Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers 1937

Well, it was time for another Fred Astaire–Ginger Rogers film. They're all being kicked off of HBOmax at the end of the month, and I hadn't seen very many of them, so here we are. Tonight it was their 1937 offering, Shall We Dance. This film is definitely better than Swing Time (1936) and Carefree (1938), the two films that sandwich it, but, like both of those films, Shall We Dance is preciously short on musical numbers. This is the thing that I really do not understand about these Astaire–Rogers movies. Why is there so much plot and why is there so little song and dance? They are singer-dancers. Why aren't they doing that for most of the movie?

What makes Shall We Dance much better than the others is that this film stars the brilliant comedians Edward Everett Horton and Eric Blore in supporting roles, and they're both absolutely hilarious. But Rogers – as she does in the other two films – sort of glowers her way through the movie. I know that she really wanted to be acting in more serious roles instead of doing this kind of hoofing, but making these parts more dramatic makes them much less entertaining. 

Shall We Dance's music is by the Gershwins and it's excellent, of course. Shall We Dance introduced the world to "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off", and if that weren't enough, it also introduced the world to "They Can't Take That Away from Me". Both songs are obviously now standards, although "They Can't Take That Away from Me" somehow lost the Oscar to "Sweet Leilani" from Waikiki Wedding (a song to which I couldn't sing you a single note).

Anyway, I think these films all have the same problems, honestly. They're weirdly directed. Their timing is off. And more importantly, they just don't have enough music in them. The Astaire–Rogers films behave as if the plot is important, when it doesn't matter one bit. I know this is not a popular opinion, but I'd opt for an Astaire–Hayworth picture or an Astaire–Charisse picture over an Astaire–Rogers picture any day of the week.

Carefree

I didn't like Swing Time, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' 1936 pairing (their sixth) and, although I guess I liked Carefree from 1938 a bit more, it has all the same problems. In the first place, it's obsessed with plot, with so much writing that it can't seem to squeeze in musical numbers – there are only four in this film and one of them is in slow motion. I don't understand this, although I suppose Ginger Rogers really must have seen herself as an actress, and she imbues this character with lots of feeling – the character she's created is actually quite sensitive and deep.

But this sort of goes directly against what I understand the point of a movie like this to be. I would like dance numbers and I would like singing. Instead Carefree gives us plot twists. It does have comedy, don't get me wrong. And some of it is actually funny. Hattie McDaniel gets two excellent laughs, and Luella Gear and Jack Carson have some good bits. I'm wondering, now that I think about it, if this change in the way the movie musical is working is related at all to the new and more serious ("integrated") book musicals that were happening at the Princess Theatre. It seems to me like Carefree and Swing Time are trying something – and it might make sense to look at them as part of similar attempts at the Princess.

And although this movie is directed by Mark Sandrich and not George Stevens, Carefree contains the same kind of weird fade-outs that Swing Time has. We stay in a scene just a bit too long and we fade out on this bit of plot in order to further complicate something that isn't the least bit complicated.

Carefree's weirdness is compounded by the basic smarminess of Astaire's character in this film. When we first meet him he's a sexist doctor. And then as the film progresses he hypnotizes the woman who loves him and then betrays his very good friend. When Astaire and Rogers walked down the aisle at the end (because of course they did), I wasn't sure this is what I wanted to happen at all.

I watched this on HBOmax, and I'm going to see another one – Shall We Dance – before it leaves at the end of this month. Maybe I'll like that one.

Happy Holidays

Ok, so these are not all holiday movies, but I am in Los Angeles now and in the seasonal spirit. It's colder here (than in Florida; I guess that isn't saying much) and the leaves are all multi-colored and covering the ground. It's quite lovely, actually. The movie-watching has begun. I have been spending time doing things for pleasure instead of work since Tuesday night and only this morning did I pick up a book I'm reading for my thesis. On the plane ride over, in fact, I didn't even look at Violence and Its Causes or Reading Rape or Sweet Violence, all of which I need to be read-up on before I go back to Tally. Instead, I read Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass which is easily the most fun I've had reading a book since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows... maybe even a little more fun because I know there are two more books in the series. The Golden Compass is a must-read: fun, imaginative, action-packed, beautifully written and very, very smart.

The first movie I've seen since school got out is Kevin Lima's Enchanted, which I liked but didn't love. It has a lot of very funny moments, but at times it's cloyingly sweet and sometimes the princess played by Amy Adams seemed a little too much like Forrest Gump for my comfort. Enchanted works best when it is committed to being a musical. The central park number "How Does She Know?" is by far the best set piece in the show. James Marsden is absolutely brilliant, too. He should be getting tons and tons of work. He was a hit in Hairspray, too, I thought. The guy obviously has talent to spare.

I also caught Noah Baumbach's Margot at the Wedding, and the best way I can describe it is to say how smart it is. Baumbach understands families incredibly well and his portraits of deeply neurotic people and their equally neurotic dependencies on their families are scathingly intelligent. The thing is, I'm not sure that this kind of precise, clever storytelling makes for a very enjoyable moviegoing experience. I felt this way about The Squid and the Whale, too. I respect both of these films enormously and I find them engaging and well-crafted, but I don't really like any of the characters, and so I don't really like the movies as much as I think they are good. I need to mention here, though, that Nicole Kidman is perfect in this role. And she gives a knockout performance. She's a smart actress, so it makes sense that she would flourish in Baumbach's world, but I think this is Kidman's best performance in years. Truly great. I don't think she's picking up much awards traction for this little movie (the writing is really what the movie showcases, and most likely what will grab the Academy's attention), and I think that's rather a shame. She's doing excellent work here.

...and for a little Christmas cheer, my sister and cousin and I watched Holiday Inn (1942) with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. It's a bizarre little film that, I guess, most people have seen before. I hadn't. It's also the movie that gave us the song "White Christmas," but I have to say I like the film White Christmas much, much better than Holiday Inn, which has an inane (and slightly sexist) plot. Most of the songs are forgettable, too. There is one song that is completely unforgettable, though, and that is the song that Bing and Marjorie Reynolds sing for Lincoln's Birthday... in blackface. It's called "Abraham" and aside from being totally catchy, it's also jarringly dated. Watching Reynolds as a pickaninny, that old racist stereotype of black children, is jawdropping. I was aghast. The Independence Day number is also rather jawdropping. It's a blatant piece of war propaganda shoved into the middle of a film that is ostensibly a musical comedy. Bizarre. But every time Fred Astaire hits the dance floor, I forget about the rest of it. Astaire's character is a total heel in the movie, but his dancing is impeccable and at times almost transcendent. There is a fabulous number called "Easy to Dance With" that comes early in the film, but the highlight is easily Fred's drunk number. He performs this with Marjorie Reynolds all the while dancing as though he is almost dead drunk. It's exhilarating to watch.

I'm in Los Angeles, now, so more movie reviews to come.
P.S. I'm here for three weeks, so let's hang out if you're in the city.

The (Not-so) Gay Divorcee

A couple nights ago I sat down and watched The Gay Divorcee, which is very badly titled, if you ask me. Firstly, it's not very gay at all not really about gay people, though it is kinda gay (I mean, I liked it, so that means it's at least a little gay—I have no idea what I'm talking about). Secondly, it's not really about a divorcee. The eponymous divorcee (Ginger Rogers) is the object of the main character's affection. Fred Astaire chases Ginger Rogers (Americans loose in Britain) from London to a little town by the beach where they fall in love and dance. It's quite charming, really. Alice Brady also stars as Ginger Rogers' doddering aunt, and she's wonderfully hilarious. (She would be Oscar-nominated for a similar role in the following year's My Man Godfrey.) The songs in the film are great, the classics being "Night and Day" and "The Continental", a song which—and I wouldn't joke about this—lasts for a total of sixteen minutes. It's a nice tune, but it was beginning to wear on me by the time all the dancing was through. (And then, of course, they bring it back for a little reprise at the end of the film.) This movie's a classic, though, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Alright, I need to go read a play or something.

I'm coming to Los Angeles in less than three weeks!

P.S. I freaking love The Light in the Piazza. Victoria Clark is fabulous.