Musicals
 

I love musicals! I especially love anything Rogers & Hammerstein. Also Judy Garland, Julie Andrews, Gene Kelley, Liza Minnelli, and various other artists.

I know there are alot of musicals that I haven't seen though. Do any of you have some favorite musicals or know of any good ones out there? I could make a list of the ones I've seen, but that would take a while. Would appreciate any suggestions.

It sounds like you've seen everything I could mention. But I'll stay away from MGM and give it a try.

The 1936 version of Showboat is better than the MGM remake.

Possibly a little too dark for your taste, but worth seeing:

Oh, What a Lovely War

The Ruling Class

No original songs in either. The first has no plot, basically a musical revue using popular World War I songs to make an anti-war statement. Very cinematic and well staged. The latter is a black comedy with Peter O' Toole as a madman who thinks he is Jesus Christ, but later gets better when he thinks he is Jack the Ripper. Not everyone would call this a musical, but when people burst into song and dance on numerous occasions, what else is it?

Blondie Goes Latin The long running Blondie series based on the comic strip had one entry that definitely qualifies as a musical and this is it. There are six or seven songs, mostly original, not great, but pleasant. Penny Singleton who was a singer gets to belt out a few, two more singers are added for this one, and even Baby Dumpling gets to do a duet with a little girl. It all takes place on an ocean liner and is well done in a modest way, with a good share of laugh thanks mainly to Arthur Lake and Daisy the dog.

I dom't know if you've seen Doris Day musicals. She was better in those than in the Rock Hudson team-ups. Her two best are Pajama Game and Calamity Jane. Love Me or Leave Me where she plays singer Ruth Etting isn't really a musical, but it's worth seeing.

MGm was the studio that excelled at musicals during the golden age of Hollywood. Paramount had Bing Crosby so they made them, too, but the only standout one is Holiday Inn with Fred Astaire.

Here is a real life musical.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkYZ6rbPU2M

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Jesus Christ Superstar 2000 is my fav.
Brigadoon is one that makes me feel better when I'm ill.
Moulin Rouge is great fun for me.
Funny Girl is a classic that I enjoy.
West Side Story
Buffy the musical episode is in my cd player right now.
The Sound of Music
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Desperado while not a musical, is one that I bought the DVD and CD to listen to.
Godspell is a pretty terrible movie but the sound track is good. Then again I have a special fondness for it because I've done that show. LOL.

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Since bleachedaddy broght up Brigadoon, which I assumed you've seen, let me point out the television version of it is available on youtube,which won an Emmy. It stars Robert Goulet and Peter Falk.

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Some great suggestions...I enjoy dark musicals as much as the warm and fuzzy stuff. In fact if you really look at the subject matter of some of the most popular musicals they're pretty dark. Sound of Music for instance...Dead mother, Nazi's, child exploitation, greed, war, fleeing your homeland to never return? Pretty dark stuff.

I've actually never seen Brigadoon I'll check out both versions. Oh what a lovely war...i'm not sure if I've seen that but I'm going to check it out as well.

I am sure you've seen these but here goes.

Roger's and Hammerstien's Cinderella (a childhood obsession)

The Stepsister's Lament (this is over the top but these girls are very talented
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWtfzhssSbU&feature=related

When I was a kid I wanted to play one of the stepsister, the one with the creaky knee in the Lesley Ann Warren version.

Once Upon A Mattress (another childhood obsession)

Shy (Carol Burnett as the Princess Fred)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouL9ZMzEZ4k&feature=related

Another role I coveted as a kid.

La Vie en Rose (Edith Piaf biopic)

Non, Je ne Regrette Rien (sung by Piaf and lip synched by the fabulous Marion Cotillard)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot4Yn1dWydE

Ray (biopic about Ray Charles starring the multi-talented Jamie Foxx)

Hit the Road, Jack (sung by Jamie Foxx)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vu45m3bIWQk&feature=fvw

Phantom of the Opera (a latter day obsession)

Think of Me (Emmy Rossum)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjM1Lrsb7I8&feature=fvw

I love this scene, the spinning camera takes in everything from the glittering Paris audience, to the crew in the flies then down into the pit, through a hole in the register, slipping through a chink in the stone floor we find the Phantom in the sewers listening to his pupil become a star.

When the dancing mistress suggests Christine replace Carlotta and Andre says, "What a chorus girl! Don't be silly." I crack up.

Ultra kitsch, fabulousity.

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Seeing that Carol Burnett clip reminded me of New Faces, a flimed version of the Broadway review that featured Eartha Kitt singing many of her standards and Alice Ghostly (she reminded me of Burnett, not Kitt), Paul Lynde, and that French guy on Hogan's heroes.

Although West Side Story is my alltime favorite movie, hands down, there are also some other musicals that, while they don't hold the same special place in my heart regarding movie musicals and movies generally as West Side Story, I like them well, too. Here they are, in no particular order:

Wizard of Oz

My Fair Lady

Sound of Music (although I've got ambivalent feelings about the story behind TSOM for a number complicated reasons)

Cabaret

Hair

Here is Alice Ghostly from New Faces.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vc5eqmucGl4

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I've never seen that Carol Burnette musical..didn't even know it exsisted!!

I'll try to list all the musicals I've seen
Sound of Music
My Fair Lady
Oklahoma
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Les Miserables
State Fair
South Pacific
Charlottes Web
All the animated Disney movies
Meet me in St. Louis
Summerstock
Wizard of Oz
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Guys and Dolls
Phantom of the Opera
Cats
Greatest Show on Earth
Mary Poppins
Sweeny Todd
Ray
Walk the Line
Dreamgirls
Grease 1&2
White Christmas
Harvey Girls
Easter Parade


I know there are more that I'm not thinking of..but I think my brain has just flat lined

Re: Musicals
 

Oh Eartha Kit just reminded me...St. Louis Blues! and of course West side story

Sound of music is probably one of my favorites. What makes you feel ambivilant about the story? It's obviously not historically accurate, but I'm always interested in finding out how others feel about things.

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You said earlier that you liked Liza Minnelli, but I only saw in your list one movie she was in (she "played" a baby in Easter Parade), so I have to second Cabaret as a film you need to watch. :cool:

Re: Musicals
 

More to check out:

The King and I

The Music Man

All That Jazz (Which I found to be quite profound plus it had one of the sexiest dance scenes ever, IMO.)

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (With the delicious Truly Scrumptious.)

Dirty Dancing

Oklahoma

Holiday Inn (Save for the X'mas season!)

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Sweeny Todd.

Across the Universe

Re: Musicals
 

Oh well, I'll add Love Me Tonight, Gold Diggers of 1933, the Astaire-Rogers series, Stormy Weather, Cabin in the Sky, On the Town, An American in Paris, Singin' in the Rain, The Band Wagon, Porgy and Bess, Gigi, My Fair Lady, Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), Fame (1980), Chicago (2002), and Hairspray (2007) for now.

If I repeat some that are on your list, I appologize.

Singing in the Rain has often been called the greatest musical ever made. It's certainly Gene Kelly's best.

Academy Award best picture winners:

An American in Paris

Gigi

Oliver

Chicago

Yankee Doodle Dandy

Many Fred Astaire ones are good. I think the best is Band Wagon with Cyd Cherise. He first became a hit dancing wirh Ginger Rogers in the 1930's. They're a little dated now. The general critical consensus is the two best are Top Hat and Swing Time. I like The Gay Divorcee best.

Other ones worth checking out

Damn Yankees (if only to see Gwem Verdon dance and sing "Whatever Lola Wants")

Carousel

The Music Man (The movie version with Robert Preston, not that lousy TV version with a miscast Matthew Broderick

Mark F just mentioned them in his list, but two of my favorite are:

Singin' in the Rain and Gigi.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW02c5UNGl0
Singin' in the Rain is easily my favorite musical. It's got great songs, terrific performances, and is funny as hell.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4t2XmMuWZM
Gigi is just great; I don't know how else to describe it but "sumptuous."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvglHa_P9BA
I also love An American in Paris. Gene Kelly is just amazing. I've always thought of this as a "masculine musical," if that makes any sense. Watch it and I think you'll see what I mean.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeybDjUhsDU
My wife's favorite is Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. It's also quite good.

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Of course, a true musical has just as much dancing as singing, although I guess that's normally considered a ballet. I want to offer The Red Shoes as one of the greatest musicals even if it has no singing at all. Besides that, if The Red Shoes never existed, there probably would have never been An American in Paris.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_iJOT1XhFiB...ap-2100494.png http://spengo.files.wordpress.com/20...ng?w=420&h=315

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It's too stagey to be a complete success, but with a great cast and songs there's How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying

Annie Get Your Gun was the musical Judy Garland was making when MGM fired her and replaced her with Betty Hutton. It's good.

Kiss Me Kate Great score and performances, even by the usually bland Kathryn Grayson

Re: Musicals
 

I love How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying as well as another stagey Frank Loesser cinematic adaptation, Guys and Dolls. I also want to mention Fiddler on the Roof, A Hard Day's Night, Stop Making Sense and I'll stop for now before I start to get too far gone. (I'll come back for those later.) :cool:

Not every musical made was a big budget production. particularely in the 1940's. Here is an example of a better than average B musical.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAEPQha21SM&NR=1

Re: Musicals
 

If you are going to see Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, try the tv version which is a video of the stage play with Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Lovett and George Hearn as Sweeney Todd.

The movie version leaves a lot to be desired. This musical is forced along by a constant driving rhythm that is missing from the movie and gives the stage play its urgency. The removal of this music leaves the movie a bit moribund, if you will. Another complaint is the selection of Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett. Bonham Carter is too delicate and pretty to play that tough old pragmatist and murder's accomplice Mrs. Lovett and SHE CAN'T SING. Her voice is much, much too light. The parts of Todd and Lovett are made for Broadway belters.

The only part of the film I liked is when Todd/Depp is reunited with his razor and declaims the line "NOW MY ARM IS COMPLETE." Johnny Depp is a genius actor who can make you believe he is anyone despite looking like a 15 yr. old girl.

One of my favourites, which hasn't been mentioned yet.

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Jacques Demy, 1964)

http://mmimageslarge.moviemail-onlin...slide006_1.jpg

Gorgeous little musical, which plays out entirely in song. It's difficult to find a picture on the net that does justice to Demy's iridescent palette, as well as Deneuve's wide-eyed minx of small-town dysfunction. Michel Legrand's music is simply magical, even if it perhaps lacks the sing-a-long value provided by your canonical Hollywood favourites. I don't know if that's because my French isn't up to scratch or what; nevertheless it's unforgettable stuff, with a final act that lives long in the memory.

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Good call on that one. If you can't sing the songs, you can certainly hum them.

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http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0...1.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

Just watched this one yesterday

"Springtime for Hitler and Germany! Winter for Poland and France!" :rotfl:

Because of the movie, the original novel the musical is based on was reprinted. Upon reading it, I was surprised to discover Mrs. Lovett described as "buxom, young and good looking," and this makes her almost as popular as her pies to most of her customers, mainly young law clerks. Mrs. Lovett became homely and middle-aged when the novel was adapted to the stage while it was still being serialized in a "penny dreadful" magazine. The novel is much better than the play and it's bad reputation comes from the fact most people who are familiar with the story have seen the melodramatic play and not read the source material.

Whether Mrs. Lovett is young and good looking or a fright, it is a musical and she should be able to sing intelligibly. The movie is an adaptation of the musical by Sondheim and it is destroyed by the lack of attention given to the music and it's presentation. I know nothing about Sondheim's source material but his musical play is not handle well at all by Tim Burton. One should not have to refer to source material to make a determination on whether a movie is good or bad. The proof of the pie is in the eating and Tim Burton's pie was very tired and sorely lacking in any internal drive. It is the removal of competent singers and the interstitial tissue of the connecting score that cause Burton's Todd to collapse. If Bonham Carter could sing I would have one less complaint about the film.

I wasn't criticizing your criticism of the film, which I haven't seen. (I saw the KCET one) The Sondheim version isn't directly based on the play either but a twentieth century play adaptaion. That's where the backstory comes from, that Sweeney Todd is out for revenge against an unjust world for what happened to him. In the original novel and first play adaptation Sweeney Todd's motive is more simple: greed. Johanna (Oakley) is not his daughter; the magistrate (different name and not in the first play) is a good guy who discovers the mystery behind why cusomers are seen walking into Sweeney Todd's barber shop, but don't always come out, and the connected mystery behind the origin of the horrible smell behind St. Dunistan's Church; and so on. Sondheim rejected doing a direct adaptation of the 19th century play because he thought it was dated and poorly written. He was right. Apparently, he never read the novel which was out of print until the 1990's. It reads like a more pulpy version of Dickens with a great deal of humor, and swift moving scenes that often take place far from Sweeney's shop.

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Believe me I take no offense. I enjoy a reasonable argument. Now that you have described the novel more thoroughly, I might take a look at it.

Re: Musicals
 

Cabaret all the way.

Well, to be honest, Roserosie, the reason I feel ambivalent about the story behind The Sound of Music is because, while Captain Von Tropp, who'd worked for the Nazis for a long time, until he became fully aware of what the Nazis really stood for and what they were doing and decided to take his family over the mountains to escape to Switzerland, it also turned out that the Swiss, too, were pretty horrible--very anti-Jewish in that respect. So, being Jewish, although I've seen TSOM afew times and enjoyed it, the behaviour on the part of the Swiss sort of dwarfs the fact that Captn von Tropp did a good thing by taking his family over the Alps and into Switzerland to escape the Nazis. Hope I've been of some help here.

Well, to be honest, Roserosie, the reason I feel ambivalent about the story behind The Sound of Music is because, while Captain Von Tropp, who'd worked for the Nazis for a long time, until he became fully aware of what the Nazis really stood for and what they were doing and decided to take his family over the mountains to escape to Switzerland, it also turned out that the Swiss, too, were pretty horrible--very anti-Jewish in that respect. So, being Jewish, although I've seen TSOM afew times and enjoyed it, the behaviour on the part of the Swiss sort of dwarfs the fact that Captn von Tropp did a good thing by taking his family over the Alps and into Switzerland to escape the Nazis. Hope I've been of some help here.

Re: Musicals
 

Anchors Aweigh, I beileve wasn't mentioned and is quite possible one of the best musicals ever made in my opinion.

I've got a really off-the-wall musical for you that likely few of you have ever seen and even fewer would ever list.

The film is Red Garters, a musical comedy set in the wild west, but it's a West none of you would recognize--a stage-set with houses and trees represented by suspended plywood cutouts and an occasional potted bush spotted around to represent the outdoors. 1950s pop singer Guy Mitchell plays a singing fast-gun dressed in white who rides into town just in time for the combination burial and barbecue featuring his late brother who was dry-gulched by person or persons unknown. So he sets out to find the murderous varmint. Costarring in the film is Rosemary Clooney (George's aunt) and Jack Carson. It wasn't everyone's cup of tea even when it first came out and copies are bound to be rare, but it's an interesting little movie that is very different from most musicals Hollywood cranked out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuBkOvaIc6w&feature=PlayList&p=E071FDFDA791F704&index=21&playnext=2&playnext_from=PL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVlQXvrWC_A&feature=fvw

'Guys and Dolls' is a thoroughly enjoyable example of musical comedy at its very best. The wonderful production owes a lot to the talented Abe Burrows who made the adaptation to the screen. The costumes by Irene Sharaff set the right tone and Brando has a certain charm as Sky Masterson. One of the best things about this movie is their lingo. It's a mixture of high class and street slang and overall, Guys & Dolls is one of my favorite all time musicals, and it's one that you should take time to watch every time it comes on.

YANKEE DOODLE DANDY and SINGIN' IN THE RAIN are another two favorites of mine.

Great choice. I'm not a big fan of musicals, but this one sold me.

Thanks for Red Garters bit, Will. At the opening of that performance, in the foreground facing the bar, you'll see the other fast-gun in that strange little town, Gene Barry, dressed all in black with a matching mustache and the absolutely worse Mexican accent. He even "sings" in the film.

Re: Musicals
 

Geeeesh..when I made my list I was thinking maybe there were a few I had seen that just weren't coming to mind..now I'm beginning to think I have amnesia or something..I've seen many many of the ones you've all mentioned..and I've seen several that I'm just going to have to check out!

I hear you on that, I'm also Jewish and although the film definitely touches onto some sensitive issues for me, it's more the story of the family that gets me. That and I absolutely ADORE Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer!

One of the best muicals from the 1950s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bzv4jOTuwjw&NR=1.

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Will, I've never seen that one..definitely going to have to check that out!

Here's some I really love some of them one might call cheats.

ALL THAT JAZZ
SINGIN IN THE RAIN
42nd STREET
ANCHORS AWEIGH
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS
OCEAN'S ELEVAN
WEST SIDE STORY
THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT 1,2 AND 3
THE LAST WALTZ
FLASHDANCE
FOOTLOOSE
STREETS OF FIRE
CRY BABY
THAT THING YOU DO
THE BLUE BROTHERS
HAPPY FEET
SILK STOCKINGS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
THE RED SHOES
THE BAND WAGON
PARTY GIRL
PINK FLOYD THE WALL
GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES

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Fame, Cabaret, Kiss Me Kate, etc.

Another great one from that general period, Damn Yankees! A musical about a baseball fan who sells his soul to the devil for the chance to defeat the too-often successful New York Yankees baseball team!

And there's also The Bells Are Ringing about a girl employed at a telephone answering service (back before the days of answering machines and word messages) who keeps getting involved in the lives of her clients.

And in a couple of years, you'll be able to watch the remake.

I didn't know they were remaking that. I just looked that up. The announced casting doesn't excite me and no crucial Lola signed yet.

I'm curious which of Judy Garland's movies you seen. It's hard to know what to recommend if you've already seen them.

Have you seen For Me and My Gal or The Pirate with Gene Kelly? How about The Ziegfeld Girl, The Ziegfeld Follies, In The Good Old Summertime or the Mickey & Judy movies like Girl Crazy?

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Yes yes yes ...yep nope haven't seen Girl Crazy! I have to check that one out! I liked Mickey and Judy, but I've really not checked alot of those movies out.

Of the Mickey/Judy movies I liked Girl Crazy (she looks beautiful and there are some great tunes) and Babes on Broadway are my favorites (interesting to hear Judy's take on "Good Morning" and Mickey spoof's Carman Miranda...my memory might be fading though :p ).

How about some of the early musicals of the 30's? Have you seen the Gold Diggers of 1933 or 42nd Street?

Singin' in the Rain as an ultimate favourite. Only problem being that most of the good numbers are in the first half, meaning that when I saw the live show the second half was a little less stunning.
Oliver!: Starred in a production of this as Fagin and loved it. A shame that a number of great songs are omitted from the film version.
The Blues Brothers: Possesses an almost drunken energy which matches the amazing songs and the guest stars.
West Side Story: Admittedly not as big a fan of this one, and I'm unsure why. I do enjoy several of the songs, however, and the choreography is nothing short of genius.
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Apart from "Bless your Beautiful Hide" wasn't really enraptured by any of the songs here... but was completely converted by the astounding Social Dance and the Barnraising sequences.
Moulin Rouge!: Please don't shoot me, but I actually have this film's version of "Your Song" on my iPod rather than the Elton John original.
The Wizard of Oz: What needs to be said? Visually and muscially incredible.
Sweeney Todd: Has it's faults, but is at least a different story than other muscials. Plus, "A Little Priest" remains my favourite duet of all.
Hairspray: The closing number, "You Can't Stop the Beat". Say what you will, show me any opera star you wish, but no-one - and I mean NO-ONE - can belt it out like a large, buxom black woman.

How can you fail to mention the rocky horror picture show

The Rocky Horror Picture Show was listed twice in previous posts...

There is clip of this on youtube that is much better quality, but it consistently halts, while this one always plays smooth. It's from Murder at the Vanities, 1934.

This a jaw dropping number because of what she is singing about. The singer later claimed she though it was a reference to a Mexican musical instrument.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnySJxE_XQA&feature=related

International House (1933)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D44pyeEvhcQ

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I usually don't like musicals , but I did somewhat enjoy RENT.