JACK'S BACK, and this time it's personal
DATE AND STATUS: Tuesday, September 4th, 2012 and I miss NEW YORK!
Sad news people, Michael Duncan Clark, has died. I liked this actor very much. I first noticed this actor after seeing his impressive performance in the Tom Hanks film, "The Green Mile," and he was fantastic in this role. He was a gifted actor, and was only fifty-four years old, which is way too young for someone to die.
And after reading Mr. Clark's obituary, I was surprised to learn that that bitch who people loved to hate, namely OMAROSA, from the television show, "The Apprentice," was his fiancee. You just never know!
Speaking of movies, ("The Green Mile,") in between watching great old classics on the Turner Classic Movie (TCM) channel, I watched this perfectly ridiculous movie last night, entitled "Piranha."
Oh my goodness, I didn't think films could be so bad. It was obvious that the film was intended to be seen in Three Dimension (3D,) there were so many instances where objects seemed to jump out at you, including a severed penis, it might have been interesting to see it in 3D at the theatre, regardless, for a bad movie, this film was a lot of fun, and if you can't find anything else on Netflix or pay television to watch, you may want to give it a shot!
Yup, I miss New York, it has been way too long since I was last there, and since learning that a good friend of mine went there over this past Labour Day weekend, I am somewhat anxious for a return trip to Manhattan, and in particular, BROADWAY!
I really want to see the reconstituted, "Annie." It has a great cast, including two-time Tony winner, Katie Finneran, Anthony Warlow, whom I once saw in "The Secret Garden" (another Tony-winning musical that I love,) and Lilla Crawford as our beloved moppet, (they say she is amazing, but she could never be Andrea McCardle, NEVER).
Also, I want to see David Mamet's play, "The Anarchist," which stars the legendary Patti Lupone and two-time Oscar Nominee, Debra Winger. I have no idea what the plays about, but with a cast like that, who cares?
I think the best time for me to visit New York would have to be sometime in November. We do have tickets,sometime that month to see "La Cage" at the Princess of Wales theatre, so the trip, if I were to go, would have to be scheduled after seeing George Hamilton in that fun musical.
"The Band Wagon" is a 1953 musical comedy film that many critics rank, along with "Singin' in the Rain," as the finest of the Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) musicals.
Betty Comden, and Adolph Green, our writers of the movie, patterned the film's characters, Lester and Lily Marton after themselves, although the fictional characters were a married couple, and Comden and Green were not romantically involved, or so they say.
Okay, here's as brief a synopsis of the story that I can give: Has-been Hollywood hoofer, Tony Hunter (Fred Astaire) returns to Broadway in the hopes of revitalizing his stage career. Eventually, he does!
Now, if my brevity was way too brief, continue reading.
Stage and screen star, Tony Hunter (Fred Astaire,) is concerned that his career might be in decline. AS Tony Hunter's mementos are auctioned off, enthusiastic writers, and good friends, Lester and Lily Marton (Oscar Levant and Nanette Fabray) meet Tony at the train station, and find him in a strange kind of melancholy, (I wonder why?, he's a has-been, he's down on his luck, nope, no reason for feeling sad.) His good friends Lester and Lily Marton have written a stage show that they believe is perfect for his comeback.
Tony signs up, despite reservations after the director, Jeffrey Cordova (Jack Buchanan,) changes the light comedy into a dark reinterpretation of the "Faust" legend, (you have to admit that that is quite a switch!) with himself as the devil, and Tony as the Faust character.
Tony also feels intimidated by the youth, beauty, (who wouldn't?,) and classical background of his female co-star, noted ballerina Gabrielle "Gaby" Gerard (Cyd Charisse.) Unbeknownst to Tony, Gaby who is in awe of Tony's stardom, is just as insecure in his presence. (This has a familiar ring, I used to be intimidated by doctors, until one of them confessed that he was intimidated by me!)
Eventually, being intimidated by Gaby proves too much for Tony. He walks out, then Gaby speaks with him alone and they work out their differences. (You see folks, communication is the key!) They also begin to fall in love, though she already has a commitment to the show's choreographer Paul Byrd. (Of course, a movie has to have CONFLICT!)
When the first out-of-town tryout in New Haven proves to be a disaster, Tony persuades Jeffrey to let him convert the production back into what the Martons had originally envisioned. Tony, now in charge of the production, takes the show on tour to perfect the new lighthearted musical numbers.
And, since the original backers have walked out, (producers always are interested in only one thing: profits!) Tony finances it by selling his personal art collection. Byrd walks out, but Gaby remains.
The revised show proves to be a hit on its Broadway opening. Afterwards, Gaby lets Tony know she loves him, of course she does, he is Fred Astaire!
De rigeur, the ending of the film is pure corn, which matters not when we've been so thoroughly entertained. All the unrelated musical numbers are encore delights for a valued audience, and the actual finish is a curtain call! The plot has run its course, and "The Band Wagon" doesn't pretend that it has any dramatic goals or higher themes.
"The Band Wagon" may not be as inspired or original as some of its fellow MGM musicals, who cares? I loved it! It's total joy! and "The Band Wagon" is now one of my very favourite musicals of all time.
What care I that there's no high concept as in "Singin' in the Rain" and unlike "An American in Paris" it's not necessarily out to be the most artistic picture ever made. It's out to make us smile, and glow, and succeeds admirably.
As with Fred Astaire's early RKO films, "The Band Wagon" makes do with less and achieves more. It wins us over with the bare rudiments of musical entertainment, performance and personality. "The Band Wagon is pure enjoyment from one end to the other."
I can't understand about critics' complaints about the lack of a great performance from Cyd Charisse, as she's not there to recite Shakespeare, but to be lovely and show off her fantastic legs in motion, which she does, and seductively.
I was swept away by Cyd Charisse's beauty and in today's idiom, SHE WAS HOT! Of course, Miss Charisse has inconsistencies, but still she is appealing, especially when she oscillates among being shy gamine, pretentious artiste and stage-savvy soubrette depending on the momentary story needs, I tell ya, that girl knows her craft!
Charisse is even a more magical dance partner for Fred Astaire than she was with Gene Kelly.
From start to end, it's Astaire's movie anyway, a picture with a sense of nostalgia for a great age passing.
Both "Tony Hunter" and Astaire graciously play to the fact that sooner or later even the greatest stars have to bow out, and Astaire was a 'quit while you're ahead' type of performer who needed encouragement to believe that his kind of entertainment was still necessary, and the accolades for "The Band Wagon" had to have been a boost!
Another appealing part of "The Band Wagon" is its sense of perspective and good will. Fred Astaire could surely dictate any terms he wanted but he allows the film to have a gentle rib at himself, as a performer past his prime.
Not only that, Astaire generously shares the spotlight with a great stage performer really past his prime, and one who had to be fairly obscure to general American audiences, Jack Buchanan who plays Jeffrey Cordova. That's graciousness all the way. That's class!
I was tired just watching Fred Astaire jockeying between dancing/singing for a show within a movie, but Mr. Astaire seems to do it effortlessly. He truly is a paragon of perfection, he's all class, and I intend to now watch all the Fred Astaire films that I can get my hands on.
There's no denying "The Band Wagon" soars, it jettisons its perfection from start to finish and should not be missed.
As a slight aside, "The Band Wagon" was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry (USMFR) by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant!" Got that Evelyn, maybe you could put this movie in the vault (that's a great idea for my movie holdings, eh Evy, THE VAULT, are you gonna help me out?)
UPCOMING MOVIES FOR REVIEW:
"Elmer Gantry." Both Burt Lancaster and Shirley Jones received academy award nominations for their work here. I want to see if they deserved them, you know how the Academy can be.
"Adam Had Four Sons." This movie stars Ingrid Bergman and Susan Hayward, two of my favourites, and that is reason enough for me to watch this movie. But I bet I end up liking this movie for all sorts of reasons, and not just because of Miss Bergman and Miss Hayward.
"Blow Dry." For no other reason that when I saw the title of this movie in the television guide, it intrigued me.
"Thief." This film stars James Caan and is reported to be one of Mr. Caan's personal favourites. Well, now it is time for us to decide if we want this movie to make our favourites list.
"An American in Paris." I love musicals, and this one gets great reviews from practically everyone, we'll see what I think very soon.
"The Opposite Sex." I saw the preview of this film and it looked an awful lot like the movie, "The Women" a film that I cannot rave enough about. This version looks like it is musicalized, I can't wait to see it!
"The Maltese Falcon." I've avoided seeing Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre in this story of murder and intrigue for far too long, (I'm supposed to be a film buff!) The time is now for me to see it, so I shall.
,
FILMS COMING SOON: Exodus, The Sand Pebbles, Big Night, can't wait to see all of them!!!!
DATE AND STATUS: Tuesday, September 4th, 2012 and I miss NEW YORK!
Sad news people, Michael Duncan Clark, has died. I liked this actor very much. I first noticed this actor after seeing his impressive performance in the Tom Hanks film, "The Green Mile," and he was fantastic in this role. He was a gifted actor, and was only fifty-four years old, which is way too young for someone to die.
And after reading Mr. Clark's obituary, I was surprised to learn that that bitch who people loved to hate, namely OMAROSA, from the television show, "The Apprentice," was his fiancee. You just never know!
Speaking of movies, ("The Green Mile,") in between watching great old classics on the Turner Classic Movie (TCM) channel, I watched this perfectly ridiculous movie last night, entitled "Piranha."
Oh my goodness, I didn't think films could be so bad. It was obvious that the film was intended to be seen in Three Dimension (3D,) there were so many instances where objects seemed to jump out at you, including a severed penis, it might have been interesting to see it in 3D at the theatre, regardless, for a bad movie, this film was a lot of fun, and if you can't find anything else on Netflix or pay television to watch, you may want to give it a shot!
Yup, I miss New York, it has been way too long since I was last there, and since learning that a good friend of mine went there over this past Labour Day weekend, I am somewhat anxious for a return trip to Manhattan, and in particular, BROADWAY!
I really want to see the reconstituted, "Annie." It has a great cast, including two-time Tony winner, Katie Finneran, Anthony Warlow, whom I once saw in "The Secret Garden" (another Tony-winning musical that I love,) and Lilla Crawford as our beloved moppet, (they say she is amazing, but she could never be Andrea McCardle, NEVER).
Also, I want to see David Mamet's play, "The Anarchist," which stars the legendary Patti Lupone and two-time Oscar Nominee, Debra Winger. I have no idea what the plays about, but with a cast like that, who cares?
I think the best time for me to visit New York would have to be sometime in November. We do have tickets,sometime that month to see "La Cage" at the Princess of Wales theatre, so the trip, if I were to go, would have to be scheduled after seeing George Hamilton in that fun musical.
"The Band Wagon" is a 1953 musical comedy film that many critics rank, along with "Singin' in the Rain," as the finest of the Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) musicals.
Betty Comden, and Adolph Green, our writers of the movie, patterned the film's characters, Lester and Lily Marton after themselves, although the fictional characters were a married couple, and Comden and Green were not romantically involved, or so they say.
Okay, here's as brief a synopsis of the story that I can give: Has-been Hollywood hoofer, Tony Hunter (Fred Astaire) returns to Broadway in the hopes of revitalizing his stage career. Eventually, he does!
Now, if my brevity was way too brief, continue reading.
Stage and screen star, Tony Hunter (Fred Astaire,) is concerned that his career might be in decline. AS Tony Hunter's mementos are auctioned off, enthusiastic writers, and good friends, Lester and Lily Marton (Oscar Levant and Nanette Fabray) meet Tony at the train station, and find him in a strange kind of melancholy, (I wonder why?, he's a has-been, he's down on his luck, nope, no reason for feeling sad.) His good friends Lester and Lily Marton have written a stage show that they believe is perfect for his comeback.
Tony signs up, despite reservations after the director, Jeffrey Cordova (Jack Buchanan,) changes the light comedy into a dark reinterpretation of the "Faust" legend, (you have to admit that that is quite a switch!) with himself as the devil, and Tony as the Faust character.
Tony also feels intimidated by the youth, beauty, (who wouldn't?,) and classical background of his female co-star, noted ballerina Gabrielle "Gaby" Gerard (Cyd Charisse.) Unbeknownst to Tony, Gaby who is in awe of Tony's stardom, is just as insecure in his presence. (This has a familiar ring, I used to be intimidated by doctors, until one of them confessed that he was intimidated by me!)
Eventually, being intimidated by Gaby proves too much for Tony. He walks out, then Gaby speaks with him alone and they work out their differences. (You see folks, communication is the key!) They also begin to fall in love, though she already has a commitment to the show's choreographer Paul Byrd. (Of course, a movie has to have CONFLICT!)
When the first out-of-town tryout in New Haven proves to be a disaster, Tony persuades Jeffrey to let him convert the production back into what the Martons had originally envisioned. Tony, now in charge of the production, takes the show on tour to perfect the new lighthearted musical numbers.
And, since the original backers have walked out, (producers always are interested in only one thing: profits!) Tony finances it by selling his personal art collection. Byrd walks out, but Gaby remains.
The revised show proves to be a hit on its Broadway opening. Afterwards, Gaby lets Tony know she loves him, of course she does, he is Fred Astaire!
De rigeur, the ending of the film is pure corn, which matters not when we've been so thoroughly entertained. All the unrelated musical numbers are encore delights for a valued audience, and the actual finish is a curtain call! The plot has run its course, and "The Band Wagon" doesn't pretend that it has any dramatic goals or higher themes.
"The Band Wagon" may not be as inspired or original as some of its fellow MGM musicals, who cares? I loved it! It's total joy! and "The Band Wagon" is now one of my very favourite musicals of all time.
What care I that there's no high concept as in "Singin' in the Rain" and unlike "An American in Paris" it's not necessarily out to be the most artistic picture ever made. It's out to make us smile, and glow, and succeeds admirably.
As with Fred Astaire's early RKO films, "The Band Wagon" makes do with less and achieves more. It wins us over with the bare rudiments of musical entertainment, performance and personality. "The Band Wagon is pure enjoyment from one end to the other."
I can't understand about critics' complaints about the lack of a great performance from Cyd Charisse, as she's not there to recite Shakespeare, but to be lovely and show off her fantastic legs in motion, which she does, and seductively.
I was swept away by Cyd Charisse's beauty and in today's idiom, SHE WAS HOT! Of course, Miss Charisse has inconsistencies, but still she is appealing, especially when she oscillates among being shy gamine, pretentious artiste and stage-savvy soubrette depending on the momentary story needs, I tell ya, that girl knows her craft!
Charisse is even a more magical dance partner for Fred Astaire than she was with Gene Kelly.
From start to end, it's Astaire's movie anyway, a picture with a sense of nostalgia for a great age passing.
Both "Tony Hunter" and Astaire graciously play to the fact that sooner or later even the greatest stars have to bow out, and Astaire was a 'quit while you're ahead' type of performer who needed encouragement to believe that his kind of entertainment was still necessary, and the accolades for "The Band Wagon" had to have been a boost!
Another appealing part of "The Band Wagon" is its sense of perspective and good will. Fred Astaire could surely dictate any terms he wanted but he allows the film to have a gentle rib at himself, as a performer past his prime.
Not only that, Astaire generously shares the spotlight with a great stage performer really past his prime, and one who had to be fairly obscure to general American audiences, Jack Buchanan who plays Jeffrey Cordova. That's graciousness all the way. That's class!
I was tired just watching Fred Astaire jockeying between dancing/singing for a show within a movie, but Mr. Astaire seems to do it effortlessly. He truly is a paragon of perfection, he's all class, and I intend to now watch all the Fred Astaire films that I can get my hands on.
There's no denying "The Band Wagon" soars, it jettisons its perfection from start to finish and should not be missed.
As a slight aside, "The Band Wagon" was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry (USMFR) by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant!" Got that Evelyn, maybe you could put this movie in the vault (that's a great idea for my movie holdings, eh Evy, THE VAULT, are you gonna help me out?)
UPCOMING MOVIES FOR REVIEW:
"Elmer Gantry." Both Burt Lancaster and Shirley Jones received academy award nominations for their work here. I want to see if they deserved them, you know how the Academy can be.
"Adam Had Four Sons." This movie stars Ingrid Bergman and Susan Hayward, two of my favourites, and that is reason enough for me to watch this movie. But I bet I end up liking this movie for all sorts of reasons, and not just because of Miss Bergman and Miss Hayward.
"Blow Dry." For no other reason that when I saw the title of this movie in the television guide, it intrigued me.
"Thief." This film stars James Caan and is reported to be one of Mr. Caan's personal favourites. Well, now it is time for us to decide if we want this movie to make our favourites list.
"An American in Paris." I love musicals, and this one gets great reviews from practically everyone, we'll see what I think very soon.
"The Opposite Sex." I saw the preview of this film and it looked an awful lot like the movie, "The Women" a film that I cannot rave enough about. This version looks like it is musicalized, I can't wait to see it!
"The Maltese Falcon." I've avoided seeing Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre in this story of murder and intrigue for far too long, (I'm supposed to be a film buff!) The time is now for me to see it, so I shall.
,
FILMS COMING SOON: Exodus, The Sand Pebbles, Big Night, can't wait to see all of them!!!!
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