Live Action Musical Movie Hall of Fame

It is.

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Swing Time

Having read CR's and Gideon's reviews I just HAD to start off with Swing Time as well.

While these two ARE the epitome of THE dance duo, it was quite a treat watching them dance around a comedic story line. Particularly in the very beginning. Along with, not only the supporting actors, but the extras; all of which contributed comedic chops beautifully.

It's extremely hard to pick a favorite musical number with such a top notch selection. Both the first dancing number in the dance studio and then the final dance number had a memorable cylindrical appeal in regards to the very first and then, what they believed, to be the final time they would ever dance together in the film. Quite lovely.
As for songs, I would definitely have to go with "A Swell Romance". The banter and mock arguing was very enjoyable to see unfold.

And yes, Victor Moore and Helen Broderick stolen scene upon scene upon scene. Which is a truly extraordinary feat considering WHO they were stealing scenes from.

A very wonderful classic and I'm so glad I was finally able to have the circumstance to view it. Thanks Nestorio for nominating this!

Even though my review MAY be short, it pales to the length of enjoyment I had watching this.

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Really glad you enjoyed Swing Time Ed. Had you seen any of Fred and Ginger's movies before?

I'm only skimming the reviews of Swing Time right now because I haven't watched it yet, and I don't want to read any spoilers. Who knows? This might be the only rom-com in history where the guy doesn't get the girl of his dreams.


Hmm. I thought someone else found this site and told you about it.

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If I answer a game thread correctly, just skip my turn and continue with the game.
OPEN FLOOR.

That's a nice review of Mary Poppins. Did you have a favorite song? It's been said that the song "Feed the Birds" was Walt Disney's favorite song.

Great review Gideon.

I love William Daniels in 1776. Howard da Silva is great as Benjamin Franklin, but I think Daniels steals the movie. The song "But Mr. Adams" is my favorite song because of the interaction between the men during the song. They all do such a wonderful job in that song.

If anyone has a problem finding 1776, we can just extend this HoF until July 5th, after TCM shows it.

I definitely love Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious I wonder how long they had to practice to get it right It was also very funny scene when the board asked Mr. Banks "Well do you have anything to say?" "...just one word ... Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious"

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You can call it the art of fighting without fighting.

I love that song. My favorite part is when Julie Andrews says it backwards.

I have the next three days off, so I'll get to at least one of them this week. I'll stop by my local DVD place soon to see if I can find one of them I don't already own. Same as the other HOF.

I should have said this: I never spoil a movie in any of my reviews. I hardly ever talk about synopsis as people already know what the movie is about. If I ever do talk about the ending or important plot points I will do this first ****SPOILER****

I directed a musical revue in college about a hundred years ago and one of the numbers I did was "But, Mr. Adams."

The 1957 film version of the Broadway musical The Pajama Game is one of the best translations of a stage musical to the screen ever. The screen version is extremely loyal to its origins, utilizing almost all of the original Broadway cast (except for Janis Paige, who lost the role of Babe to 50's box office powerhouse Doris Day)and keeping most of the original score intact ("Hers Is" and "A New Town is a Blue Town" are not used in the film and a song written especially for Doris for the film, ended up being cut).

This delightfully original musical centers around the Sleep-Tite Pajama Factory where the head of the grievance committee (Doris) is trying to negotiate a 7 and a half cent raise for the factory workers by butting heads with the new factory supervisor (John Raitt, reprising his Broadway role)but eventually falling for him. The secondary romance involves factory worker Hinesey (Eddie Foy Jr.) who can't control his jealousy regarding his girlfriend Gladys Hotchkiss (Carol Haney).

Musicals were past their prime by the time this one made it to the screen, but it is still beautifully mounted and has some of the greatest songs in musical comedy ("Hey, There", "I'm not at all in love", "I'll Never Be Jealous Again", "Once a Year Day", "Small Talk","There Once was a Man", "Hernando's Hideaway").

Day and Raitt make an engaging screen couple (Day has rarely been so adult or sexy on screen) and the imaginative choreography by the legendary Bob Fosse is a big plus. Carol Haney's "Steam Heat" is classic Fosse and one of the highlights of this wonderful movie musical that inexplicably died at the box office upon release. A great musical that is a must for Day and Fosse fans.

West Side Story is the 1961 film version of the landmark 1955 Broadway musical that updated Shakespeare's ROMEO AND JULIET to the turbulent urban gang scene of Manhattan's west side that follows the romance between Puerto Rican Maria (Natalie Wood) and Polish Tony (Richard), which is framed against the battles between two rival gangs in the neighborhood, the Puerto Rican sharks and the Caucasian Jets, who are in constant, dangerous conflict over absolute rule over a small area of a west side neighborhood.

Co-directors Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins have constructed a nearly perfect musical here, which offers everything Broadway fans want from a musical and also offers a meaty story that could appeal to non-musical fans as well. The score, by Leonard Bernstein (music) and Stephen Sondheim (lyrics) has almost become part of musical folklore: "Tonight","America", "Something's Coming", "I Feel Pretty","Somewhere", "One Hand, One Heart", almost all of which have become individual classics in their own right and each is an integral part of the story that helps to flesh out characters and advance plot.

The cast is first rate, despite the fact that none of the leads do their own singing. Natalie Wood still makes a lovely Maria (singing dubbed by Marni Nixon)and Rita Moreno and George Chakiris light up the screen in their Oscar winning supporting turns as Anita and Bernardo, Maria's best friend and brother, who is leader of the Sharks. Russ Tamblyn is athletic and charismatic as Riff, the Jets' leader and Tony's best friend. Richard Beymer is a little too limp-wristed as Tony, but his singing is superbly dubbed by Jimmy Bryant. But the real star of this film is the dance. Never before was the art of dance used to such brilliant effect to advance the plot of a story. The entire opening of the film, introducing the conflict between the Jets and Sharks is done completely in dance and perfectly conveys the tension between the two gangs.

Co-director and choreographer Jerome Robbins has mounted some of the most amazing dancing ever seen on the silver screen. The opening, as well as the dance at the gym, "America" and "Cool" are absolutely dazzling dance numbers. This film swept the '61 Oscars, winning 10 awards, including Best Picture. No musical had ever won that many Oscars and it is doubtful that it will ever happen again. A once in a lifetime motion picture experience that all film buffs, especially musical buffs, should study and cherish and revel in.

After losing the role of Eliza in the film version of My Fair Lady, Julie Andrews got sweet revenge and an Oscar for her film debut in 1964's Mary Poppins, a dazzling, enchanting family musical which was personally overseen by Walt Disney himself, who hand-picked Andrews for the title role.

Based on the books by P.L. Travers, this film centers around the Banks family of London 1912, whose most recent Nanny (Elsa Lanchester)has just quit after the children (Matthew Garber, Karen Dotrice)have run away again chasing an out of control kite.

George Banks (David Tomlinson) begins to advertise for a new Nanny when the children come to him with their own advertisement, which George dismisses, tears up, and throws in the fireplace. We then see the pieces of the children's advertisement float up the fireplace. Enter Mary Poppins (Andrews), the "practically perfect" nanny who arrives to interview for the job with the children's advertisement in her hand, all taped together.

What follows are a wonderful series of adventures including a magical housecleaning of the nursery, a tea party on the ceiling, a country holiday in a sidewalk chalk drawing, and a dance session on the rooftops of London with about 100 chimney sweeps.

This is movie magic at its zenith, and it is just as entertaining now as it was 50 years ago. It is definitely a family film, but there are lovely adult touches in the screenplay...I love the way it is implied that Mary and Bert (Dick Van Dyke), the chimney sweep/jack-of-all-trades, have met before this movie takes place but it is never really discussed. I also love the way Mary never admits to having any kind of magic powers and after each adventure tells the children it was all in their imagination.

This was the most memorable example of mixing live action with animation during the "Jolly Holiday" scene, which is absolutely delightful.

The sublime musical score includes "A Spoonful of Sugar", "Chim Chim Cheree" (which won the Oscar for Best Song), "Step in Time", and of course "Supercalifragilistiexpialidocious."

Andrews and Van Dyke are given solid support from Tomlinson and Glynis Johns as Mr. and Mrs. Banks, Hermione Baddeley as their maid, Reta Shaw as their cook, Ed Wynn as Uncle Albert, and Arthur Treacher as a Constable.


If you have never seen this film, or more importantly, if your kids have never seen it, go out and get the DVD today because this film continues to enchant generation after generation because it is the perfect family film.

Godspell is the 1973 film version of the off-Broadway musical based on the Gospel according to St. Matthew that has probably been performed on stage more than any other musical in the history of theater.

The film version is a relatively faithful rendering of the Broadway musical, which is sort of comic-book re-telling of the last days of Jesus Christ in which Jesus, wearing clown makeup and a Superman T-shirt is followed around New York city by a group of bouncy young disciples who abandon their hum drum lives to follow their new savior.

The musical score by Stephen Schwartz, a classic in and of its self, includes "Day by Day", "All For the Best", "Turn Back O'Man" , and "O Bless the Lord My Soul".

Victor Garber had his first significant film role as Jesus and the film also features five members of the original off-Broadway cast (it should be mentioned that four actors in this film are no longer with us). The film makes effective use of NYC locations with some imaginative staging for several numbers , most notably a portion of "All for the Best" taking place on the giant jumbo-tron in Times Square.

"Learn Your Lessons Well" and "We Beseech Thee" were not included in the film and a new song "Beautiful City" was added in hopes of garnering a Best Song Oscar nomination, but really adds nothing to the story, but for fans of the stage musical, the movie will not disappoint.

Meet Me In St. Louis is a colorful and entertaining 1944 musical surrounding the oh-so-simple events in the life of the Smith family, in St. Louis, excited about having the World's Fair come to their sleepy little hamlet but worried about their impending move from St. Louis to New York due to Mr. Smith's job transferring him away from their beloved home.

Judy Garland was at her career peak and never looked more beautiful on screen than here portraying the second eldest Smith daughter, Esther, trying to deal with the idea of moving from St. Louis just when she has found love with the boy next door (the forever bland Tom Drake). Leon Ames and Mary Astor offer strong support as Esther's parents and Margaret O'Brien steals every scene she's in as youngest Smith daughter Tootie.

A meticulously crafted film, with Judy offering three of her finest song performances with "The Trolley Song","The Boy Next Door" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." Her duet with O'Brien, "Under the Bamboo Tree" is also a delight.

This was the film that first brought Judy Garland together with 2nd husband Vincente Minnelli and his love for her is evident here...this film is Vincente's exquisite valentine to Judy.

Holy Crap, look at Gideon go! Was that the 4th or 5th review? I'm still trying to locate some of the noms (thought I had west side on Netflix, but of course they'd go and yank it the second I actually wanted to see it!), but I'll get to at least two in the comming days, and as I only have a few more noms from the Universal/Hammer HoF left, I should soon get rolling on these as well as the Music movie HoF.

EDIT: Scratch that, while I wrote my post, Gideon put up another one, so I guess it's the 6th now.

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Why not just kill them? I'll do it! I'll run up to Paris - bam, bam, bam, bam. I'm back before week's end. We spend the treasure. How is this a bad plan?

Correction, that was his 7th! Yup Gideon is on a roll.

Longer & more detailed reviews are great!...BUT...no one has to do that (unless they want).

Just write as much, or as little, as you want to. It doesn't even have be like a review or fancy. You can just write a brief paragraph or two, like you were telling a friend about the movie you watched last night.

Gideon IS on a roll!! And with some excellent technical tidbits to go with them as well.
Now that I know Pajama Game's dancing is Fosse I am even MORE excited by seeing it.
While it has been a few decades since I last saw Godspell, I even have it sitting on my DVR from last year, ready to go, I do remember "We Beseech Thee" from the Soundtrack record by oldest brother owned I'm kinda sad to be reminded that it won't be in the film - remember liking that song. Once again, "Day by Day" was my favorite and the most memorable and reading you review planted all sorts of seeds into my foggy memory.
Thank you for that.

And please forgive me, CR, I did not have time this afternoon to answer your question. Swing Time is my very first full movie For Astaire and Rogers. Seen a number of their dances through various tributes or hollywood memory shows WAAAY back in the day, but never actually watched one. Which made it an added treat.