Paramount, 1942
Starring Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Marjorie Reynolds, and Virginia Dale
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
I thought this was appropriate for my first review of 2019, as it covers most major holidays, including New Year's. This is the movie that introduced the evergreen "White Christmas," one of the most beloved holiday songs of all time. Does the movie live up to that legacy? Let's head to a nightclub in New York on Christmas Eve to find out...
The Story: Ted Hanover (Astaire), Jim Hardy (Crosby), and Lilah Dixon (Dale) are a popular act on the nightclub circuit in the early 1940's. Jim's tired of the grind of show business and wants to retire with Lilah to a farm in Connecticut. Lilah ends up insisting that she wants to stay with Ted and continue dancing. Broken-hearted, Jim moves to the farm of his dreams...only to discover that running a farm takes a lot more work than he thought. He ultimately turns the farm into an inn that's only open on public holidays. Linda Mason (Reynolds) is a flower-shop girl who wants to be a singer and comes to the farm to audition after encountering Jim in New York.
Ted ends up at Holiday Inn on New Year's Eve, drunk as a skunk after Lilah ran off with a Texas millionaire. He's so gone, he doesn't remember dancing a great duet with Linda. He and his manager Danny (Walter Abel) spend Lincoln's Birthday looking for her. When Ted does manage to find her, Jim finds himself competing with Ted for a girl's affections all over again.
The Song and Dance: For all the fluff, there's some real bite to this story. This is one of the few major movies I've seen deal with the grind of show business and what performers, even in the 21st century, often have to sacrifice to be able to do what they do. The romantic comedy devices here don't feel as forced as they would later in White Christmas. Crosby and Astaire work well together, and while we don't really see much of Dale, I rather like Reynolds as down-home Linda. Louise Beavers is also excellent as Jim's tough-minded housekeeper Mamie, and her kids are adorable.
I like that this is pretty scaled-down for a major musical. There's some medium-sized numbers at Holiday Inn, but most of the focus is where it should be, on the four leads.
Favorite Number: Astaire has two jaw-dropping dance routines that may be among his most underrated. His drunk duet with Reynolds is hilarious (rumor has it he really got drunk to prepare for that scene). The "Say With Firecrackers" solo may have taken 38 takes to get right, but it's a marvel, with Fred casually twirling around those dropping noisemakers, cigarette in his mouth. Crosby tries get to Astaire's goat in the Washington's Birthday number, "I Cannot Tell a Lie." It's supposed to be romantic Colonial, but Crosby keeps playing hot jazz instead of minuets, and the other two have to try to keep up with him.
"White Christmas" is introduced in a charming, quiet scene early in the film that has Linda and Jim talking about the inn, their families, and what they hope for the future. It's lovely and sweet. Other standards introduced here include "Happy Holidays" and "You're Easy to Dance With."
Trivia: The calendar page that introduces the November sequence has a turkey running back and forth between the last two weeks, before finally shrugging in confusion. This is a reference to President Franklin D. Roosevelt changing the Thanksgiving holiday to a week earlier from 1939 to 1941. After that, Congress officially made Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November, no matter where it falls on the calendar.
Apparently, everyone involved thought the Valentine's Day song "Be Careful, It's My Heart" would be the big hit. While that one did do well and is relatively well-known, it's "White Christmas" that was the smash hit, became one of the biggest holiday standards ever, and took home the Oscar for best song for Berlin.
The name of the Holiday Inn hotel chain was inspired by this movie.
What I Don't Like: Let's talk about "Abraham." This is the big number for Lincoln's Birthday that has Jim getting Linda into blackface to avoid being found by Ted and Danny. Not only is the song the worst in the film, but while the lyrics mean well (especially the section performed by Beavers and the kids), they do come off as condescending and a bit racist today. The blackface doesn't help at all. The whole thing can be anywhere from awkward to downright offensive for many audiences today. (There's a reason this song was done as a random instrumental jazz duet for Vera-Ellen and one of the male dancers in White Christmas.)
The Big Finale: While White Christmas is fun, I really prefer this one. It has a note of intimacy that the shinier movie from a decade later lacks. Crosby's better here, too, and he pairs well with Astaire. Honestly, if you're a big fan of Crosby or "White Christmas," I recommend grabbing both movies and seeing which one you like better.
Home Media: As the movie that introduced one of the most beloved holiday standards of all time, this one is quite easy to find on most platforms, often for under ten dollars.
DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime
Reviews of musical films, from 1930s black and white to widescreen 21st century extravaganzas.
Tuesday, January 1, 2019
Saturday, December 29, 2018
Animation Celebration Double Feature - Fantasia & Fantasia 2000
We end 2018 with possibly the most unique movies you'll find at this blog. The original Fantasia was Walt Disney's most ambitious film, a blend of classical music and images that was unheard of in 1940. The movie has always been popular with critics, but didn't do well with audiences at the time; like Alice In Wonderland, it wasn't until the 60's and 70's that teens and college students made it a cult hit. Even with the boost from critics and animation nuts, it took 60 years for Disney to finally bring another round of music and images to the big screen. Are they worthy of the acclaim? Let's head to the concert hall to find out...
Fantasia
Disney, 1940
Hosted by Deems Taylor
Directed by Ben Sharpsteen, Hamilton Luske, and others
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach and others
The Story: There really isn't one. Instead, we get a series of shorts scored to pieces of classical music, many of which we'd today refer to as "music videos." Composer and music critic Deems Taylor introduces each segment.
Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor: One of Bach's most famous pieces opens the film, first with the live-action orchestra, then with a series of abstract images.
The Nutcracker Suite: Some of the most popular pieces from the Tchaikovsky ballet get a nature theme here, with fish, flowers, leaves, fairies, and mushrooms dancing, whirling, and leaping in time to the changing seasons.
The Sorcerer's Apprentice: Mickey Mouse's most beloved short has him as the title character, who uses his boss Yensid's hat to cast a spell on a broom that will make it carry water for him...only to nearly drown when the spell works too well and too many brooms overflow the room with gallons of water!
The Rite of Spring: Another ballet adaptation, this one to the once-shocking primitive music by Igor Stravinsky. The short depicts the beginning of Earth, from the first organisms to the end of the dinosaurs.
The Pastoral Symphony: Pegasus, unicorns, and male and female centaurs frolic at a festival for the Greek god of wine Bacchus, but Zeus and Hephaestus bring on a storm to spoil the party, set to the music of Beethoven.
Dance of the Hours: The third ballet adaptation is actually a spoof, turning Ponchielli's popular piece into a comedy where some of the most unlikely animals to ever sport toe shoes somehow manage to bring the house down...literally.
Night On Bald Mountain/Ave Maria: Mussorgsky's intense music kicks of the finale, showcasing Disney's most purely evil villain, the devil Chernabog and his minions. They're finally chased off by dawn, and a performance of Franz Schubert's religious choral number.
Animation: If you're a big fan of old-style hand-drawn animation, you'll likely find at least one thing to love here. From the frothy pastels of "The Pastoral Symphony" to the colorfully cartoony "Dance of the Hours" to Chernabog's entrance in "Bald Mountain," Disney threw everything he had into this one, and then some. Even the Mickey Mouse "Sorcerer's Apprentice" is far above the norm for one of Mickey's shorts, with wonderful details on the brooms and Mickey's dream sequence towards the end.
Favorite Number: Most people would cite "Rite of Spring" or "Bald Mountain," or even the charming "Sorcerer's Apprentice," but my two favorites are "The Nutcracker Suite" and "Dance of the Hours." Not only am I a big fan of the original Nutcracker ballet, but I love the soothing nature-themed animation Disney did here. The hopping Chinese mushrooms in particular are just too cute! "Dance of the Hours" is one of the funniest shorts Disney ever did. You won't see ostriches, elephants, hippos, and alligators perform ballet anywhere else, and it's hysterical.
Trivia: Disney wanted those lovely classical pieces to sound as pretty on the big screen as they do live, so he and his sound people collaborated with RCA to create the first full, multiple-audio-channels stereo system, which he called Fantasound.
The prints of Fantasia that are currently available on home media are of the original two-hour "roadshow" version. Or most of it, anyway. A few brief bits of an especially offensive black caricature in "The Pastoral Symphony" were snipped out after the late 60's and have never been restored. Disney also dubbed Deems Taylor's voice with Corey Burton when they couldn't find the original audio for his segments in 2000.
What I Don't Like: Deems Taylor's intros can be witty, but they also tend to explain the entire segment...and ruin the surprise for many of them. I think they should have just stuck to him saying what was coming next and then letting Leopold Stokowski and his orchestra and the animation do the talking.
This is kind of a mixed bag. I'm not the biggest dinosaur fan and find most of "Rite of Spring," despite the animation, to be dull. Likewise "The Pastoral Symphony" is cute but until Zeus shows up, there's not much going on.
The Big Finale: I'm going to go on to say that, while I like many of the segments, there's just as many that I'm not as fond of. I actually thinks this works better as a series of shorts than a movie, especially if you have younger kids who may get restless at some of the darker segments. Recommended seeing at least once in full for the gorgeous animation and sheer history involved.
Home Media: I'm afraid this is another Disney animated feature that's currently out of print and is commanding insane prices online. Your best bet may be to do what I did and check used venues like eBay or Goodwill.
DVD
Fantasia 2000
Disney, 2000
Hosted by Bette Midler, James Earl Jones, and others
Directed by Don Hahn, Eric Goldberg, and others
Music by Ludwig Van Beethoven and others
The Story: Once again, there's no real plot. Well-known celebrities of the late 90's introduce more segments based after popular pieces of classical music.
Symphony No. 5: Another abstract Beethoven opening, although this time we end with bats being chased out by light.
Pines of Rome: One of the more unusual shorts has a family of humpback whales who somehow have the ability to fly in this literally and figuratively soaring piece by Ottorino Respighi.
Rhapsody In Blue: George Gershwin's famous symphonic jazz concerto underscores a day in the life of several New York residents in the early 1920's, with animation inspired by the artwork of legendary caricaturist Al Hirschfeld.
Piano Concerto #2, Allegro, Opus 102: This retelling of "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" probably comes the closest of any of the segments in either movie to feeling more like a typical Disney film. A toy soldier falls in love with a ballerina doll, but an ugly jack-in-the-box wants the doll for himself.
The Carnival of the Animals: A super-short segment that depicts a goofy flamingo who is gets obsessed with a yo-yo while his friends try to get him to return to their duller routines.
The Sorcerer's Apprentice: The original Mickey Mouse short turned up here as well.
Pomp and Circumstance: No, this one has nothing to do with graduations. Donald Duck may be able to bring all of the animals to Noah's Ark, but he has a harder time finding his wife Daisy.
Firebird Suite - 1919 Version: We actually do get a Firebird here, a mythical creature who seemingly destroys a fairy and her forest home...but she manages to survive and bring rebirth to the land.
The Animation: Once again, there's some gorgeous work here. The use of color in "The Firebird Suite" is particularly outstanding, and "Pines of Rome," with it's majestic whales soaring in the clouds, is awe-inspiring. Even the Donald Duck "Pomp and Circumstance" is beautifully handled, well above any of his original shorts.
Favorite Number: As a huge Donald Duck fan, I thought "Pomp and Circumstance" was rather sweet (when you can get the images of high schoolers marching to get their diplomas out of your head). "Pines of Rome" is probably the most unique short Disney has ever done, and surprisingly touching too, especially in the finale. I also love jazz and of 20th century history and got a big kick out of the largely comic "Rhapsody In Blue."
Trivia: "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" had actually been storyboarded by Disney in the late 1930's, when Walt first considered doing a series of animated shorts based around Hans Christian Anderson stories. (Frozen and The Little Mermaid also saw their initial development around this time.)
Fantasia 2000 was the first animated film to be shown in the IMAX format.
What I Don't Like: The celebrity guests were even less necessary than Deems Taylor. Some, like Jones and Angela Landsbury, did muster the appropriate gravity for the occasion...but what on Earth were Steve Martin in "wild and crazy guy" mode and magicians Penn and Teller doing here? Their comedy clashed with the more solemn or whimsical tone of many of the segments.
"The Steadfast Tin Soldier" was Disney's first venture into full CGI on the big screen, and it hasn't dated well. The doll's stiff movements are appropriate for a toy, but the jack-in-the-box looks more weird than scary. And this is another Hans Christian Anderson story that Disney changed the ending to.
As much as I like the Donald segment, they might have chosen something slightly less well-known than "Circumstances." I'm probably not the only person who kept seeing diplomas during that segment instead of ducks.
The Big Finale: Same deal here. While not considered to be a masterpiece like the first one, there's enough here for families and animation fans to enjoy.
Home Media: Also out of print, also expensive online and hard to find elsewhere. Once again, try checking used venues.
DVD
Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 Special Edition DVD
Fantasia
Disney, 1940
Hosted by Deems Taylor
Directed by Ben Sharpsteen, Hamilton Luske, and others
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach and others
The Story: There really isn't one. Instead, we get a series of shorts scored to pieces of classical music, many of which we'd today refer to as "music videos." Composer and music critic Deems Taylor introduces each segment.
Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor: One of Bach's most famous pieces opens the film, first with the live-action orchestra, then with a series of abstract images.
The Nutcracker Suite: Some of the most popular pieces from the Tchaikovsky ballet get a nature theme here, with fish, flowers, leaves, fairies, and mushrooms dancing, whirling, and leaping in time to the changing seasons.
The Sorcerer's Apprentice: Mickey Mouse's most beloved short has him as the title character, who uses his boss Yensid's hat to cast a spell on a broom that will make it carry water for him...only to nearly drown when the spell works too well and too many brooms overflow the room with gallons of water!
The Rite of Spring: Another ballet adaptation, this one to the once-shocking primitive music by Igor Stravinsky. The short depicts the beginning of Earth, from the first organisms to the end of the dinosaurs.
The Pastoral Symphony: Pegasus, unicorns, and male and female centaurs frolic at a festival for the Greek god of wine Bacchus, but Zeus and Hephaestus bring on a storm to spoil the party, set to the music of Beethoven.
Dance of the Hours: The third ballet adaptation is actually a spoof, turning Ponchielli's popular piece into a comedy where some of the most unlikely animals to ever sport toe shoes somehow manage to bring the house down...literally.
Night On Bald Mountain/Ave Maria: Mussorgsky's intense music kicks of the finale, showcasing Disney's most purely evil villain, the devil Chernabog and his minions. They're finally chased off by dawn, and a performance of Franz Schubert's religious choral number.
Animation: If you're a big fan of old-style hand-drawn animation, you'll likely find at least one thing to love here. From the frothy pastels of "The Pastoral Symphony" to the colorfully cartoony "Dance of the Hours" to Chernabog's entrance in "Bald Mountain," Disney threw everything he had into this one, and then some. Even the Mickey Mouse "Sorcerer's Apprentice" is far above the norm for one of Mickey's shorts, with wonderful details on the brooms and Mickey's dream sequence towards the end.
Favorite Number: Most people would cite "Rite of Spring" or "Bald Mountain," or even the charming "Sorcerer's Apprentice," but my two favorites are "The Nutcracker Suite" and "Dance of the Hours." Not only am I a big fan of the original Nutcracker ballet, but I love the soothing nature-themed animation Disney did here. The hopping Chinese mushrooms in particular are just too cute! "Dance of the Hours" is one of the funniest shorts Disney ever did. You won't see ostriches, elephants, hippos, and alligators perform ballet anywhere else, and it's hysterical.
Trivia: Disney wanted those lovely classical pieces to sound as pretty on the big screen as they do live, so he and his sound people collaborated with RCA to create the first full, multiple-audio-channels stereo system, which he called Fantasound.
The prints of Fantasia that are currently available on home media are of the original two-hour "roadshow" version. Or most of it, anyway. A few brief bits of an especially offensive black caricature in "The Pastoral Symphony" were snipped out after the late 60's and have never been restored. Disney also dubbed Deems Taylor's voice with Corey Burton when they couldn't find the original audio for his segments in 2000.
What I Don't Like: Deems Taylor's intros can be witty, but they also tend to explain the entire segment...and ruin the surprise for many of them. I think they should have just stuck to him saying what was coming next and then letting Leopold Stokowski and his orchestra and the animation do the talking.
This is kind of a mixed bag. I'm not the biggest dinosaur fan and find most of "Rite of Spring," despite the animation, to be dull. Likewise "The Pastoral Symphony" is cute but until Zeus shows up, there's not much going on.
The Big Finale: I'm going to go on to say that, while I like many of the segments, there's just as many that I'm not as fond of. I actually thinks this works better as a series of shorts than a movie, especially if you have younger kids who may get restless at some of the darker segments. Recommended seeing at least once in full for the gorgeous animation and sheer history involved.
Home Media: I'm afraid this is another Disney animated feature that's currently out of print and is commanding insane prices online. Your best bet may be to do what I did and check used venues like eBay or Goodwill.
DVD
Fantasia 2000
Disney, 2000
Hosted by Bette Midler, James Earl Jones, and others
Directed by Don Hahn, Eric Goldberg, and others
Music by Ludwig Van Beethoven and others
The Story: Once again, there's no real plot. Well-known celebrities of the late 90's introduce more segments based after popular pieces of classical music.
Symphony No. 5: Another abstract Beethoven opening, although this time we end with bats being chased out by light.
Pines of Rome: One of the more unusual shorts has a family of humpback whales who somehow have the ability to fly in this literally and figuratively soaring piece by Ottorino Respighi.
Rhapsody In Blue: George Gershwin's famous symphonic jazz concerto underscores a day in the life of several New York residents in the early 1920's, with animation inspired by the artwork of legendary caricaturist Al Hirschfeld.
Piano Concerto #2, Allegro, Opus 102: This retelling of "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" probably comes the closest of any of the segments in either movie to feeling more like a typical Disney film. A toy soldier falls in love with a ballerina doll, but an ugly jack-in-the-box wants the doll for himself.
The Carnival of the Animals: A super-short segment that depicts a goofy flamingo who is gets obsessed with a yo-yo while his friends try to get him to return to their duller routines.
The Sorcerer's Apprentice: The original Mickey Mouse short turned up here as well.
Pomp and Circumstance: No, this one has nothing to do with graduations. Donald Duck may be able to bring all of the animals to Noah's Ark, but he has a harder time finding his wife Daisy.
Firebird Suite - 1919 Version: We actually do get a Firebird here, a mythical creature who seemingly destroys a fairy and her forest home...but she manages to survive and bring rebirth to the land.
The Animation: Once again, there's some gorgeous work here. The use of color in "The Firebird Suite" is particularly outstanding, and "Pines of Rome," with it's majestic whales soaring in the clouds, is awe-inspiring. Even the Donald Duck "Pomp and Circumstance" is beautifully handled, well above any of his original shorts.
Favorite Number: As a huge Donald Duck fan, I thought "Pomp and Circumstance" was rather sweet (when you can get the images of high schoolers marching to get their diplomas out of your head). "Pines of Rome" is probably the most unique short Disney has ever done, and surprisingly touching too, especially in the finale. I also love jazz and of 20th century history and got a big kick out of the largely comic "Rhapsody In Blue."
Trivia: "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" had actually been storyboarded by Disney in the late 1930's, when Walt first considered doing a series of animated shorts based around Hans Christian Anderson stories. (Frozen and The Little Mermaid also saw their initial development around this time.)
Fantasia 2000 was the first animated film to be shown in the IMAX format.
What I Don't Like: The celebrity guests were even less necessary than Deems Taylor. Some, like Jones and Angela Landsbury, did muster the appropriate gravity for the occasion...but what on Earth were Steve Martin in "wild and crazy guy" mode and magicians Penn and Teller doing here? Their comedy clashed with the more solemn or whimsical tone of many of the segments.
"The Steadfast Tin Soldier" was Disney's first venture into full CGI on the big screen, and it hasn't dated well. The doll's stiff movements are appropriate for a toy, but the jack-in-the-box looks more weird than scary. And this is another Hans Christian Anderson story that Disney changed the ending to.
As much as I like the Donald segment, they might have chosen something slightly less well-known than "Circumstances." I'm probably not the only person who kept seeing diplomas during that segment instead of ducks.
The Big Finale: Same deal here. While not considered to be a masterpiece like the first one, there's enough here for families and animation fans to enjoy.
Home Media: Also out of print, also expensive online and hard to find elsewhere. Once again, try checking used venues.
DVD
Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 Special Edition DVD
Thursday, December 27, 2018
The Greatest Showman
20th Century Fox, 2017
Starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, and Zendaya
Directed by Michael Gracey
Music and Lyrics by Benji Pasak and Justin Paul
This was the film that inspired me to create this blog. Several pre-teen and young teen girls I know raved about it, even calling it their favorite movie. I was surprised and delighted to hear people at such a young age giving rave reviews to a musical. When I was their age in the early-mid 90's, you would have gotten made fun of for admitting you liked a live-action movie musical. It got raves from some adults I talked to about it as well, especially for the music and Hugh Jackman's performance. Let's head to New York City in the 1840's to find out if this is really "The Greatest Show," or if it's as much of a fraud as Barnum's illusions...
The Story: PT Barnum (Jackman) starts off as a poor servant to a wealthy family just outside of New York. He falls in love with Charity, the daughter of the family, early. She goes away to finishing school, and he first sells newspapers to make his fortune, then joins the railroad. He returns his Charity (Williams) years later. They wed and raise two girls, Caroline (Austyn Johnson) and Helen (Cameron Seely). They live simply, but Barnum wants more.
After he loses his job as a shipping clerk, he takes out a loan to buy a building in New York and showcase unique waxworks. Business is slow, and Caroline suggests it's because the waxworks don't move. Taking this to heart, Barnum and his family hire "freaks" - unusual or deformed people with rare talents, like the bearded lady Lettie Lutz (Keala Settle), midget Tom Thumb (Sam Humphery), and 7-foot tall Vasily Palvos (Radu Spinghel) - and pull them together for what becomes New York's most popular circus. He even brings on young playwright Philip Caryle (Efron) as his partner.
A trip to England to meet Queen Victoria brings him in contact with Swedish singer Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson). Captivated by her beauty and stunning voice, he convinces her to join the show and becomes her manager. Meanwhile, Philip is having his own romantic misadventures. He wants to woo Anne, the show's trapeze artist (Zendaya), but she's African-American, and his stuffy family doesn't approve of the integrated paring. Charity has also discovered her husband's affair with Lind, and both woman walk out on him...just as protesters destroy the Museum. Barnum thinks he's through, but it takes his family of "freaks" to remind him that the show must go on, and while his illusions may be make believe, true love and friendship are as genuine as they come.
The Song and Dance: No wonder the kids loved this. It's an absolute blast. Jackman's on top of his game from start to finish. Efron, Williams, Zendaya, and Settle (who sings the movie's best-known song, "This Is Me") are also excellent. Special kudos to the wonderful costumes and art direction that ably recreate both the grimy New York of the mid-19th century and the spangle-and-glitter world of Barnum's Circus. There's more energy in this movie than there was in many of last year's bigger sci-fi extravaganzas.
Favorite Number: "This Is Me," Lettie's anthem to the protesters outside the Museum, won the Golden Globe for best song and got an Oscar nod. My favorite numbers are "Come Alive," where Barnum and his family hire their unusual performers, and the hit ballad "Rewrite the Stars" as Philip explains to Anne why their relationship can work...and Anne points out all the reasons it can't. The opening and closing number "The Greatest Show" has some great circus acts and wonderful choreography.
Trivia: A somewhat more historically-accurate musical retelling of PT Barnum's life, Barnum!, opened on Broadway in 1980. Jim Dale played PT; Glenn Close was his Charity. It's probably best-known for the recording of the 1982 West End version with Michael Crawford in the title role.
What I Don't Like: While the music soars, the plot remains flat. Critics took potshots at the historical inaccuracies from the moment this came out. We don't get to see Charity's early death and only two of their four daughters, Barnum's later career in politics, or the ill-fated venture into real estate that's really what ruined him in the 1850's. To this day, no one knows what caused the fire that destroyed Barnum's first museum, but it was likely due more to his pro-Union sympathies during the Civil War than any resentment towards the "freaks."
For all this movie's talk about diversity, it still focuses on the good-looking white guys. The movie falters in the second half when Barnum's rather dull affair with Lind and Philip's only somewhat more interesting relationship with Anne come into the spotlight. The real Barnum's life and career was a lot more interesting than that.
The Big Finale: The fate of this movie was much like that of Barnum's Circus. Critics didn't know what to make of it, but it eventually became a word-of-mouth hit during the 2017-2018 Christmas season. Put me in the latter camp. The problems with the cliched book are mostly overcome by the wonderful performances, delightful music, and the stylish production. If you haven't seen this one yet, do so, especially if you have pre-teens or young teens of your own who loved other recent musicals like Hamilton.
Home Media: As the most recent movie I've reviewed that's available on home media and a fair-sized hit, you can easily find this movie in pretty much any format of your choosing, both streaming and on disc.
DVD
Blu-Ray
4K
Amazon Prime (buy only)
Starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, and Zendaya
Directed by Michael Gracey
Music and Lyrics by Benji Pasak and Justin Paul
This was the film that inspired me to create this blog. Several pre-teen and young teen girls I know raved about it, even calling it their favorite movie. I was surprised and delighted to hear people at such a young age giving rave reviews to a musical. When I was their age in the early-mid 90's, you would have gotten made fun of for admitting you liked a live-action movie musical. It got raves from some adults I talked to about it as well, especially for the music and Hugh Jackman's performance. Let's head to New York City in the 1840's to find out if this is really "The Greatest Show," or if it's as much of a fraud as Barnum's illusions...
The Story: PT Barnum (Jackman) starts off as a poor servant to a wealthy family just outside of New York. He falls in love with Charity, the daughter of the family, early. She goes away to finishing school, and he first sells newspapers to make his fortune, then joins the railroad. He returns his Charity (Williams) years later. They wed and raise two girls, Caroline (Austyn Johnson) and Helen (Cameron Seely). They live simply, but Barnum wants more.
After he loses his job as a shipping clerk, he takes out a loan to buy a building in New York and showcase unique waxworks. Business is slow, and Caroline suggests it's because the waxworks don't move. Taking this to heart, Barnum and his family hire "freaks" - unusual or deformed people with rare talents, like the bearded lady Lettie Lutz (Keala Settle), midget Tom Thumb (Sam Humphery), and 7-foot tall Vasily Palvos (Radu Spinghel) - and pull them together for what becomes New York's most popular circus. He even brings on young playwright Philip Caryle (Efron) as his partner.
A trip to England to meet Queen Victoria brings him in contact with Swedish singer Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson). Captivated by her beauty and stunning voice, he convinces her to join the show and becomes her manager. Meanwhile, Philip is having his own romantic misadventures. He wants to woo Anne, the show's trapeze artist (Zendaya), but she's African-American, and his stuffy family doesn't approve of the integrated paring. Charity has also discovered her husband's affair with Lind, and both woman walk out on him...just as protesters destroy the Museum. Barnum thinks he's through, but it takes his family of "freaks" to remind him that the show must go on, and while his illusions may be make believe, true love and friendship are as genuine as they come.
The Song and Dance: No wonder the kids loved this. It's an absolute blast. Jackman's on top of his game from start to finish. Efron, Williams, Zendaya, and Settle (who sings the movie's best-known song, "This Is Me") are also excellent. Special kudos to the wonderful costumes and art direction that ably recreate both the grimy New York of the mid-19th century and the spangle-and-glitter world of Barnum's Circus. There's more energy in this movie than there was in many of last year's bigger sci-fi extravaganzas.
Favorite Number: "This Is Me," Lettie's anthem to the protesters outside the Museum, won the Golden Globe for best song and got an Oscar nod. My favorite numbers are "Come Alive," where Barnum and his family hire their unusual performers, and the hit ballad "Rewrite the Stars" as Philip explains to Anne why their relationship can work...and Anne points out all the reasons it can't. The opening and closing number "The Greatest Show" has some great circus acts and wonderful choreography.
Trivia: A somewhat more historically-accurate musical retelling of PT Barnum's life, Barnum!, opened on Broadway in 1980. Jim Dale played PT; Glenn Close was his Charity. It's probably best-known for the recording of the 1982 West End version with Michael Crawford in the title role.
What I Don't Like: While the music soars, the plot remains flat. Critics took potshots at the historical inaccuracies from the moment this came out. We don't get to see Charity's early death and only two of their four daughters, Barnum's later career in politics, or the ill-fated venture into real estate that's really what ruined him in the 1850's. To this day, no one knows what caused the fire that destroyed Barnum's first museum, but it was likely due more to his pro-Union sympathies during the Civil War than any resentment towards the "freaks."
For all this movie's talk about diversity, it still focuses on the good-looking white guys. The movie falters in the second half when Barnum's rather dull affair with Lind and Philip's only somewhat more interesting relationship with Anne come into the spotlight. The real Barnum's life and career was a lot more interesting than that.
The Big Finale: The fate of this movie was much like that of Barnum's Circus. Critics didn't know what to make of it, but it eventually became a word-of-mouth hit during the 2017-2018 Christmas season. Put me in the latter camp. The problems with the cliched book are mostly overcome by the wonderful performances, delightful music, and the stylish production. If you haven't seen this one yet, do so, especially if you have pre-teens or young teens of your own who loved other recent musicals like Hamilton.
Home Media: As the most recent movie I've reviewed that's available on home media and a fair-sized hit, you can easily find this movie in pretty much any format of your choosing, both streaming and on disc.
DVD
Blu-Ray
4K
Amazon Prime (buy only)
Tuesday, December 25, 2018
Magical Christmas Double Feature - Mary Poppins & Mary Poppins Returns
Merry Christmas! Once again, my original plans fell through...but this time, there's no scrambling for reviews. I saw the currently-in-theaters sequel to Mary Poppins in theaters with my sister this afternoon and decided that it was the perfect opportunity to revisit the original film as well. After all, Christmas is a time to reconnect with old friends and family as well as new ones. Oh, and if you haven't seen Mary Poppins Returns yet, you might want to wait until you see it to read the second review, as there will be spoilers. Now that we've gotten the warning out of the way, let's return to London, this time to #17 Cherry Tree Lane in 1910, just in time to witness a bit of chaos in the Banks family...
Mary Poppins
Disney, 1964
Starring Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, David Tomlinson, and Glynis Johns
Directed by Robert Stevenson
Music and Lyrics by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman
The Story: There's a bit of a row on Cherry Tree Lane. Jane (Karen Dotrice) and Michael (Matthew Garber) Banks have run off, and their Katie Nana (Elsa Lanchester) is quite tired of their antics and quits. After a local constable (Arthur Treacher) retrieves them, their stuffy banker father George (Tomlinson) decides to find them a new nanny. The kids have their own ideas and write an ad. Their mother Winifred (Johns) thinks it's sweet, but her husband insists that it's nonsense and throws it away. It manages to reform and end up in the clouds anyway.
The last person Mr. Banks expects to see at the door is Mary Poppins (Andrews), a stern but attractive young woman who takes firm command of the family the moment she enters. It seems that, despite her protests, "practically perfect" Mary can do all kinds of magic, from pulling an entire household out of her carpet bag to taking the kids into an animated chalk drawing with her chimney sweep friend Bert (Van Dyke). She even takes them to visit Bert's Uncle Albert (Ed Wynn), who flies when he laughs too hard.
Their father is aghast at all this lunacy and insists that a trip to the bank where he works is just the thing to return them to earth. The trip turns into a disaster and ends with the kids running out again. It takes a dance on the rooftop and the loss of his job for Mr. Banks to finally understand what Mary and Bert are trying to tell him...that his family means more to him than any bank job.
The Animation: The effects that blend live-action and animation are downright amazing for 1964, and still look good to this day. I've always especially loved the sequence with Bert dancing with the penguin waiters in unison. The animation itself, with the sketchy style of Disney at the time, is just ok, but the interaction between the actors and the animated characters still mostly works very well.
The Song and Dance: While coming off as a bit softer than the books, Andrews is still a wonderful Mary, especially during the animated sequence. Accent aside, Van Dyke more than matches her as energetic and lovable Bert. Tomlinson and Johns also do well as the Banks parents, who eventually discover just how important their children are, and Dotrice and Garber as fine as the kids.
One of my favorite parts of this are the beloved character actors who pop up in small parts. Along with Treacher, there's Reginald Owen as the ship-shape Admiral Boom and Jane Darwell in a cameo as the bird woman. The costumes and sets are also excellent, ably recreating the slightly grimy London of 1910.
Favorite Number: "Chim Chim Cheree" won the Oscar and "Supercalafragilisticexpealidotious" and "Jolly Holiday" are fun dance routines in the animated sequence, but for my money, the best numbers in this movie are the two slow songs. "Feed the Birds" is absolutely gorgeous, possibly the Sherman Brothers' best ballad. The sweet counter-psychology lullaby "Stay Awake" is almost as lovely. There's also the big ensemble number "Step In Time," with Bert and his buddies kicking up their heels all over the roof...only to be outdone by Mary.
Trivia: It took 20 years for Walt Disney to convince author PL Travers to let him make this movie, and she did indeed get script approval. She was one of the only people who disliked the film when it came out, and in fact was so offended by it, she wouldn't let anyone - including Disney - touch her books again until after she died.
That was David Tomlinson as the voice of Mary's talking parrot umbrella. Julie Andrews was the whistling robin in "A Spoonful of Sugar" and the female pearly singer in the animated sequence.
A stage musical version debuted in London's West End in 2004. It was a hit there and later on Broadway in 2006, and it sounds like a revival is gearing up for the West End next fall.
What I Don't Like: A lot of people complain about Dick Van Dyke's Cockney accent, but at least he tried for one. Ed Wynn just sounds like himself. While the animated sequence has dated pretty well, some of the other effects are a bit obvious today, including Mary Poppins coming and going. And yes, it is softened from the books. The stage musical and the sequel (see below) make more use of the darker edges in the book series.
The Big Finale: It may not be "practically perfect in every way," but it is still a lot of fun for families and fans of fantasy-oriented musicals or Andrews and Van Dyke
Home Media: I have the 45th anniversary 2-disc DVD set from 2009, but it was upgraded in 2013 to the 50th anniversary on Blu-Ray, and it can be found for streaming as well.
DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime (buy only)
Mary Poppins Returns
Disney, 2018
Starring Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, and Emily Mortimer
Directed by Ken Marshall
Music by Marc Shaiman; Lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman
The Story: It's now 1935, and Cherry Tree Lane is once again in chaos. Michael Banks (Whishaw) still lives in the family home with his three children Annabelle (Pixie Davies), John (Nathanel Saleh), and George (Joel Dawson). He was an artist, but after his wife Kate died, he gave up painting and got a job at the bank where his father once worked. Kate apparently took care of most things for the family, including the finances. He took out a loan on the house, and now William "Weatherall" Wilikins (Colin Firth), the nephew of original bank owner Mr. Dawes (Dick Van Dyke), wants to reposes it. His sister Jane, an activist and social worker, helps him take care of the children but has even less money. If they can't find stocks that Mr. Banks owned and sell them, they'll lose the house.
Mary Poppins (Blunt) literally blows in on the end of a kite. Jane and Michael have no problems welcoming her back. Jack (Miranda), a cheerful lamplighter and Bert's apprentice, is even happier to see her. The current Banks children are less pleased. They insist that they can take care of themselves and have no need of a nanny. Mary shows them otherwise when she takes them on an adventure during their baths, on a romp in a china bowl that turns into a nightmare, and into the bowels of London to visit her cousin Topsy (Meryl Streep), whose life is literally turned upside-down. She and Jack finally prove to the kids and their father and aunt that sometimes, all you need to do is look at life in a different way.
The Animation: Some of the biggest praise for the movie has been how they managed to match the animation up with the original, right down to it being 2D, rather than computer. I like how they managed to make it look like an actual porcelain bowl, including all the details on the humans' costumes being painted on, rather than real flounces and buttons and such.
The Song and Dance: Blunt makes a practically perfect Mary Poppins, maybe even better than Andrews. While she can still be kind, she's also vain and a bit of a snob, as per the original books. Miranda's having a ball as Jack, and Whishaw and Mortimer are adorable as the older Bankses. Look for some fun cameos from Van Dyke and Angela Landsbury in the finale. Firth makes an appropriately smarmy villain as well.
The scenery and costumes are just as gorgeous as the original. Everyone talks about the sequence in the china bowl, but my favorite sequence was their swimming adventure in the bathtub. The underwater effects in that sequence are incredible - and seem to be mostly done with the same 2D animation.
Favorite Number: Ironically, once again, the best song was a ballad, the touching "The Place Where Lost Things Go." (Having lost my own stepfather in October, I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried during the end of that song.) Miranda and his fellow lamplighters have a blast with the ensemble number "Trip a Little Light Fantastic." "Can You Imagine That?", the swimming sequence, and Mary and Jack's music-hall duet "A Cover Is Not a Book" are also a lot of fun.
What I Don't Like: Most critics have complained that it feels too much like a retread of the original. I thought it had enough twists and turns to avoid deja vu, but there was a lot of overlap - an animated sequence, Mary comes in after a kite flies, her buddy is a jack-of-all-trades menial worker with a bad Cockney accent, there's a big number with her and his friends and another one with a character actor known for their eccentric roles, an elderly banker ends up swooping in to save everything in the end.
The save the house plot did make for a bit more excitement than the original...but it also felt like it was trying a little too hard to be an action movie. As nifty as the finale on Big Ben was, it does feel like it loses the simplicity of the original.
The Big Finale: I'll have to see how I feel when it comes out on home media, but for now, I absolutely loved Mary Poppins Returns. The delightful performances, music, animation, and production design more than offset the complaints about the rehashed script. I highly recommend grabbing the kids or any friends who are musical fans and getting to the theater as soon as possible.
Home Media: The soundtrack can currently be found on CD and for streaming on Amazon and elsewhere.
CD
Amazon Music Unlimited
Mary Poppins
Disney, 1964
Starring Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, David Tomlinson, and Glynis Johns
Directed by Robert Stevenson
Music and Lyrics by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman
The Story: There's a bit of a row on Cherry Tree Lane. Jane (Karen Dotrice) and Michael (Matthew Garber) Banks have run off, and their Katie Nana (Elsa Lanchester) is quite tired of their antics and quits. After a local constable (Arthur Treacher) retrieves them, their stuffy banker father George (Tomlinson) decides to find them a new nanny. The kids have their own ideas and write an ad. Their mother Winifred (Johns) thinks it's sweet, but her husband insists that it's nonsense and throws it away. It manages to reform and end up in the clouds anyway.
The last person Mr. Banks expects to see at the door is Mary Poppins (Andrews), a stern but attractive young woman who takes firm command of the family the moment she enters. It seems that, despite her protests, "practically perfect" Mary can do all kinds of magic, from pulling an entire household out of her carpet bag to taking the kids into an animated chalk drawing with her chimney sweep friend Bert (Van Dyke). She even takes them to visit Bert's Uncle Albert (Ed Wynn), who flies when he laughs too hard.
Their father is aghast at all this lunacy and insists that a trip to the bank where he works is just the thing to return them to earth. The trip turns into a disaster and ends with the kids running out again. It takes a dance on the rooftop and the loss of his job for Mr. Banks to finally understand what Mary and Bert are trying to tell him...that his family means more to him than any bank job.
The Animation: The effects that blend live-action and animation are downright amazing for 1964, and still look good to this day. I've always especially loved the sequence with Bert dancing with the penguin waiters in unison. The animation itself, with the sketchy style of Disney at the time, is just ok, but the interaction between the actors and the animated characters still mostly works very well.
The Song and Dance: While coming off as a bit softer than the books, Andrews is still a wonderful Mary, especially during the animated sequence. Accent aside, Van Dyke more than matches her as energetic and lovable Bert. Tomlinson and Johns also do well as the Banks parents, who eventually discover just how important their children are, and Dotrice and Garber as fine as the kids.
One of my favorite parts of this are the beloved character actors who pop up in small parts. Along with Treacher, there's Reginald Owen as the ship-shape Admiral Boom and Jane Darwell in a cameo as the bird woman. The costumes and sets are also excellent, ably recreating the slightly grimy London of 1910.
Favorite Number: "Chim Chim Cheree" won the Oscar and "Supercalafragilisticexpealidotious" and "Jolly Holiday" are fun dance routines in the animated sequence, but for my money, the best numbers in this movie are the two slow songs. "Feed the Birds" is absolutely gorgeous, possibly the Sherman Brothers' best ballad. The sweet counter-psychology lullaby "Stay Awake" is almost as lovely. There's also the big ensemble number "Step In Time," with Bert and his buddies kicking up their heels all over the roof...only to be outdone by Mary.
Trivia: It took 20 years for Walt Disney to convince author PL Travers to let him make this movie, and she did indeed get script approval. She was one of the only people who disliked the film when it came out, and in fact was so offended by it, she wouldn't let anyone - including Disney - touch her books again until after she died.
That was David Tomlinson as the voice of Mary's talking parrot umbrella. Julie Andrews was the whistling robin in "A Spoonful of Sugar" and the female pearly singer in the animated sequence.
A stage musical version debuted in London's West End in 2004. It was a hit there and later on Broadway in 2006, and it sounds like a revival is gearing up for the West End next fall.
What I Don't Like: A lot of people complain about Dick Van Dyke's Cockney accent, but at least he tried for one. Ed Wynn just sounds like himself. While the animated sequence has dated pretty well, some of the other effects are a bit obvious today, including Mary Poppins coming and going. And yes, it is softened from the books. The stage musical and the sequel (see below) make more use of the darker edges in the book series.
The Big Finale: It may not be "practically perfect in every way," but it is still a lot of fun for families and fans of fantasy-oriented musicals or Andrews and Van Dyke
Home Media: I have the 45th anniversary 2-disc DVD set from 2009, but it was upgraded in 2013 to the 50th anniversary on Blu-Ray, and it can be found for streaming as well.
DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime (buy only)
Mary Poppins Returns
Disney, 2018
Starring Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, and Emily Mortimer
Directed by Ken Marshall
Music by Marc Shaiman; Lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman
The Story: It's now 1935, and Cherry Tree Lane is once again in chaos. Michael Banks (Whishaw) still lives in the family home with his three children Annabelle (Pixie Davies), John (Nathanel Saleh), and George (Joel Dawson). He was an artist, but after his wife Kate died, he gave up painting and got a job at the bank where his father once worked. Kate apparently took care of most things for the family, including the finances. He took out a loan on the house, and now William "Weatherall" Wilikins (Colin Firth), the nephew of original bank owner Mr. Dawes (Dick Van Dyke), wants to reposes it. His sister Jane, an activist and social worker, helps him take care of the children but has even less money. If they can't find stocks that Mr. Banks owned and sell them, they'll lose the house.
Mary Poppins (Blunt) literally blows in on the end of a kite. Jane and Michael have no problems welcoming her back. Jack (Miranda), a cheerful lamplighter and Bert's apprentice, is even happier to see her. The current Banks children are less pleased. They insist that they can take care of themselves and have no need of a nanny. Mary shows them otherwise when she takes them on an adventure during their baths, on a romp in a china bowl that turns into a nightmare, and into the bowels of London to visit her cousin Topsy (Meryl Streep), whose life is literally turned upside-down. She and Jack finally prove to the kids and their father and aunt that sometimes, all you need to do is look at life in a different way.
The Animation: Some of the biggest praise for the movie has been how they managed to match the animation up with the original, right down to it being 2D, rather than computer. I like how they managed to make it look like an actual porcelain bowl, including all the details on the humans' costumes being painted on, rather than real flounces and buttons and such.
The Song and Dance: Blunt makes a practically perfect Mary Poppins, maybe even better than Andrews. While she can still be kind, she's also vain and a bit of a snob, as per the original books. Miranda's having a ball as Jack, and Whishaw and Mortimer are adorable as the older Bankses. Look for some fun cameos from Van Dyke and Angela Landsbury in the finale. Firth makes an appropriately smarmy villain as well.
The scenery and costumes are just as gorgeous as the original. Everyone talks about the sequence in the china bowl, but my favorite sequence was their swimming adventure in the bathtub. The underwater effects in that sequence are incredible - and seem to be mostly done with the same 2D animation.
Favorite Number: Ironically, once again, the best song was a ballad, the touching "The Place Where Lost Things Go." (Having lost my own stepfather in October, I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried during the end of that song.) Miranda and his fellow lamplighters have a blast with the ensemble number "Trip a Little Light Fantastic." "Can You Imagine That?", the swimming sequence, and Mary and Jack's music-hall duet "A Cover Is Not a Book" are also a lot of fun.
What I Don't Like: Most critics have complained that it feels too much like a retread of the original. I thought it had enough twists and turns to avoid deja vu, but there was a lot of overlap - an animated sequence, Mary comes in after a kite flies, her buddy is a jack-of-all-trades menial worker with a bad Cockney accent, there's a big number with her and his friends and another one with a character actor known for their eccentric roles, an elderly banker ends up swooping in to save everything in the end.
The save the house plot did make for a bit more excitement than the original...but it also felt like it was trying a little too hard to be an action movie. As nifty as the finale on Big Ben was, it does feel like it loses the simplicity of the original.
The Big Finale: I'll have to see how I feel when it comes out on home media, but for now, I absolutely loved Mary Poppins Returns. The delightful performances, music, animation, and production design more than offset the complaints about the rehashed script. I highly recommend grabbing the kids or any friends who are musical fans and getting to the theater as soon as possible.
Home Media: The soundtrack can currently be found on CD and for streaming on Amazon and elsewhere.
CD
Amazon Music Unlimited
Saturday, December 22, 2018
Animation Celebration Saturday - Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas
Disney, 1997
Starring Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, Tim Curry, and Bernadette Peters
Directed by Andy Knight
Music by Rachel Portman; Lyrics by Don Black
Yes, this is why I didn't review this follow-up to the massively popular Beauty and the Beast as a double-feature with the original, like I did with Pocahontas and The Little Mermaid. I couldn't resist saving it for closer to the holiday. If there was ever a Disney movie that was a tough act to follow, Beauty is it. It was one of the biggest hit movies of the early 90's, and is one of three animated movies to date to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. How does the first sequel compare? Let's return to the castle of the Beast, this time in late December, and find out...
The Story: The bulk of this one is set during Belle's (O'Hara) time at the castle, when she and the Beast (Benson) were just starting to warm up to each other. The Beast is set against anyone celebrating Christmas. Belle thinks otherwise. Christmas is just the thing that the residents of the castle need to give them hope. What she doesn't know is that the Beast was transformed into a monster on Christmas Eve, and it understandably soured him on the holiday. She's determined to celebrate anyway, whether he likes it or not.
Meanwhile, Forte (Curry), a dour organ, is equally determined to keep his hold on the Beast. He'd rather remain an object and have the Beast notice him and his dull and dark songs than be ignored again. He convinces a piccolo (Paul Reubens) to first sabotage their efforts to cheer up the Beast, then snitch when Belle leaves the castle to get a tree. Not to mention, the castle decorator, Angelique (Peters), thinks they'll all just be disappointed again. It takes a gift from Belle to show the Beast what hope is really all about and convince him to rethink his stance on the holiday season.
The Animation: A real mixed bag. Some of it isn't bad for a direct-to-DVD feature. More effort was put into this than Little Mermaid II or Pocahontas II, especially the first version of "As Long as There's Christmas," with the objects stacked via computer effects to resemble a tree. Most of the other CGI effects look as cheap as they likely are. Doing Forte entirely in CGI hasn't dated well at all. It looks obvious and clashes badly with the hand-drawn animation in most of the remainder of the film.
The Song and Dance: There's more to enjoy here than you might think. Not only did they bring back most of the original cast of the first movie, but we also have Peters (who gets to sing a nice duet on "As Long as There's Christmas" with O'Hara) and Curry, the later digging into his role as the selfish organ with relish. Jeff Bennett gets some funny moments as a Yiddish ax who chops wood to heat the castle.
Favorite Number: While the two versions of "As Long as It's Christmas" are lovely, my favorite song from this one is "Stories." Belle sings this salute to the adventures a good story can take us on to Chip as she writes and illustrates a book for the Beast. Not only is the animation depicting the book as she creates it gorgeous (and pretty accurate to many fairy-tale anthologies), but as a fellow book-lover and writer, the message of the song really hits a deep chord with me.
What I Don't Like: Unfortunately, like Little Mermaid, this is pretty much a rehash of the first film with a weaker villain. Curry's performance does make Forte a cut above Morgana from Mermaid, but he still can't compare to Gaston and his outrageously over-the-top masculinity. Other than the "Christmas" duet, Peters is barely in the movie. Bennett's ax has some good lines, but he's also a bit of a Jewish stereotype and may annoy some folks and offend others. Other than "Christmas" and "Stories," the music is dull and flat; Curry's "Don't Fall In Love" is especially disappointing.
The Big Finale: For all it's problems, I will admit this has become a guilty pleasure of mine since I picked it up on DVD about a decade ago. It's definitely one of the better direct-to-home-media Disney movies of the 90's and early 2000's. If you have fans of Beauty and the Beast around or are looking for a fun movie to show your elementary-school-age kids during Christmas break, you can do a lot worse than this. (It's a bit dark for really the really young guys.)
Home Media: It looks like the Blu-Ray/DVD combo is out of print at press time; your best bet here may be the rather nice DVD set or streaming services like Amazon Prime.
DVD
Amazon Prime (buy only)
Starring Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, Tim Curry, and Bernadette Peters
Directed by Andy Knight
Music by Rachel Portman; Lyrics by Don Black
Yes, this is why I didn't review this follow-up to the massively popular Beauty and the Beast as a double-feature with the original, like I did with Pocahontas and The Little Mermaid. I couldn't resist saving it for closer to the holiday. If there was ever a Disney movie that was a tough act to follow, Beauty is it. It was one of the biggest hit movies of the early 90's, and is one of three animated movies to date to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. How does the first sequel compare? Let's return to the castle of the Beast, this time in late December, and find out...
The Story: The bulk of this one is set during Belle's (O'Hara) time at the castle, when she and the Beast (Benson) were just starting to warm up to each other. The Beast is set against anyone celebrating Christmas. Belle thinks otherwise. Christmas is just the thing that the residents of the castle need to give them hope. What she doesn't know is that the Beast was transformed into a monster on Christmas Eve, and it understandably soured him on the holiday. She's determined to celebrate anyway, whether he likes it or not.
Meanwhile, Forte (Curry), a dour organ, is equally determined to keep his hold on the Beast. He'd rather remain an object and have the Beast notice him and his dull and dark songs than be ignored again. He convinces a piccolo (Paul Reubens) to first sabotage their efforts to cheer up the Beast, then snitch when Belle leaves the castle to get a tree. Not to mention, the castle decorator, Angelique (Peters), thinks they'll all just be disappointed again. It takes a gift from Belle to show the Beast what hope is really all about and convince him to rethink his stance on the holiday season.
The Animation: A real mixed bag. Some of it isn't bad for a direct-to-DVD feature. More effort was put into this than Little Mermaid II or Pocahontas II, especially the first version of "As Long as There's Christmas," with the objects stacked via computer effects to resemble a tree. Most of the other CGI effects look as cheap as they likely are. Doing Forte entirely in CGI hasn't dated well at all. It looks obvious and clashes badly with the hand-drawn animation in most of the remainder of the film.
The Song and Dance: There's more to enjoy here than you might think. Not only did they bring back most of the original cast of the first movie, but we also have Peters (who gets to sing a nice duet on "As Long as There's Christmas" with O'Hara) and Curry, the later digging into his role as the selfish organ with relish. Jeff Bennett gets some funny moments as a Yiddish ax who chops wood to heat the castle.
Favorite Number: While the two versions of "As Long as It's Christmas" are lovely, my favorite song from this one is "Stories." Belle sings this salute to the adventures a good story can take us on to Chip as she writes and illustrates a book for the Beast. Not only is the animation depicting the book as she creates it gorgeous (and pretty accurate to many fairy-tale anthologies), but as a fellow book-lover and writer, the message of the song really hits a deep chord with me.
What I Don't Like: Unfortunately, like Little Mermaid, this is pretty much a rehash of the first film with a weaker villain. Curry's performance does make Forte a cut above Morgana from Mermaid, but he still can't compare to Gaston and his outrageously over-the-top masculinity. Other than the "Christmas" duet, Peters is barely in the movie. Bennett's ax has some good lines, but he's also a bit of a Jewish stereotype and may annoy some folks and offend others. Other than "Christmas" and "Stories," the music is dull and flat; Curry's "Don't Fall In Love" is especially disappointing.
The Big Finale: For all it's problems, I will admit this has become a guilty pleasure of mine since I picked it up on DVD about a decade ago. It's definitely one of the better direct-to-home-media Disney movies of the 90's and early 2000's. If you have fans of Beauty and the Beast around or are looking for a fun movie to show your elementary-school-age kids during Christmas break, you can do a lot worse than this. (It's a bit dark for really the really young guys.)
Home Media: It looks like the Blu-Ray/DVD combo is out of print at press time; your best bet here may be the rather nice DVD set or streaming services like Amazon Prime.
DVD
Amazon Prime (buy only)
Thursday, December 20, 2018
Scrooge (1970)
Paramount, 1970
Starring Albert Finney, Sir Alec Guinness, David Collings, and Dame Edith Evans
Directed by Ronald Neame
Music and Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse
We're returning to the Christmas Carol well one more time for this retelling from the early 70's. I remember seeing this one frequently on cable and independent stations throughout the holiday season during my childhood. Does it live up to those fond memories? Let's once again return to London and Scrooge's counting house to find out...
The Story: Ebeneezer Scrooge (Finney) is the meanest, stingiest man in all London. He's so mean, every street kid in the area either avoids him or mocks him. He won't give one cent to the poor, refuses to go to his nephew Fred's (Michael Medwin) Christmas dinner, and has to be coerced into giving his clerk Bob Cratchit (Collings) the holiday off. He thinks he's the smartest, quietest guy around, and it's everyone else who is a problem. His late partner Jacob Marley (Guinness) would disagree. He shows up in chains and insists that Scrooge has to change, or his chains will be even heavier. Scrooge follows the Ghost of Christmas Past (Evans), Present (Kenneth More), and Future (Paddy Stone) as they show him how he came to be the way he is, what he's missing by being so miserly...and what will happen to him if he doesn't reform in the years to come.
The Song and Dance: You'd think Finney would be out-of-place as Scrooge. He was only in his 30's when he made this movie, at the tail end of his swinging Tom Jones popularity. He's actually not bad, especially in the beginning when he's being a grouchy old jerk. More makes a particularly robust Ghost of Christmas Present, and Collings is charming Cratchit. The period-accurate costumes and sets add a lot to the story's authenticity - they were Oscar-nominated. There's some surprisingly decent special effects for the time period as well, especially when they show the older and younger Finney together during the past sequence.
Favorite Number: The catchy "Thank You Very Much," performed by the street kids in the Future segment to celebrate Scrooge's demise, also got an Oscar nomination and is probably the film's best song. I also like "Christmas Children" for Bob and his kids as they shop for their goose, "December the 25th" for the Fezziwigs at their party, and The Ghost of Christmas Present's philosophy "I Like Life."
Trivia: This is another holiday movie musical with a stage version, though it seems to have mainly played in England. Tommy Steele starred in the most recent revival in 2012.
What I Don't Like: While Dame Edith Evans was a decent Ghost of Christmas Past, why was she dressed like a normal old woman in a Victorian gown? They couldn't pull off the effects to make her look more like the ethereal light ghost in the book?
Was it really necessary to have Scrooge end up in literal hell in the end? The sequence down below seems more like filler and them trying to give Guinness more to do than any real necessity to the plot. It was strange when Disney did it in Mickey's Christmas Carol, and it's even weirder here.
The Big Finale: The nitpicks with the weird finale and Evans aside, this may be my favorite musical version of A Christmas Carol. Finney and a delightful cast have a lot of fun with one of Leslie Bricusse's best solo scores.
Home Media: For some reason, Paramount's current Blu-Ray version doesn't come with the film's overture that can be found on my DVD, and it's not seen on most streaming platforms, either. Otherwise, this is fairly easy to find, usually for under ten dollars.
DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime
Starring Albert Finney, Sir Alec Guinness, David Collings, and Dame Edith Evans
Directed by Ronald Neame
Music and Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse
We're returning to the Christmas Carol well one more time for this retelling from the early 70's. I remember seeing this one frequently on cable and independent stations throughout the holiday season during my childhood. Does it live up to those fond memories? Let's once again return to London and Scrooge's counting house to find out...
The Story: Ebeneezer Scrooge (Finney) is the meanest, stingiest man in all London. He's so mean, every street kid in the area either avoids him or mocks him. He won't give one cent to the poor, refuses to go to his nephew Fred's (Michael Medwin) Christmas dinner, and has to be coerced into giving his clerk Bob Cratchit (Collings) the holiday off. He thinks he's the smartest, quietest guy around, and it's everyone else who is a problem. His late partner Jacob Marley (Guinness) would disagree. He shows up in chains and insists that Scrooge has to change, or his chains will be even heavier. Scrooge follows the Ghost of Christmas Past (Evans), Present (Kenneth More), and Future (Paddy Stone) as they show him how he came to be the way he is, what he's missing by being so miserly...and what will happen to him if he doesn't reform in the years to come.
The Song and Dance: You'd think Finney would be out-of-place as Scrooge. He was only in his 30's when he made this movie, at the tail end of his swinging Tom Jones popularity. He's actually not bad, especially in the beginning when he's being a grouchy old jerk. More makes a particularly robust Ghost of Christmas Present, and Collings is charming Cratchit. The period-accurate costumes and sets add a lot to the story's authenticity - they were Oscar-nominated. There's some surprisingly decent special effects for the time period as well, especially when they show the older and younger Finney together during the past sequence.
Favorite Number: The catchy "Thank You Very Much," performed by the street kids in the Future segment to celebrate Scrooge's demise, also got an Oscar nomination and is probably the film's best song. I also like "Christmas Children" for Bob and his kids as they shop for their goose, "December the 25th" for the Fezziwigs at their party, and The Ghost of Christmas Present's philosophy "I Like Life."
Trivia: This is another holiday movie musical with a stage version, though it seems to have mainly played in England. Tommy Steele starred in the most recent revival in 2012.
What I Don't Like: While Dame Edith Evans was a decent Ghost of Christmas Past, why was she dressed like a normal old woman in a Victorian gown? They couldn't pull off the effects to make her look more like the ethereal light ghost in the book?
Was it really necessary to have Scrooge end up in literal hell in the end? The sequence down below seems more like filler and them trying to give Guinness more to do than any real necessity to the plot. It was strange when Disney did it in Mickey's Christmas Carol, and it's even weirder here.
The Big Finale: The nitpicks with the weird finale and Evans aside, this may be my favorite musical version of A Christmas Carol. Finney and a delightful cast have a lot of fun with one of Leslie Bricusse's best solo scores.
Home Media: For some reason, Paramount's current Blu-Ray version doesn't come with the film's overture that can be found on my DVD, and it's not seen on most streaming platforms, either. Otherwise, this is fairly easy to find, usually for under ten dollars.
DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime
Tuesday, December 18, 2018
White Christmas
Paramount, 1954
Starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen, and Rosemary Clooney
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
This one comes partially by request by frequent reader "Spike"...and partially because it's one of, if not the most beloved of all Christmas musicals. It runs constantly on cable during the holidays, especially on American Movie Classics, and has become a huge favorite of many musical lovers. It was even made into a stage musical in 2004. Does the film hold up as well as it did when it was the biggest hit movie of 1954? Let's head to a World War II Army camp to find out...
The Story: Bob Wallace (Crosby) and Phil Davis (Kaye) meet during World War II when Phil saves Bob's life from a falling building during a show they put on for the outgoing General Waverly (Dean Jagger). Davis convinces Wallace to become his partner. They go on to have a huge act in the post-war era, eventually becoming Broadway producers.
By the mid-50's, Phil is tired of Bob's workaholic tendencies and is trying to pressure him into getting married. He's not buying it, until they meet the beautiful Haynes sisters at a Florida club. Elder sister Betty (Clooney) is sensible and steady; her younger sister Judy (Vera-Ellen) is more spontaneous. Phil sees that his friend is eyeing Betty and tries pushing them together. He even pays for the girls' tickets out of town when the sheriff comes after them. Bob's not happy about that at first, until the girls thank them for it. Phil even manages to talk him into following the ladies to Vermont.
Betty and Judy have a gig at a small New England inn, but they may not be able to keep it at first. The inn isn't doing well. Vermont hasn't had snow in weeks. Not only that, but the inn is run by none other than the former General Waverly, who sunk everything he had into buying and remodeling it. Bob and Phil first help by bringing their Broadway show to the in to draw customers. After Bob sees how upset Waverly is when he's turned down for a military commission, he comes up with a plan to make him feel like he's wanted. Bob's not as lucky with Betty, who leaves when she thinks he's using the General to get ratings. He's hoping he can get her back...right in time for the title song to come true...
The Song and Dance: The music, colorful widescreen cinematography, and some fine performances carry the day here. The four leads absolutely glow in their numbers, especially in the more upbeat first half. Kaye in particular is having a ball as the goofier half of the partnership, and pairs well with spunky Vera-Ellen. The Technicolor and VistaVision widescreen cinematography is spectacular. As beautiful as the real Vermont is, it never shown quite like this, in rainbow colors that make it look more like Oz than Montpelier.
Favorite Number: The two versions of "Sisters," both with the girls and the spoof routine with the guys, are hilarious must-sees. Kaye is having the time of his life in the guys' version, and his enthusiasm eventually spreads to Crosby as well. Minstrel shows aren't highly regarded today, but the Minstrel Medley that features the old Berlin revue hit "Mandy" and a few corny jokes (not to mention some odd color choices) is so lively and enjoyable that you can mostly overlook the dated origins. Kaye gets to show off his own fine dancing abilities in his duet with Vera-Ellen, "The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing."
The movie's best number occurs right in the first five minutes. Bing performs "White Christmas" while accompanied by nothing but a tinkling music box and bombs falling in the distance. It's a truly touching moment, and probably my favorite part of the movie.
Trivia: The movie was originally intended to be a reunion between Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire after the success of Holiday Inn and Blue Skies in the 40's, but Astaire declined the role. His replacement Donald O'Connor got sick and had to drop out as well. Danny Kaye eventually filled in.
The photo that Bob shows Phil of "Freckle Faced Haynes, the Dog-Faced Boy" is actually of Carl Switzer, the original Alfalfa on the Our Gang/Little Rascals shorts.
Two of the songs that debut here were actually written for other projects. "What Can You Do With a General?" was intended for the unproduced Stars On My Shoulders, while "Snow" was originally titled "Free" and had been cut from the Ethel Merman stage show Call Me Madam.
"Count Your Blessings" was nominated for an Oscar in 1955, but lost to the title song from Three Coins In the Fountain. It would be Irving Berlin's last song nomination.
What I Don't Like: It's the second half where things falter. The whole fuss between Betty and Bob could have been settled by just talking like sensible people without her taking off. She should have asked Bob for the whole facts, rather than jumping to conclusions and assuming he was going to use the General for ratings. (Especially given that she was well aware that Emma wasn't the most reliable source of information.) The musical number "Choreography," with its weird, stylized dance moves intended to parody the dancers-turned-directors of the 40's and 50's, is a dated oddity that's doesn't really fit in with the film's more nostalgic or comic tunes.
The Big Finale: I personally prefer the earlier, less elaborate Crosby movie Holiday Inn, but this one certainly has many charms of its own. A terrific cast sings some mostly great Irving Berlin music backed by some of the most colorful cinematography of the 1950's. No wonder this has become a favorite of many during the holidays. Even with the duller second half, it's still highly recommended.
Home Media: I have the original 2009 DVD release, but it's been upgraded at least twice since then. The current version can be found on its own as a DVD or Blu-Ray or paired with It's a Wonderful Life (another popular holiday classic that Paramount currently owns) on DVD, as well as on most streaming platforms.
DVD
Blu-Ray
DVD - Classic Christmas Collection 2-Pack (with It's a Wonderful Life)
Amazon Prime
Starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen, and Rosemary Clooney
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
This one comes partially by request by frequent reader "Spike"...and partially because it's one of, if not the most beloved of all Christmas musicals. It runs constantly on cable during the holidays, especially on American Movie Classics, and has become a huge favorite of many musical lovers. It was even made into a stage musical in 2004. Does the film hold up as well as it did when it was the biggest hit movie of 1954? Let's head to a World War II Army camp to find out...
The Story: Bob Wallace (Crosby) and Phil Davis (Kaye) meet during World War II when Phil saves Bob's life from a falling building during a show they put on for the outgoing General Waverly (Dean Jagger). Davis convinces Wallace to become his partner. They go on to have a huge act in the post-war era, eventually becoming Broadway producers.
By the mid-50's, Phil is tired of Bob's workaholic tendencies and is trying to pressure him into getting married. He's not buying it, until they meet the beautiful Haynes sisters at a Florida club. Elder sister Betty (Clooney) is sensible and steady; her younger sister Judy (Vera-Ellen) is more spontaneous. Phil sees that his friend is eyeing Betty and tries pushing them together. He even pays for the girls' tickets out of town when the sheriff comes after them. Bob's not happy about that at first, until the girls thank them for it. Phil even manages to talk him into following the ladies to Vermont.
Betty and Judy have a gig at a small New England inn, but they may not be able to keep it at first. The inn isn't doing well. Vermont hasn't had snow in weeks. Not only that, but the inn is run by none other than the former General Waverly, who sunk everything he had into buying and remodeling it. Bob and Phil first help by bringing their Broadway show to the in to draw customers. After Bob sees how upset Waverly is when he's turned down for a military commission, he comes up with a plan to make him feel like he's wanted. Bob's not as lucky with Betty, who leaves when she thinks he's using the General to get ratings. He's hoping he can get her back...right in time for the title song to come true...
The Song and Dance: The music, colorful widescreen cinematography, and some fine performances carry the day here. The four leads absolutely glow in their numbers, especially in the more upbeat first half. Kaye in particular is having a ball as the goofier half of the partnership, and pairs well with spunky Vera-Ellen. The Technicolor and VistaVision widescreen cinematography is spectacular. As beautiful as the real Vermont is, it never shown quite like this, in rainbow colors that make it look more like Oz than Montpelier.
Favorite Number: The two versions of "Sisters," both with the girls and the spoof routine with the guys, are hilarious must-sees. Kaye is having the time of his life in the guys' version, and his enthusiasm eventually spreads to Crosby as well. Minstrel shows aren't highly regarded today, but the Minstrel Medley that features the old Berlin revue hit "Mandy" and a few corny jokes (not to mention some odd color choices) is so lively and enjoyable that you can mostly overlook the dated origins. Kaye gets to show off his own fine dancing abilities in his duet with Vera-Ellen, "The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing."
The movie's best number occurs right in the first five minutes. Bing performs "White Christmas" while accompanied by nothing but a tinkling music box and bombs falling in the distance. It's a truly touching moment, and probably my favorite part of the movie.
Trivia: The movie was originally intended to be a reunion between Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire after the success of Holiday Inn and Blue Skies in the 40's, but Astaire declined the role. His replacement Donald O'Connor got sick and had to drop out as well. Danny Kaye eventually filled in.
The photo that Bob shows Phil of "Freckle Faced Haynes, the Dog-Faced Boy" is actually of Carl Switzer, the original Alfalfa on the Our Gang/Little Rascals shorts.
Two of the songs that debut here were actually written for other projects. "What Can You Do With a General?" was intended for the unproduced Stars On My Shoulders, while "Snow" was originally titled "Free" and had been cut from the Ethel Merman stage show Call Me Madam.
"Count Your Blessings" was nominated for an Oscar in 1955, but lost to the title song from Three Coins In the Fountain. It would be Irving Berlin's last song nomination.
What I Don't Like: It's the second half where things falter. The whole fuss between Betty and Bob could have been settled by just talking like sensible people without her taking off. She should have asked Bob for the whole facts, rather than jumping to conclusions and assuming he was going to use the General for ratings. (Especially given that she was well aware that Emma wasn't the most reliable source of information.) The musical number "Choreography," with its weird, stylized dance moves intended to parody the dancers-turned-directors of the 40's and 50's, is a dated oddity that's doesn't really fit in with the film's more nostalgic or comic tunes.
The Big Finale: I personally prefer the earlier, less elaborate Crosby movie Holiday Inn, but this one certainly has many charms of its own. A terrific cast sings some mostly great Irving Berlin music backed by some of the most colorful cinematography of the 1950's. No wonder this has become a favorite of many during the holidays. Even with the duller second half, it's still highly recommended.
Home Media: I have the original 2009 DVD release, but it's been upgraded at least twice since then. The current version can be found on its own as a DVD or Blu-Ray or paired with It's a Wonderful Life (another popular holiday classic that Paramount currently owns) on DVD, as well as on most streaming platforms.
DVD
Blu-Ray
DVD - Classic Christmas Collection 2-Pack (with It's a Wonderful Life)
Amazon Prime
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