tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post5551866241742274500..comments2024-03-05T21:05:36.848-05:00Comments on CommentaramaFilms: My Favorite Films: Dance MoviesAndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-34691997417567976592014-06-16T13:36:28.303-04:002014-06-16T13:36:28.303-04:00PDBronco, The Red Shoes is an excellent film. I de...PDBronco, <i>The Red Shoes</i> is an excellent film. I definitely recommend that one.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-11996162998262527702014-06-16T11:09:27.037-04:002014-06-16T11:09:27.037-04:00Two excellent "dance" films, films about...Two excellent "dance" films, films about the art of dancing, are missing from the list. <br /><br />"The Red Shoes" is a great movie about not only ballet but the conflict that can happen between the artistic soul and the emotional soul. Not only is the dancing beautiful, but the cinematography is gorgeous (especially since it was restored).<br /><br />"The Turning Point" is a more modern version of "The Red Shoes". This is the movie that made Baryshnikov much better known (along with his CBS special of "The Nutcracker"). Anne Bancroft and Shirley MacLaine are great in this as well.<br /><br />Gene Kelly tried an all-dance movie, "Invitation to the Dance". Unfortunately, this is hit-and-miss. There are some great sequences, but not all. Kinda like "Fantasia". But I'd recommend at least giving it a try. PDBronconoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-87407616277727056462014-06-16T00:48:38.582-04:002014-06-16T00:48:38.582-04:00John, I love that -- "Show me your paso doble...John, I love that -- "Show me your paso doble!"<br /><br />Excellent list. I liked <i>Black Swan</i> a lot.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-51485966456943755342014-06-16T00:47:26.509-04:002014-06-16T00:47:26.509-04:00Jimmy, I don't know that one.Jimmy, I don't know that one.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-50491249553379268402014-06-15T19:39:30.842-04:002014-06-15T19:39:30.842-04:00"Show me your paso doble!"
Strictly Bal..."Show me your paso doble!"<br /><br /><i>Strictly Ballroom</i> is a truly awesome movie, and hard to beat for its amazing dancing, although <i>Dirty Dancing</i> comes close. Here are a few other more recent ones...<br /><br />1. Happy Feet. Dancing in jacket and tie, antarctic style.<br />2. Shall We Dance, the remake. Not bad for Gere, with a nice line on marriage as a witness.<br />3. Billy Elliot. Atmospheric northern British stuff.<br />4. Black Swan. No, really!<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18105609617071999765noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-1993333594633261712014-06-15T18:59:14.118-04:002014-06-15T18:59:14.118-04:00Dancer in the Dark. The most depressing musical of...Dancer in the Dark. The most depressing musical of all time, but still a beautiful film.JimmyChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07728821176451346483noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-81798784726247879712014-06-15T16:27:14.134-04:002014-06-15T16:27:14.134-04:00Kit, I never saw that.
Collin, Agreed.Kit, I never saw that.<br /><br />Collin, Agreed.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-12848564409352220742014-06-15T16:26:44.114-04:002014-06-15T16:26:44.114-04:00Dave, Times have definitely changed. Hollywood wo...Dave, Times have definitely changed. Hollywood would be well served to learn to pull the camera back and let a scene unfold again instead of trying to hyper-edit everything.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-45221567513945851432014-06-15T15:54:07.759-04:002014-06-15T15:54:07.759-04:00Love Singin' In The Rain!Love Singin' In The Rain!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00608625547096317677noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-62470344557417385222014-06-15T14:15:15.254-04:002014-06-15T14:15:15.254-04:00When Joseph Gordon Levitt did "Make 'Em L...When Joseph Gordon Levitt did "Make 'Em Laugh" on SNL he was nearly hoarse at the end and appeared on the verge of passing out. Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-25777871310427274282014-06-15T13:05:10.205-04:002014-06-15T13:05:10.205-04:00One of the best numbers from Singin' in the Ra...One of the best numbers from <i>Singin' in the Rain</i> is "Fit as a Fiddle," in which Kelly reminisces about his vaudeville days with O'Connor. In contrast to the aforementioned <i>Chicago</i> and <i>Moulin Rouge</i>, the two minute sequence is comprised of four shots with precisely <a href="http://youtu.be/-Badf0ctYQo" rel="nofollow"> three cuts</a>. It was made in an era when actors had to do more than just look pretty while making faces on a screen.<br /><br />Dave Olsonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-43258901024098034562014-06-15T12:04:45.859-04:002014-06-15T12:04:45.859-04:00Jed, I don't think I've ever seen a Betty ...Jed, I don't think I've ever seen a Betty Grable film.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-52937826032631974472014-06-15T12:04:14.350-04:002014-06-15T12:04:14.350-04:00Floyd, I had the same problem with the dance numbe...Floyd, I had the same problem with the dance numbers in <i>Moulin Rouge</i> -- it was so heavily edited that I had no idea what was really going on. <i>Chicago</i> struck me as a total rip off of <i>Cabaret</i>.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-37673919005303557642014-06-15T09:43:59.098-04:002014-06-15T09:43:59.098-04:00I should also add the Betty Grable movies. Incredi... I should also add the Betty Grable movies. Incredible gams, and pin-up queen to the greatest generation. I say this with full acknowledgement that I've only seen a couple of them, and honestly can't recall the names of the films. But, the images of BG remain :)Tennessee Jedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10604275115906776992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-17529637003121466532014-06-15T08:38:44.427-04:002014-06-15T08:38:44.427-04:00Singin' in the Rainuniversally considered the ...Singin' in the Rainuniversally considered the best of them all. I personally enjoyed the Shirly Temple films. A personal favorite is 7 Brides for 7 Brothers with Howard Keel and Russ Tamblyn. That was one of the first movies I remember seeing as a young kid.Tennessee Jedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10604275115906776992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-743220785606406742014-06-15T05:46:41.179-04:002014-06-15T05:46:41.179-04:00Donald O'Connor was a 4-pack a day smoker so s...Donald O'Connor was a 4-pack a day smoker so see Make 'Em Laugh with that in mind and it's a miracle he lived past that (or into his 70s for that matter!)<br /><br />1. Singin' in the Rain -- always the top<br /><br />2. On the Town -- Gene Kelly, Ann Miller, Frank Sinatra, Betty Garrett, and the under-rated Jules Munshin... pure joy on film (as is Singin')<br /><br />3. The Band Wagon -- Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse (not a great actor, but absolutely stunning and a beautiful and sexy dancer)<br /><br />4. An American in Paris... I'm not much of a ballet fan, but the ending ballet with Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron is a sight to behold. <br /><br />5. Top Hat<br /><br />I enjoyed Chicago and Moulin Rouge as musicals, but the jump editing has destroyed dance sequences. I'm sure Catherine Zeta Jones is doing a great job in Chicago, but it's so heavily edited that we're watching 7 different versions spliced or edited together as opposed to one wide shot with a boom like a lot of the iconic dance movies.Floyd R. Turbohttp://www.threedonia.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-24158960093655556982014-06-15T01:11:39.994-04:002014-06-15T01:11:39.994-04:00Here is Debbie Reynolds telling the story of Fred ...Here is Debbie Reynolds telling the story of Fred Astaire helping her. Debbie was about 19 at the time (she says 17). He didn't actually teach her, he just showed her how tough it is, even for the greats.<br /><br />She also called him "the sweetest man, other than Jimmy Stewart."<br /><br />Length: 1min 20sec<br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ocpm_AFmSmE" rel="nofollow">LINK</a>Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-25854712932316914092014-06-15T01:00:28.299-04:002014-06-15T01:00:28.299-04:00Also, Donald O'Connor had to be hospitalized a...Also, Donald O'Connor had to be hospitalized after filming "Make 'Em Laugh". This is a scene that is so difficult, that most stage performances just skip most of the major athletic moments.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SND3v0i9uhE" rel="nofollow">"Make 'Em Laugh"</a><br /><br />More trivia: Donald O'Connor taught Debbie Reynolds how to do the run up a wall. And he and Debbie Reynolds later did a movie together called <i>I Love Melvin</i>. I've never seen it but it does have a cut scene of Donald O'Connor dancing on skates with a little girl.<br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPs0pmfL3Pk" rel="nofollow">LINK</a>Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-13404211975344430452014-06-15T00:59:27.643-04:002014-06-15T00:59:27.643-04:00She was eventually able to do the stuff she had pr...She was eventually able to do the stuff she had pretty well.<br /><br />It also makes me like Fred Astaire even more. Oh, and Astaire was a Republican! (As was Ginger Rogers)Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-30390393770918518142014-06-15T00:55:15.245-04:002014-06-15T00:55:15.245-04:00Interesting. It's kind of like being set up f...Interesting. It's kind of like being set up for failure.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-64920687294175178552014-06-15T00:50:03.294-04:002014-06-15T00:50:03.294-04:00Interestingly, I found The Birds kind of boring on...Interestingly, I found <i>The Birds</i> kind of boring on the big screen. <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i> was freakin' amazing (though it was not presented by TCM). <br /><br />Trivia: Debbie Reynolds was not a trained dancer when she was cast for <i>Singin' in the Rain</i>, though she was a gymnast. And several times Gene Kelly insulted her for her lack of dancing experience. Later, another actor, also a famous dancer, found her crying under a piano and offered to teach her dancing lessons. That actor was Fred Astaire.<br /><br />When she finished the "Good Mornin'" scene, (linked below), her feet were <i>bleeding</i>. <br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB2yiIoEtXw" rel="nofollow">"Good Mornin'"</a><br /><br />She later said, "Singin' in the Rain and childbirth were the two hardest things I ever had to do in my life." Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-90836298800596360322014-06-15T00:19:52.087-04:002014-06-15T00:19:52.087-04:00I didn't know that. Interesting.I didn't know that. Interesting.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-18731750143086768782014-06-15T00:17:11.287-04:002014-06-15T00:17:11.287-04:00TCM occasionally shows movies at cinemas nationwid...TCM occasionally shows movies at cinemas nationwide. Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-65653426909699528022014-06-15T00:13:19.995-04:002014-06-15T00:13:19.995-04:00Kit, I've never seen them on the big screen. ...Kit, I've never seen them on the big screen. I do like both films. To me though, I prefer the more modern stuff.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-75322523553280085582014-06-15T00:10:51.888-04:002014-06-15T00:10:51.888-04:00I would say Singin' in the Rain and Top Hat, w...I would say <i>Singin' in the Rain</i> and <i>Top Hat</i>, which I reviewed last Friday.<br /><br />I got a chance to watch <i>Singin' in the Rain</i> on the big screen. Wow!Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.com