Vincente Minnelli (1903–1986)

Although our DVD is Italian, it has other languages and we watched it in the original English. It's slickly done with a lot of excellent dancing, although the 17-minute extravaganza at the end was much too long for my tastes. There's some humour which I appreciated, and an interesting storyline.

What disappointed me was that too many threads are left hanging at the end. In the early part of the film, the shorter musical interludes blended well with the action. But towards the end, it seems show more that most of the subplots were for the sake of showcasing more music and dancing.

Worth seeing once, as this is a classic, but not one I'm likely to want to see again.

Longer review here: https://suesdvdreviews.blogspot.com/2024/02/an-american-in-paris-gene-kelly.html show less

A film starring Ethel Waters and Eddie "Rochester" Anderson (MGM, 1943).

A dead gambler is given six more months to live to try to get into Heaven.

C+ (Okay).

There's some good music, and some great dancing, but surprisingly little of either. I understand Lena Horne's solo number and Louis Armstrong's only number were both cut from the movie. Meanwhile, the dialog is written in exactly the style you'd expect from a 1943 Hollywood movie with an all-black cast.

(Feb. 2023)

2020 movie #64. 1960. Good performances from Hamilton and Peppard as half brothers (one illegitimate), the sons of a wealthy Texas land owner (Mitchum). A soap opera for sure but well acted and well told.

2022 movie #30. 1946. After a whirlwind courtship, a woman who describes herself as dowdy (Hepburn!) marries a rich inventor (Taylor). When she begins to wonder what happened to his missing brother (Mitchum) she starts to suspect her husband is a psycho. Good little thriller.