Tag Archives: Musicals

Juxtaposin’: Housework

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:

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Notes on “Viva Las Vegas”

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: “Viva Las Vegas” pulls off a nifty trick: it uses the corporatization of Elvis to augment and comment on his appeal. Elvis plays Lucky Jackson, a racecar driver whose fortunes belie his name. Ann-Margret is the … Continue reading

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Notes on “Let’s Go Native”

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: Like many early talkies, the 1930 “Let’s Go Native” is so effortlessly weird it serves as proof an innate American tendency toward surrealism. Jeanette MacDonald — still in her lingerie-naughty, pre-MGM phase — plays a Broadway … Continue reading

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Nightmare on Broadway

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: “Gold Diggers of 1935” is a pretty lame movie. Yet it includes what might be Busby Berkeley’s masterpiece: A musical fantasy sequence scored to “The Lullaby of Broadway.” Is it an exaggeration to call it one … Continue reading

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“A Damsel In Distress” (1937)

Blowhard, Esq. writes: A musical comedy co-written by P.G. Wodehouse, with music and lyrics by the Gershwins, and starring Fred Astaire is pretty much essential viewing for me. Although the film is usually regarded as one of Astaire’s post-Rogers flubs, I … Continue reading

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Bridging Distances

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: A filmmaker like Lubitsch makes you feel privileged for taking part in his naughtiness — like you’re in on the joke. But the naughtiness in this clip, from Renoir’s “French Cancan,” is of a different sort. Renoir … Continue reading

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Juxtaposin’: Stair Singing

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:

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“The Tree, the Mayor and the Mediatheque”

      Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: When you think of New Wave filmmakers who’ve delved into politics Eric Rohmer probably isn’t the first guy to spring to mind. And for good reason: he was always the group’s miniaturist-philosopher, a … Continue reading

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“The Kissing Bandit,” Frank Sinatra, and Ricardo Montalban

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes: I’ve been going through some of the lesser-known MGM musicals of late. There’s a lot of dreck hiding out in that celebrated body of work. But one of the things you quickly realize is that even … Continue reading

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Movies Used to be Awesome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhPIiw79iGQ Continue reading

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