Simply Perfect

A Masterpiece!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

Not their best collaboration, my personal favourite is 'Winchester 73', but of the ones personally seen (not all but most) 'The Glenn Miller Story' is up there among their better ones. While there's more to see of their collaborations, none of the ones seen are less than good.Biopics are very difficult to get right, especially ones of famous people in entertainment (i.e. film) and music (composing, singing, playing instruments). For example often coming to life when in action (whether acting, singing, composing or playing), but some suffer from the biographical elements not faring as good, with a tendency to play fast and loose with the facts. There are some great ones, some good ones, some uneven ones and some hugely problematic ones.Luckily, 'The Glenn Miller Story' is one of the near-great ones. On a musical front it is nothing short of exceptional, no complaints there, but it was thoroughly enjoyable as a biopic too regardless of it not being a true account and very scratch surface because of not suffering from pacing or tone problems. Stewart is note-perfect in a role that plays to his strengths, despite him portraying a big band icon Stewart not only plays Miller with utter conviction but the performance also epitomises everything that Stewart himself is about and what made him such a great actor.'The Glenn Miller Story', when it comes to Mann is very much removed from his darker and more psychological westerns that also star Stewart (the films that he's perhaps chiefly famous for), but there is not once a sense that he is beyond his comfort zone in an atypical genre for him, far from it. To me, actually, even with a lighter touch (much needed), without it ever feeling too much, it is one of Mann's stronger overall directorial efforts when it comes to his collaborations with Stewart.As said to be expected, the music is exceptionally bewitching, with all the hits included and it was so wonderful to hear so many classics in one film. This said, 'The Glenn Miller Story' does have much more than a great performance and music. As well as June Allyson personifying charm and spunk, the supporting cast are just as good, with a superb Harry Morgan and cracking appearances from Louis Armstrong, Gene Krupa, The Modernaires and Frances Langford. The chemistry between Stewart and Allyson is irresistible, and 'The Glenn Miller Story' is handsomely mounted and beautifully filmed with lavish use of colour.Script-wise, 'The Glenn Miller Story' a vast majority of the time succeeds, with a nice and well balanced dose of humour that makes one feel good and tender sentiment, while the story's warm heart and bags of charm more than makes up for any misgivings of it being inaccurate and only scratching the surface. Really liked the characters and felt myself caring for them.My only complaints really are the rather too sudden ending that should have been more sombre and the central relationship being portrayed somewhat too perfectly and sugar coated, which does despite the irresistible chemistry mean that parts do fall into saccharine-overboard camp occasionally.In conclusion, a near-great film and it is easy to see why of all Stewart and Mann's collaborations 'The Glenn Miller Story' is generally one of the more fondly remembered ones. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Dramatizes the prolonged struggles of Big Band icon Glenn Miller to front his own financially viable band and to discover a signature band sound that audiences would embrace. It also serves as a tribute to his many popular songs after he discovered the band sound he was looking for. It also dramatizes his much resisted, eventually successful, attempt to somewhat modernize military march music, as exemplified by his "St. Louis Blues March", and his many off-the-parade-field entertainment performances for the troops and UK civilians, either live or via radio. It includes renditions of a dozen or so of his standards, plus various other numbers. The musical aspects are nicely mixed with his personal life, including financial woes, and his initially problematic resumption of his romantic relationship with his future wife, Helen(June Allyson). Once they connect, June is consistently a major player in the film. Fictional Chummy MacGregor(Harry Morgan) serves as Glenn's constant music and personal buddy throughout. After Glenn joins the service, he seems to be acting as his substitute in the Miller household. Buddy teams, of course, were a common device in Hollywood films. Sometimes, the two often were at odds with each other(reluctant buddies), which much added to the drama and comedy. The Dorsey brothers provided a real life example, much exploited in their biop. No such conflicts here. Of course, many of the specific details in Miller's personal life presumably were improvised.If you prefer to have the real Glenn Miller present in the film, you will have to try to find an old VHS or DVD copy of the two films that featured his band : "Sun Valley Serenade" and "Orchestra Wives". I rate the former as more entertaining than the present film, with the latter film being less so. I rate John Payne's character in the former film, as not far behind Jimmy Stewart, who plays Miller in the present film. However, Sonja Henie, the lead female in the former film, is much more interesting than June Allyson's character in the present film. Her impish character, determined to steal her chosen man from his fiancé, skiing and ice skating exhibitions, and occasional dancing and singing scenes, are far superior entertainment to June's rather bland character, admittedly constrained by historical considerations. Sonja added a youthful charm and spunkiness that June often brought to her '40s films, where she often included some dancing and singing, but which had somewhat faded in her '50s films, where she usually did straight dramatic roles.The present film includes about twice as many Miller standards as in "Sun Valley Serenade", including 5 numbers featured in that film, but excluding the theme song "It Happened in Sun Valley". Several were done more interestingly in that film. "I Know Why", from that film, was being played when Miller's trumpet player supposedly split his lip(looks very fake!), supposedly instigating Miller to conceive his signature band sound. None of the several new Miller standards from "Orchestra Wives" was included in the present film. "Little Brown Jug", not included in either of these films, pops up several times in the present film, including being the last song featured in the film, broadcast from Paris, after Miller's disappearance. Along with "Moonlight Serenade", it functions as the personal theme song for Glenn and Helen.Jimmy Stewart was an excellent choice to play Miller. We don't usually think of him as being a musical actor. However, in his pre-Hollywood days, he did some singing and musical instrument playing. In a few of his early films, he did a bit of singing, and played a music teacher and musical instrument store owner in "Pot 'O Gold". I wonder, if Miller had lived, would he have been asked to play himself in this film, as did the Dorseys in their film biop? Based on his performance in his two Hollywood films, Stewart provided a more pleasing personality and was much more at ease in films.June was also a good choice as Miller's sweet cheerleading wife, she and Stewart having been a popular lead team in "The Stratford Story". However, I found that this older June had lost some of her youthful appeal. She began her Hollywood career about a decade earlier, mainly as a singer/dancer with down home charm. Unfortunately, her historical role in this film didn't allow her any stage singing or dancing.In contrast to Miller and Helen, I liked the upbeat early version of "Moonlight Serenade", with words and a stage dancing routine. It's nice to try out radically different arrangements and contexts of standards. I also liked the too brief instrumental partial rendition of "Over the Rainbow", although this had not yet been composed in the historical period dramatized. ..The buzz bomb during the outdoor playing of "In the Mood" reminds us of the danger to Brits at home, even late in the war. However, recent thinking is that probably Glenn died from a British bomb ejected in a no-fly zone over the English Channel. The poor weather, as suggested in the film, may have contributed to this tragedy.

Glenn Miller suffered from the same criticisms that jazz musicians (Hancock, Turrentine, Hubbard) I listened to in the 70's suffered: he is too commercial. Jazz is supposed to allow for improvisation according to the "purists." Miller's heavily orchestrated music left little room for that.No matter, he dominated the charts and jukeboxes of the 40's just as Elvis and the Beatles would in the following decades because he developed a new sound that the kids went for.This film, starring the great James Stewart (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Philadelphia Story, It's a Wonderful Life) and June Allyson (Too Young to Kiss, The Stratton Story), with superb support by Harry Morgan ("M*A*S*H", "Dragnet") shows the struggles Miller went through to achieve his sound and his final success as a band leader up to his death in a plane crash (a la Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and Jiles Perry Richardson).The film not only has great music by Miller, but some of the big stars of the day in Frances Langford, Louis Armstrong, Gene Krupa, and Ben Pollack.A well deserved Oscar for Sound, and nominations for the musical score and the screenplay.Trivia: Like Amelia Earhart, Miller has never been found.

Major Miller spent a lot of his war here in the U.K. with the USAAF and frequently broadcast on the BBC ,sometimes using British service musicians. One such,the late Kenny Baker - a fine trumpeter - uncharacteristically starstuck,declared his admiration for the trombonist who looked at him for a minute then said,"Your hat's not on straight". Hard to imagine Mr J.Stewart's genial "aw shucks" bandleader being so hardass,but I guess nice guys finish last in showbiz just like everywhere else. "The Glenn Miller Story" first came to my attention in the mid 1950s when I bought a Louis Armstrong LP which contained a long version of "Basin Street Blues" which,according to the cover,was from the soundtrack of the film.Indeed the song was played by Louis and the All Stars in a nightclub scene where Miller sits in on the trombone,but although the format is similar,it is not the version on the album. I don't think Miller ever seriously considered himself a jazz musician certainly his big bands weren't jazz bands like those of his contemporaries Duke Ellington and Count Basie,but,on a good day with the the wind behind them they chugged along quite happily and fitted in well with the predominately white middle - class culture that haunted the movie - houses and ballrooms in the late 30s and early 40s. Old - timers like myself,hanging grimly on to life,only have to pick up a scratchy 78 of "String of pearls" as as we seek to broaden our wardrobe in some charity shop to be transported back to a world of Ration Books and Anderson shelters. And there's the rub.Miller's music hasn't been "relevant" for half a century - the film was released during the birth of the rock 'n' roll age - and is unlikely to appeal to the i - pod generation,so the future audience for "The Glenn Miller Story" is uncertain. Apart from Mr J.Stewart's performance and the reproduction of the sound of the Miller band,the film is pretty dire stuff.Miss J.Allyson is too sweet and All - American to be true,the clichés come thick and fast and ,as everybody know what is going to happen in the end,it's pretty hard to maintain any tension. Mr H.Morgan has the best of the feature roles - here is a man who never gave less than a fine performance.He gives a lesson in how to quietly steal a film. Buddy Rich - in his youth a drummer with Miller's great rival Tommy Dorsey - spoke for many musicians when he said "Glenn Miller should have lived - his music should have died".