Excellent, a Must See

A Disappointing Continuation

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Forget about topnotch tap-dancer, Fred Astaire being teamed up with Ginger Rogers - It's Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powell (here in "Broadway Melody of 1940") who were the real, true dancin' dynamic duo of the dance floor. There's no question about it.And forget about this movie having much of a story to back it up - (Who cares?) - It's the musical numbers and its dancers (who really kick up their heels) that are the real stars of the show in this lavish production.Yep. If you enjoy movie-musicals from Hollywood's golden era - Then - This is the one for you. Believe me - The dancing doesn't get any better than this, with songs written by Cole Porter, including the sensational "Begin the Beguine".

A film from Hollywood when it was indeed the world's dream factory. Seventy years old... Black and white... mono sound... and it's probably the best film I've seen in six months. I've seen most of the Astaire- Rogers films but somehow this one escaped me. It is stunningly great. Cole Porter's ageless music... Fred Astair's classy persona and wonderful dancing... Eleanor Powell who indeed outshines Ginger Rogers... The production numbers are all the more remarkable when you realize the technology of the day was primitive by comparison with now. (One amazing scene where Astaire and Powell are dancing while their rear image is seen in a mirror at the back of the stage. Yet there is no reflection of the lights or cameras.) The world was pretty bleak in 1940. The depression was still being felt. Hitler had conquered most of Europe. France and Britain were about to collapse (France did. Britain almost did.) Here in Canada we were already at war. Yet for twenty-five or fifty cents you could buy 90 minutes of joy, glamour, beauty and fantasy. (Plus a cartoon, a short and a newsreel.)

George Murphy and Fred Astaire are a dance team that has struggled for five years. Now, one of them is about to be offered the lead in a big Broadway extravaganza--the only problem is that through a mix-up, the wrong guy has been signed for the part. And, that guy is unreliable, a bit selfish and getting a swollen head.While the plot of this film has quite a few clichés and a few of the dance numbers have flat moments, this is a definite must-see for lovers of dance. The film pairs the best male and female tappers in Hollywood (Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powell) and has some very able assistance from George Murphy--one of the few men who could keep up with Fred on the dance floor. The dance numbers are amazing--with tons of energy, grace and athleticism. The two best numbers are the opening on with Fred and George as well as the first number with Fred and Eleanor. In between, Fred actually dances alone on several occasions and these scenes are delights as well. The flat moments I mention included PARTS of the final big number, 'Begin the Begine'--as the operatic warblings and showiness really detracted from the fact that Fred and Eleanor were amazing together. But the wonderful dancing in the rest of the film make it easy to overlook the overly produced parts and it's a joy to watch.

Broadway Melody Of 1940 was the final of four glorious backstage musicals that MGM did. I suspect that others could have been done, but World War II among other things changed public tastes quite radically. The musical like every other film genre was bent for propaganda during those years.But in peace or war you can't beat the dancing of Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powell with George Murphy thrown in for good measure. What's better than these three singing and dancing a Cole Porter score.In a story that curiously enough reflected their lives as well Fred and George are a dance act which is barely getting by. Eleanor Powell needs a partner for her new show and through a mix up that was a plot device worthy of one of Fred's films with Ginger, her producer's mean to hire Fred, but hire George instead.George Murphy would have been the first to say this real life as opposed to dialog on the screen. But right at the beginning he identifies Astaire as the creative one on the team. Murphy was a fine song and dance man, but he would never claim to be anything like Fred Astaire in terms of creativity.One of Cole Porter's biggest hits and my personal favorite of all of his songs comes from this film. I Concentrate On You is sung by young baritone Douglas MacPhail and then danced by Astaire and Powell. This is a song that will live as long as mankind can make music. A great song about following your heart. Incredibly enough, not even nominated for Best Song that year. The best versions of the song were recorded by Perry Como and Frank Sinatra.With all the talent involved in this film, you can't go wrong watching Broadway Melody of 1940.