Thanks for the memories!

Sick Product of a Sick System

One of my all time favorites.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

The story is pretty familiar, 3 sailors get 24 hours shore leave, and sing and tap dance there way through New York City circa 1949. The film seems to harken back to a few years earlier when every mothers son was going off to save the World, and a 24 hour leave could be the last chance to be alive before heading out to The South Pacific or tangling with Uboats in the Atlantic. With the War as a backdrop the film would have little more poignancy and charm. Three sailors who have never been within a thousand miles of a real battle, and biggest problem is boredom, desperately need to fall madly in love within 24 hours, is a bit silly, but who cares , certainly not me, when the cast is charming and the songs catchy. The entertainment outweighs the shell of a story. The film begins with a bang, the show stopping number of show stopping numbers; "New York,New York" . 1949 New York was sort of the unofficial capital of the "New" world. This is a romanticized version of New York to be sure, a sweet Disney version of it, a city of museums, dance studios, night clubs and tourist attractions, even the police are whimsical. Anyone seeing this and thinking its the real New York City will be disappointed , its the flip side of more realistic movies from that era like "On the Waterfront" or "Sweet smell of success" but to be frank it's a New York we would all like to live in, or revisit many times especially with Navy men dancing around the top of the Empire States building and pretty cab drivers on every corner, a city of magic and magical happenings.Of the three sailors Sinatra comes off as the sweetest, Kelly comes off a bit strange, feeling it is his mission to find the girl he spots on a poster, and spends the next hour doing just that, but it's okay because she wouldn't have it any other way.-hey, its a musical after all.There is a nice ballet sequence with Kelly towards the end, that foreshadows his work on " American in Paris"In short it's a delightful way to spend 2 hours and wonderful entertainment. As well as an interesting time capsule of New York in the Golden age of post war America.

While not as good or iconic as a musical like "Singin' In The Rain" this is really a great movie for being so much fun with such great people like Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra involved. This movie tells the story of a trio of sailors who go to New York City and find girlfriends as they go along. This is just such a cute movie with everything done in high spirits. It was rare for films to be in color at this time and this definitely earns it. Everything is colorful in every sense of the word. There are some really funny moments here, especially the scene where the one sailor is hanging over the building.Some of the gags might not hold up that well, but this was an early instance of movies using them. I really was reminded of some old classic "Looney Tunes" cartoons with all the wacky antics these characters got into. It also helps that it's really a realistic movie. Everything doesn't work out perfectly for everyone in the end and it makes sense given the context of the story. When I hear of a song called "New York, New York" I think of "The Heart Of Rock & Roll". It actually does remind me of when I used to live in Pennsylvania and took trips to NYC. This is just a pleasant and elegant movie. ***1/2

Over 60 years since this film was made, but still better than most pictures produced today.3 sailors on an over night shore leave go to sight-see New York, day and night. They sing, dance and laugh their way through various adventures including romantically.Super songs, great dance routines, and a marvelous funny script. Good insight into the culture of a different generation. Lots of style and elegance and in the nicest possible way a good dose of "camp".The only reason I cannot give the top vote is that in my opinion some of the dream sequences seem forced and out of place.Alice Pearce as Lucy Schmeeler gives a hilarious performance and steals the whole film.New York, New York: what a wonderful town!8/10.

On the Town (1949)There is so much going right with this movie--from the photography (yes) by Harold Rossen and the music (famously) by Leonard Bernstein, from the leading actors (Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly) to the directors (Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly)--it's hard to realize how dated or almost bad some moments have become. This is delightful, fantastic, and inspired stuff, total fun top to bottom. But it also has moments that are cringe inducing.And I like musicals.If you don't like musicals in particular, you should start with specimens with wider appeal, and higher standards: "Singin' in the Rain" and "West Side Story" would work for me, if we're talking classics. Throw in "Swing Time" or "Top Hat" if you want an Astaire classic, too. Or a Garland singing musical.This one is from the amazing run of polished hits by producer Arthur Freed. The choreography varies from excellent to wonderful. If it's choreographed dancing you like, check this out. Some of the format it is from the standard style of the Golden Age, where the characters break into song or dance in the middle of their normal doings--in this case, three sailors racing through Manhattan on 24 hour leave.Other parts have choreography, probably by Gene Kelly, that becomes abstract and cinematic, a Hollywood innovation (also seen, famously, in "Singin' in the Rain" and "An American in Paris"). The scenes, whether stylized or realistic, are fabulous. The standards are high--space, light, and control of color (Technicolor, of course) inside and out.What drags the movie down is some awful writing, both in the dialog and even in some of the songs. I know lots of musical lovers who don't give a hoot if the lyrics make sense or are especially good--they become secondary to the rest of it, and the artifice is part of the game. But I know others who, like me, prefer the clever, the lyric, the original. And there are some real wincing moments.And in fact, the movie as a whole is awkward, a series of vignettes that do eventually string together into a chronology, but they hardly have to. They survive, or struggle, independently. Some of the acting is forced and you may or may not like the sidekicks like the third sailor, who's just too comic and goofy for my taste. Even the lead actresses, Ann Miller and Vera-Ellen, are no match for Debbie Reynolds, let alone Judy Garland.Now, let's finally add--the best of the songs, and the dancing and photography, are top notch. For all musical lovers. The great final pieces at about 1:17 into the movie is amazing stuff.Note: Bernstein's music originated in a ballet, "Fancy Free," which turned into the Broadway play "On the Town" in 1944. But when this film was made, most of Bernstein's music was replaced with new stuff--some of which is the mediocre music that brings the production down a notch.At times the biggest star in the show is New York itself. Love it.