The Pirate, 1948
Manuela (Judy Garland) is a young woman living in a Spanish village and dreaming of being carried away by notorious pirate Macoco. Instead, she finds herself engaged to Don Pedro (Walter Slezak), a man with no desire to travel any further than his own front door. When traveling performer Serafin (Gene Kelly) rolls into town and falls for Manuela, he decides to pose as Macoco in order to win her affections, not thinking about the consequences of his deception.
The second Garland/Kelly pairing that I've seen, and this one is a fun little romp, lifted by a strong third act that makes up for some wobbly parts that come before it.
It won't shock anyone to find out that Garland and Kelly absolutely nail their time on screen as Manuela and Serafin. Honestly, the characters are not the best written, but both actors power through just by letting their natural talents shine. Kelly in particular is given several sequences to just strut his stuff, which really makes up for his character being a bit of a goober. Slezak is also good as the arrogant Don Pedro, whose pride becomes the greatest threat to Manuela's happiness.
The plot only really picks up steam in the last act, when Serafin is put on trial as the pirate Macoco and must figure out how to escape an inevitable hanging. There are some good plot turns along the way in the last 30 or so minutes, and it all comes to a very strong conclusion. There's one of those "how long will this go on?!" comedy bits involving Garland throwing various items at Kelly that's a pretty winning piece of slapstick.
Part of the last act is a show-stopping dance number with Kelly and the Nicholas Brothers. I was shocked (though I guess not surprised, sigh) to read that in many Southern states this sequence was simply cut because it featured Kelly dancing with two Black dancers. I mean, joke's on the racists for missing out the best five minutes of the whole movie, but it's still a bizarre thing to think about.
And while it doesn't show on screen, this was apparently a pretty horrible time for Judy Garland, who was frequently ill and suffering effects from the various medications she was on. I haven't written about it in my other reviews of her films, but each one is filled with such heartbreaking trivia about what she went through during her career and how it all just continued to snowball on her.
Overall this was a fun romp with some thin characterization but a satisfying conclusion.
I like this a little more than you do, I think, Kelly really just wins me over in everything he does to the degree that I doubt I could rate any film he's in,
Xanadu not included, less than a 3.5//5 popcorns (if I ever rated anything).
I will not lie, I had actually forgotten Judy Garland was in the film. But that is, in part, because the only thing I ever
really remember about this movie is the scene you mention with The Nicholas Brothers. This is, to me, the moment Fred Astaire died. And I mean that in a larger, more general sense. Kelly's dancing was incredibly athletic, in fact, I think that's what makes him arguably the most legendary screen-dancer of all time, he is the perfect conduit of an extraordinary mix of athleticism and grace. While I am routinely awed by Astaire's dancing, the things Kelly incorporates into his routines, and then executes, are simply in a different place, a newer, fresher place, than Astaire ever came to. When I think of the athletic dance scenes, particularly the big one everyone remembers, from
Seven Brides For Seven Brothers, I wonder if there's a chance in hell it happens if Kelly doesn't come first.
But, the interesting part of the story is The Nicholas Brothers. Kelly's choreography on this number was considered particularly bracing, really at the edge of what people thought could be done. White people. When Kelly recruited The Nicholas Brothers, even he didn't understand how good they were, almost certainly both better than even him. Kelly worked very hard on the routine and during a rehearsal he felt one of the brothers (Harold, I think) was dragging ass and Kelley accused him of not knowing the number. But the truth was more interesting. Harold had no difficulty with the number (nor did Fayard) and was actually a bit bored. So, in response to Kelly's accusation, he performed the entire number by himself, flawlessly, in front of Kelly, leaving the legend speechless.
Also, sad that Lena Horne was cut from the film, I would love to have seen her in this.
Also sad that what was reportedly an incredible dance number between Kelly and Garland, "Voodoo", was cut from the film for being to overtly sexual.