Wow! Such a good movie.

Please don't spend money on this.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Captivating movie !

Dance team of future California Senator George Murphy and Fred Astaire play two guys who just can't seem to make it big. In a comedy of errors, Murphy lands the part that was meant for Astaire and to complicate matters, both guys fall for the leading lady, played by an exuberant Elinor Powell.Set to the music of Cole Porter, this is a most delightful film with all three dancers giving their very best to make it a memorable film.Powell has the perfect temperament for her role and shows that she can do a little ham acting besides that. Murphy, as the cad, comes to his senses. The tap dancing by Astaire and Powell is absolutely phenomenal.

Saw this yesterday from a DVD from Netflix. The quality was excellent. It was sharp and sound excellent. Problay clear than it was in the theaters in 1940. Watched it on 46 inch new LCD TV. as you know the cast and story line was typical on the 1930 era. There was an good add item on the DVD by Ann Miller that explained the filming of the movie. It concerned the sets and how they were constructed. The amazing "Begini the Bequne" production number. The 6500 sq. ft. glass floor and special built mirrors. As many know, MGM produced many excellent musicals. I think it was noted for this type of film. It was interesting to note that Dore Shary wrote the screen play and later became head of production.

"Broadway Melody of 1940", like its' predecessors, is all about music and dancing, strung together with the slightest of stories. Nobody watches these films with the intent of getting a good story. They want the entertainment.This is one of the better entries in the series. Mostly because of the fantastic dancing that is done by the two leads, Eleanor Powell and Fred Astaire. This is the only time that they were paired in a film, and it shows that when he's dancing, Astaire needs only one thing. Ginger Rogers. One of the major flaws in this film has nothing to do with the story. It has to do with the fact that Astaire and Powell really don't have any chemistry together. As others have said on this posting board, it really appears that while they are dancing the same steps, in the same scene, they couldn't be further apart, emotionally. It's been said that Astaire was afraid to dance with Powell because he felt that she was one of the few who could dance better than him. He's right.I would imagine that there must have been a great deal of hype when this film came out, about them dancing for the first time together. It's a shame that the results weren't better.George Murphy and Frank Morgan offer terrific supporting work.Worth renting, but ultimately disappointing.

Leaving aside the fact that the leads can hardly act they sure can dance. When the awful designs allow. Eleanor Powell wears some of the worst and most garish clothes I remember from a movie of this period. Even poor Fred Astaire is dressed in spangles for the start of the dreadful Begin the Beguine. That is the supposed highlight of the movie but is so overproduced and designed that the viewer gets worn out before the leads appear in simpler clothes and actually manage to dance with each other. Much more interesting is the opening Don't Monkey with Broadway, wittily danced by Astaire and George Murphy, the juke box number for Astaire and Powell, Astaire's charming solo, and the brief but amusing trio for the three leads right at the end. Oh, and lets not forget the dreadful Harlequin number which makes Powell look extraordinarily clumsy and which seems to exist to show off some fancy lighting cues.The plot is not worth bothering about beyond noting that it's even more preposterous than usual for this kind of movie. The whole endeavor has a witless, leaden feel. I'm not surprised that Astaire didn't make another movie with Powell. She can't act a lick and has no sex-appeal. When they do get a chance to dance together they are both magic, but she challenges him as an equal, athletic and dynamic, an equal, not a decorative partner there to set off his easy elegance.