. We'll start with Gardner being dubbed. Her real vocals were used on the soundtrack album, and they're not that bad. The entire premise of racism is pushed aside. The scene with Steve and Julie after Julie is accused of being black is rushed and mostly brushed aside.  Joe is seen only for "Ol' Man River," and Queenie is barely seen at all. While I am glad they brought Julie back in for the ending and it does come off as a little less sentimental than in 1936, it also loses the point of how love - and the river - endures for generations.

The Big Finale: While not as good as the previous version, it does have some things of interest for fans of MGM musicals or Gardner and Keel, including songs that didn't make the cut in '36.

Home Media: As one of the most popular MGM musicals of the 1950's, this is fairly easy to find on DVD and streaming.

DVD
Amazon Prime

Kiss Me Kate (1953)

MGM, 1953
Starring Howard Keel, Kathryn Grayson, Ann Miller, and Tommy Rall
Directed by George Sidney
Music and Lyrics by Cole Porter

Here's another film version of a show that was recently revived on Broadway. Word on Broadway was that Cole Porter had lost his touch when he wrote the songs for this musical version of The Taming of the Shrew in 1948. They couldn't have been more wrong. The show was a huge hit, and the cast album became a best-seller. MGM threw everything they had into the movie, including the then-new fad of 3-D and a very brief bit by Bob Fosse in one of his earliest film appearances. Let's head to a chic apartment in New York to see how well they did...

The Story: Stage star and director Fred Graham (Keel) is hoping to win back his ex-wife Lilli Vannessi (Grayson) by giving her the plum role of Katherine in his new musical version of Taming of the Shrew. For all her fond memories of their relationship, Lilli's not that eager to get back together with him. For one thing, he has a girlfriend on the side, energetic dancer Lois Lane (Miller). For another, Lilli is set to marry a wealthy Texan (Willard Parker). Lois has her own boyfriend, fellow dancer Bill Calhoun (Rall), who owes two thousand dollars to a gangster and signed Fred's name to the IOU. When the gangster's goons Lippy (Keenan Wynn) and Slug (James Whitmore) show up, Fred recruits them as actors to keep Lilli from walking out. Even Fred can't keep this shrew tamed for very long...but love will find a way, even among battling lovers.

The Song and Dance: As good as Keel and especially Grayson are as the battling lovers, it's the dance routines that really shine here. Miller's having a blast in one of her best roles at MGM, and Rall is almost as good as her gambler sweetheart. Bob Fosse got one of his first choreography jobs with a segment of the big "From This Moment On" chorus number. Whitmore and Wynn are hilarious as the goons who find themselves enjoying their encounter with show biz folks.

Favorite Number: Miller kicks things off with her awesome "Too Darn Hot," Lois' audition for Fred. No wonder she got the role of Bianca - she's sizzling in this one, one of her best solo routines. Keel and Grayson get to romp through the delightful operetta spoof "Wunderbar" backstage in Lilli's dressing room. Miller and Rall have two fun duets, "Why Can't You Behave?" and "Always True to You In My Fashion" later after Bill has caught Lois flirting with the Texan. "We Open In Venice," with its traveling scenery and Fred throwing smoke, doesn't really have much to do with the story (a problem in the stage version as well), but is at least lively.

I like how they tied "Brush Up Your Shakespere" into the story. On the stage, it's just something the comic gangsters come out to sing as a random vaudeville turn when the scenery is being changed. The film has Lippy and Slug performing to to cheer up Fred after Lilli left, complete with a charming soft-shoe and a breaking the fourth wall moment directly to the camera.

"From This Moment On" is a glorious routine for Rall, Miller, and the chorus after Biana and Lucencio's wedding. Though the rest of the number was choreographed by long-time Hollywood fixture Hermes Pan, Fosse did the slower, sexier sequence with him and Haney, and it's a brief, finger-snapping stand-out.

Trivia: "From This Moment On" was brought in from a failed Porter Broadway show, Out of This World. It didn't go over there, but became a hit, and later a standard, after showing up in the movie. Most modern stage versions will usually include it.

This was originally filmed and shown in 3-D, which is why the cast keeps throwing objects at the screen.

The film was made for TV four times - with original Broadway cast members Alfred Drake and Patricia Morrison in 1958, with Keel and Morrison in England in 1964, with Robert Goulet and Carol Laurence back in the US in 1968, and with Brent Barrett and Rachel York in a PBS Great Performances recording of the London revival in 2003.

What I Don't Like: First of all, while Ron Randell does resemble Cole Porter somewhat, that's definitely not him. By 1953, Porter had both legs amputated after years of pain from a riding accident. He would have been in a wheelchair.

Second, the opening scene is completely unnecessary. They could have started at the theater, as in the stage version, and it would have worked fine. They could have even worked "Too Darn Hot" and Porter in, calling it early rehearsals. Of the songs that they cut to fit this in, "Another Openin', Another Show" would likely be the biggest loss. It's considered to be one of the greatest opening numbers in stage history. (Other songs that didn't make it in include the ballad "Bianca" for Bill/Lucencio and the music for Lilli/Kate's "I am Ashamed That Women Are So Simple" - it's spoken in the film.)

And then there's the questions about the treatment of Lilli/Kate that comes with any version of Taming of the Shrew. The looks on Grayson's face during "Simple" indicate that she'll probably love, but not obey...but it's really open to interpretation.

The Big Finale: This is an old family favorite. The terrific numbers and energetic cast more than make up for a script that hasn't always dated well in spots. If you're a fan of Porter, the cast, Fosse, or dance in film, you'll want to check this one out.

Home Media: Alas, both the DVD and Blu-Ray (the latter in the original 3D) are out of print. Your best bet to find the "flat" version that I reviewed would be streaming or as part of several DVD collections.

DVD - Silver Screen Icons: Broadway Musicals
Blu-Ray - Musicals 4-Movie Collection
Amazon Prime

Cult Flops - Lovely to Look At

MGM, 1952
Starring Howard Keel, Kathryn Grayson, Ann Miller, and Red Skelton
Directed by Mervyn LeRoy (with Vincent Minnelli)
Music by Jerome Kern; Lyrics by Otto Haurbach, Dorothy Fields, and others

MGM had been trying to get their remake of Roberta off the ground ever since they bought the property in 1945. After almost a decade of false starts, they finally brought it together in 1952, under the name of the Oscar-nominated song Lovely to Look At. How does this trip to Roberta's compare with our previous one? Let's start in New York this time, as three young men try to convince a group of backers to produce their show, and find out...

The Story: That audition does not go well. Performers Al Marsh (Skelton), Tony Naylor (Keel), and Jerry Ralby (Gower Champion) just can't get anyone to back their new revue. They convince Tony's dancer girlfriend Bubbles (Miller) to give them the money to go to Paris after Al learns he's inherited a dress salon. Turns out he's only part-owner. His adopted cousins Stephanie (Grayson) and Clarisse (Marge Champion) own the other half. Hoping to get them to sell, Jerry and Tony romance the ladies and take them out on the town. Bubbles turns up too, hoping to get in on their new show. Tony convinces the bankers who are about to foreclose on Roberta's to let them put on an innovative new fashion show.

Meanwhile, Stephanie, besotted with how Tony has taken over the fashion show, is falling for Tony, and Jerry and Clarisse are now crazy about each other. Al has a crush on Stephanie, but he eventually starts looking Bubbles' way. It looks like Roberta's may be saved, until it turns out that their model Zsa Zsa (Zsa Zsa Gabor) has a boyfriend who is a renowned Broadway producer. He may be willing to give Tony his chance...if he leaves Roberta's right away...

The Song and Dance: The cast is the thing here, along with some great dancing and fabulous 50's fashion. If you love the clothes from this era, you'll really enjoy this one. At the very least, three performers inheriting a dress shop makes slightly more sense than a football player inheriting a dress shop, and they use more of the original score than the previous version (though not the original plot). Skelton in particular has fun as the sweet comedian who's gotten too used to letting his faster-talking buddy make all the decisions; his "Go and Tell Aunt Rhodie" routine is hilarious.

Favorite Number: Ann Miller gets a good one in the beginning with the chorus boys, the racy "I'll Be Hard to Handle." Howard Keel and Kathryn Grayson get in a good "You're Devastating," while Grayson has "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" here. The Champions have two fun duets, the comic "I Won't Dance" as Jerry tries to get Clarisse out of the dress shop, and a lovely instrumental "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" with a starry background.

The big one here is the finale, a riot of color, movement, and gowns by none other than ace costumer Adrian (who came out of retirement for this movie). Vincent Minnelli directed the fashion show sequence, and it does evince his touch, especially in its stunning use of color. The Champions have an odd cat burglar dance that looks good but doesn't have much to do with anything. Keel and Grayson's "The Touch of Your Hand" and Miller's striptease in a tight lounging outfit come off better.

Trivia: This was originally supposed to have reunited Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly in 1948, but that fell through.

What I Don't Like: Bubbles was right towards the end. Tony was a jerk through most of the movie, full-stop. He took credit for pretty much everything, used the ladies and Roberta's to get what he wanted, and then almost ran out. He's such a pain, it's hard to figure out why Bubbles and Stephanie are after him.

I wish they'd been able to film in Paris. Other than Zsa Zsa, this has no French flavor whatsoever. Stephanie and Clarisse don't look or sound French (or Russian, for that matter). And I do wish they'd retained more of the original plot to go with most of the original score.

The Big Finale: This was a flop on first release, and while it's not the best MGM musical ever, I think it deserved a lot better. If you love vintage mid-20th century fashion, the cast, or classic dances, you'll find a lot to enjoy here.

Home Media: Currently only on DVD via the Warner Archives. (I actually dubbed my copy off TCM.)

DVD

The Toast of New Orleans

MGM, 1950
Starring Kathryn Grayson, Mario Lanza, David Niven, and J. Carrol Naish
Directed by Norman Taurog
Music by Nicholas Brodsky and others; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn and others

Mario Lanza, a popular tenor in Philadelphia, was scouted out by MGM as their next big musical star in the late 40's. They starred him in a pair of operettas with soprano Kathryn Grayson that were both big hits, of which this is the second and last. Is this tale of a backwoods fisherman who becomes a gentleman as soaring as its music, or should it be tossed back into the bayou? Let's take a slow boat over to old New Orleans to see for ourselves...

The Story: Opera manager Jaques Riboudeaux (Niven) and his most popular star Suzette Micheline (Grayson) find themselves stranded in the Louisiana bayous in the 1880's. While there, they witness a festival in the local Cajun community. Among the performers are the exuberant dancer Tina (Rita Moreno) and fisherman Pepe (Lanza), who has a magnificent voice. Despite Pepe falling for Suzanne as soon as he sings with her, she doesn't share his feelings. Jaques, on the other hand, sees Pepe's natural talent and invites him to sing for his New Orleans opera company. Pepe turns him down, until a storm destroys the fishing boat operated by him and his Uncle Nicky (Naish). They go to Jaques to accept his offer in an attempt to earn enough money to buy another fishing boat.

Jaques immediately insists that Pepe be groomed for opera performances. This proves to work too well. Pepe still sings magnificently, but he's lost much of his original rough-hewn charm, to the dismay of both Tina and Suzette. Meanwhile, Nicky doesn't care who's singing what and just wants to go home to the bayou. Pepe has to figure out which world he belongs to...and which woman's heart he really wants.

The Song and Dance: Lanza never did become the best actor in the universe, but he at least acquits himself a bit better than in his previous movie with Grayson, That Midnight Kiss. It helps that this is a slightly better film. The gorgeous historical costumes and sets and down-home Cajun flavor gives this one an edge that the modern urban-set Kiss lacks. This was one of Rita Moreno's first movies, and she gets a nice solo dance routine early on "The Tina-Lina." Niven brings his usual urbanity to the suave Jaques.

Favorite Number: The big hit here was "Be My Love," which is sung constantly throughout the film. My favorite version is the first duet between Lanza and Grayson in the beginning, where we see the shock on her face and the surprise on Niven's when they hear Lanza's robust tenor joining in. We also get several sequences from actual operas, including a sequence from Madama Butterfly in the finale.

What I Don't Like: Not only is this pretty much a historical version of the previous That Midnight Kiss (which also featured Lanza as a working-class tenor who is suddenly discovered and falls for Grayson), but both stories are cliched to the max. Even the enormous sets and beautiful costumes can't disguise the twice-told story. Niven's out of place - musicals were never really his forte - and quite frankly seems a little bored.

The Big Picture: While it's better than Midnight Kiss or some of Lanza's other vehicles, I still only recommend it for major fans of him, Grayson, or opera.

Home Media: Originally only available as part of a two-pack with Midnight Kiss, it finally got a solo release from the Warner Archives last year.

DVD
DVD - 2-Pack That Midnight Kiss/The Toast of New Orleans

Saluting Our Troops - Anchors Aweigh

MGM, 1945
Starring Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Kathryn Grayson, and Dean Stockwell
Directed by George Sidney
Music by Jules Styne; Lyrics by Sammy Cahn

In honor of Veterans Day, we're going to be covering one of MGM's biggest musicals of the 1940's. This tale of two Navy officers on leave who help a struggling singer was wildly popular during the waning days of World War II, and even won an Oscar for best musical score. Nowadays, it's probably best-known for Kelly's dance routine with Jerry the Mouse. Let's head to Hollywood to see if the movie still holds up, or if Jerry isn't the only one who should be worrying...

The Story: Naval officers Joe Brady (Kelly) and Clarence Doolittle (Sinatra) are given shore leave in Los Angeles for four days after Joe rescues Clarence when he falls overboard. No sooner do they get on dry land than they encounter little Donald (Stockwell) at a police station. He's run away to try to join the Navy. They take him home to get that idea out of his head and meet his aunt, the lovely Susan (Grayson). Susan is movie extra, but what she really wants to do is sing with classical pianist Jose Iturbi (himself). Joe, seeing how badly Clarence is smitten with her, lies and tells her that his buddy is friends with Iturbi. The duo spend most of the next few days trying to sneak past a persistent cop (Rags Ragland) to see Iturbi at the MGM lot and secure an audition for Susan. Trouble is, not only has Clarence fallen for a waitress from Brooklyn he met on Olvera Street (Pamela Britton), but now Joe's beginning to have feelings for Susan too.

The Song and Dance: Kelly and Sinatra do have a lot of fun together; they have more chemistry than each other than with Britton or Grayson. We get some invaluable glimpses of the real MGM studios in the mid-40's, including members of the actual MGM Studio Orchestra playing "The Donkey Serenade" with Iturbi. Stockwell has some amusing bits early-on when the guys catch him and they're trying to get him to go back home.

Favorite Number: By far the most famous routine from this movie is "The Worry Song," the one that has Kelly dancing with a cartoon Jerry the Mouse in a fantasy castle. The effects with the two hoofing together still look impressive to this day. Kelly gets another well-choreographed fantasy dance routine towards the end of the movie, as he uses his swashbuckling prowess to imagine himself as a dashing lover and Grayson as his beautiful senorita. Sinatra has two really lovely ballads, "What Makes the Sunset" and "I Fall In Love Too Easily." He and Kelly get a hilarious duet right at the beginning, "We Hate to Leave," as they describe Kelly's legendary prowess with the opposite sex.

Trivia: This movie was nominated for five Academy Awards; as mentioned, it won for Musical Score. It was also nominated for Best Actor for Kelly, Best Picture, Best Song ("I Fall In Love Too Easily"), and it's color cinematography.

Sinatra and Kelly would re-team in two more MGM musicals in 1949, Take Me Out to the Ball Game and On the Town.

What I Don't Like: I have no idea why this got all those Oscar nods. The story is overlong piffle. Grayson is stiff as Aunt Susan (and Joe is right that she really should be paying more attention to her nephew than to going out to the opera). As much fun as Kelly's Spanish fantasy ballet and "The Worry Song" are, they're basically padding and add nothing to the story. Sinatra's only slightly better here than in The Kissing Bandit; Kelly isn't doing anything he doesn't usually do. I can understand getting nominated for the score and "Fall In Love Too Easily," but almost everything besides the music and dancing is as generic as you can get for the 40's.

The Big Finale: Like DuBarry Was a Lady, this one was made for it's time and place and just hasn't dated well. Recommended only if you're a really big fan of Sinatra, Kelly, or the MGM musicals of the 40's and 50's. Everyone else can look up the musical numbers on YouTube or in the That's Entertainment films.

Home Media: Another one that's pretty easy to find on DVD; it's also one of the few classic MGM musicals on Blu-Ray and Amazon Prime.

DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime

The Kissing Bandit

MGM, 1949
Starring Frank Sinatra, Kathryn Grayson, J. Carrol Naish, and Mildred Natwick
Directed by Laslo Benedek
Music by Nacio Herb Brown; Lyrics by Earl Brent and Edward Heyman

If you've never heard of this Frank Sinatra vehicle, you're in good company. The only place I'd ever seen it before I found the DVD for rent at a local library was the "Dance of Fury" showing up in That's Entertainment III. Evidently, it was obscure even when it was new. According to Wikipedia, it was a massive flop in January 1949 and would become one of the least-successful musicals of MGM's 40's and 50's golden age. Does this tale of a shy young bandito deserve to ride off into the sunset, or should it be trampled under the feet of those fiery flamenco dancers? Let's find out...

The Story:  We're in California in the 1850's. Ricardo (Sinatra) is called back from Boston by his late father's former partner Chico (Naish) to take over as the Kissing Bandit, a legendary thief who steals from the ladies, then kisses them before taking off. Ricardo is tall, skinny, shy, can't ride a horse, and is awkward around girls. He's never kissed a girl in his life! He'd rather return to Boston, but he's more-or-less forced into it. On his first raid,  he falls head-over-heels for feisty Teresa (Grayson), the beautiful daughter of the Governor Don Jose (Mikhail Rasumny). His sister Isabella (Natwick) is her guardian and confidante. He wants to tell her how he feels, but not only does she think he's the Bandit, he's just too shy.

Meanwhile, he and Chico discover that a rude man who visits their inn (Carleton G. Young) and his fat general (Billy Gilbert) are tax collectors who intend to bilk the government out of the money. They pass themselves off as the nobleman and his general to get their hands on the gold themselves. While it works with Don Jose and Isabella, Teresa knows better. Ricardo can't bring himself to hurt her, no matter what Chico wants, even it means playing the Bandit for real and stopping the nobleman from doing any real harm.

The Song and Dance: The character actors and stunning Technicolor costumes and sets carry the day. Southern California of the 1850's is a rainbow of lime greens, flame oranges, and sunset golds, with everyone costumed in the most elaborate finery this side of the Cisco Kid. We even get some actual outdoor scenery in the beginning, during the raid. Naish and Natwick are particularly fun as Ricardo's sidekick and the one who keeps him from running off and Teresa's strong-willed aunt.

Favorite Number: As mentioned above, the movie is best known for "The Dance of Fury," performed at the fiesta towards the end of the film. Ricardo Montalban finds himself dealing with two of MGM's best dancers, Cyd Charisse and Ann Miller, who definitely don't want to share him! It's a blaze of color and fancy footwork that stands out in the dull surroundings. Broadway dancer Sono Osato also gets a nifty solo with a whip about half-way through. Sinatra's "Siesta" is actually kind of funny, and is much better than the attempts at ballads earlier.

What I Don't Like: Sinatra and Grayson were pretty much forced into this movie. Neither thought they were suited for it, and it wound up being among their least-favorite of their films. I'm afraid they were right. While Grayson isn't bad as the lovely senorita, Sinatra is totally at sea as the timid young scholar who would rather be studying in Boston than stealing from pretty women. The two have no chemistry; their romance is stiff and dull. Like Bing Crosby, Sinatra just wasn't made for period films.

The two amazing dances make up somewhat for the music being bland. Neither Sinatra nor Grayson's big ballads register, and the differences in their instruments mean there's no duets.

The Big Finale: Unless you're a really huge fan of Sinatra, Grayson, or MGM musicals of the 40's and 50's, I'd look up "The Dance of Fury" online or in That's Entertainment III and skip the rest.

Home Media: While it is easy to find solo on DVD and on Amazon Prime, your best bet may be to pick this up with a collection of other lesser-known Sinatra vehicles from the 40's, Frank Sinatra: The Early Years.

DVD
Amazon Prime
Frank Sinatra: The Early Years DVD set