Barnes & Noble

Gotta dance! And sing, and jump for joy (especially if there's an available puddle): That's the usual reaction to Singin' in the Rain, considered by many to be the greatest American musical ever made. A charming, often quite realistic look at the difficult transition from silent to sound cinema at the end of the 1920s, this sly backstage story has far more going for it than the brilliantly giddy, love-soaked Gene Kelly dance scene that will remain forever lodged in Hollywood's collective memory. It features a deliciously witty and original script by Betty Comden and Adolph Green; a hummable score consisting of period songs by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown; and, of course, high-flying choreography that ranges from vaudeville hoofing to ballroom to ballet, courtesy of Gene Kelly and director Stanley Donen. Kelly was simply born to play the egotistical but lovable Don Lockwood, star of the silent screen, who falls hard for a sweet chorine (Debbie Reynolds) he meets while trying to escape from some overly enthusiastic fans. Jean Hagen, who does a show-stopping turn as Lockwood's gorgeous but vocally challenged and vindictive costar, actually dubbed Reynolds's singing voice -- the exact reverse of what happens in this most delightful of all movie musicals. Karen Backstein

Barnes & Noble

When "popular culture" meets high art, will the show go on, or is it curtains for the cast? That is the question that sets this gorgeous late-MGM musical in motion. The supremely graceful Fred Astaire plays a washed-out film star who returns to the stage for one last shot at reviving his career. But when the pompous director of the show partners the easy going entertainer with a high-class ballerina (Cyd Charisse), the two just step on each other toes. Music and dance lovers will find much to treasure in Band Wagon: Astaire strolling down the street wistfully singing "By Myself" or turning an arcade into his personal playground in "A Shine on Your Shoes"; Nanette Fabray, Jack Buchanan, and Astaire dressed as infants in the comic gem "Triplets"; glorious duets between Astaire and Charisse; and a showstopping "noir" ballet that cleverly spoofs Mickey Spillane. At the time Band Wagon was made, Astaire, in real life, was actually experiencing many of the same problems as his character, yet his dancing never looked as beautiful as it does in this classic. Karen Backstein

Barnes & Noble

One of Hollywood's best movie musicals, the enchanting Vincente Minnelli hit Meet Me in St. Louis sits alongside The Wizard of Oz as one of the greatest Judy Garland films. Made and released in 1944, this tasty slice of Americana tells the story of a well-to-do midwestern family in 1903, secure and happy in their home yet unnerved by the prospect of imminent changes. Garland plays the oldest daughter of screen parents Mary Astor and Leon Ames, with Tom Drake supplying romantic interest and little Margaret O'Brien stealing scenes left and right as the precocious younger daughter. In the best tradition of Hollywood musicals, Minnelli eschews realism entirely; his St. Louis is an art director's dream, spotlessly clean and brightly colored. The same can be said for Garland's home and the costumes worn by her and her family. If early-20th-century American life was in the least bit inconvenient, you'd never know it from this film. But that hardly matters: Minnelli's St. Louis is a wonderful place to inhabit, if only for two hours. And those songs! Tunesmiths Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin wrote "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" for the movie, and the score also includes such standards as "The Boy Next Door" and "The Trolley Song." Finally, there's Garland herself: Radiant in Technicolor, young but already a seasoned pro, she is at her very best, long before illness and emotional disturbances sapped her vitality and diminished her beauty. Meet Me in St. Louis long ago took its rightful place among the pantheon of movie musicals, but its equally noteworthy for presenting a legendary star at the peak of her abilities. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Fred Astaire had announced his retirement before the cameras began to roll on Easter Parade, but he decided to accept the film's leading role when its original star Gene Kelly became incapacitated. The thinnish plot, which finds Astaire trying to turn chorus girl Judy Garland into a star in order to show up his former partner Ann Miller, is hardly what keeps the audience's eyes riveted to the screen. All that truly matters are the 17 musical numbers, all written by Irving Berlin (ten were standards, while seven were new to this film). Among the many highlights are Astaire's slow-motion version of "Steppin' Out," the Astaire/Garland duet "We're a Couple of Swells," the opening rendition of "Happy Easter," and the closing performance of the title number. So successful was Easter Parade that plans were immediately drawn to reteam Fred Astaire and Judy Garland in The Barkeleys of Broadway; this time, however, it was Garland who withdrew, to be replaced by Astaire's most famous vis-à-vis, Ginger Rogers. Hal Erickson

All Movie Guide

Sally Benson's short stories about the turn-of-the-century Smith family of St. Louis were tackled by a battalion of MGM screenwriters, who hoped to find a throughline to connect the anecdotal tales. After several false starts (one of which proposed that the eldest Smith daughter be kidnapped and held for ransom), the result was the charming valentine-card musical Meet Me in St. Louis. The plot hinges on the possibility that Alonzo Smith (Leon Ames), the family's banker father, might uproot the Smiths to New York, scuttling his daughter Esther (Judy Garland)'s romance with boy-next-door John Truett (Tom Drake) and causing similar emotional trauma for the rest of the household. In a cast that includes Mary Astor as Ames' wife, Lucille Bremer as another Ames daughter, and Marjorie Main as the housekeeper, the most fascinating character is played by 6-year-old Margaret O'Brien. As kid sister Tootie, O'Brien seems morbidly obsessed with death and murder, burying her dolls, "killing" a neighbor at Halloween (she throws flour in the flustered man's face on a dare), and maniacally bludgeoning her snowmen when Papa announces his plans to move to New York. Margaret O'Brien won a special Oscar for her remarkable performance, prompting Lionel Barrymore to grumble "Two hundred years ago, she would have been burned at the stake!" The songs are a heady combination of period tunes and newly minted numbers by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin, the best of which are "The Boy Next Door," "The Trolley Song," and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." As a bonus, Meet Me in St. Louis is lensed in rich Technicolor, shown to best advantage in the climactic scenes at the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904. Hal Erickson

All Movie Guide

Hollywood, 1927: the silent-film romantic team of Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) and Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) is the Toast of Tinseltown. While Lockwood and Lamont personify smoldering passions on screen, in real life the down-to-earth Lockwood can't stand the egotistical, brainless Lina. He prefers the company of aspiring actress Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds), whom he met while escaping his screaming fans. Watching these intrigues from the sidelines is Cosmo Brown (Donald O'Connor), Don's best pal and on-set pianist. Cosmo is promoted to musical director of Monumental Pictures by studio head R. F. Simpson (Millard Mitchell) when the talking-picture revolution commences. That's all right for Cosmo, but how will talkies affect the upcoming Lockwood-Lamont vehicle "The Dueling Cavalier"? Don, an accomplished song-and-dance man, should have no trouble adapting to the microphone. Lina, however, is another matter: put as charitably as possible, she has a voice that sounds like fingernails on the blackboard. The disastrous preview of the team's first talkie has the audience howling with derisive laughter. On the strength of the plot alone, concocted by the matchless writing team of Betty Comden and Adolph Green, Singin' in the Rain is a delight. But with the addition of MGM's catalog of Arthur Freed-Nacio Herb Brown songs -- You Were Meant for Me, You Are My Lucky Star, The Broadway Melody, and of course the title song -- the film becomes one of the greatest Hollywood musicals ever made. Hal Erickson

All Movie Guide

One of the most subtle and sophisticated of the musical comedies that came out of MGM's Arthur Freed Unit in the '40s and '50s, The Band Wagon stars Fred Astaire as Tony Hunter, a movie star whose career is in a downturn. Looking for a boost, Tony decides to try starring in a Broadway musical. His friends Lester and Lily Marton (Oscar Levant and Nanette Fabray) have written a show they feel would be just right for Tony, and the three team up with Jeffrey Cordova (Jack Buchanan), a self-styled "genius" director, who gets the idea to turn the play into a revised version of Faust. Cordova's more pretentious ideas don't always sit well with the Martons, and Tony isn't too happy with his leggy co-star, Gaby Gerard (Cyd Charisse), whom he's convinced is too tall (then again, she thinks he's too old). But when the show proves a disaster in out-of-town tryouts, everyone realizes they have to put aside their differences if they want a show that will be on Broadway for longer than four hours. The Band Wagon featured a rare American appearance for British musical star Jack Buchanan, who does a fine soft-shoe with Fred Astaire on "I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan." Astaire also shines in the numbers "Shine on Your Shoes" and "The Girl Hunt," a witty Mickey Spillane parody. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 883929058976
• Source: TURNER HOME ENT
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Pan & Scan
• Language: English
• Time: 7:11:00
• Sales Rank: 404

This set contains DVDs which may be available separately:

• Easter Parade
• Meet Me in St. Louis
• Singin' in the Rain
• The Band Wagon

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