Wednesday, May 23, 2018

The Belle of New York (1952), 7+ Color

In squeaky-clean New York at the turn of the century, playboy Charlie Hill falls so much in love that he can walk on air. The object of his affections is beautiful Angela Bonfils, a mission... 
1h 22min | Comedy, Musical, Romance | 22 February 1952 | Color
Director: Charles Walters
Stars: Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen, Marjorie Main, Keenan Wynn, Alice Pearce, Clinton Sundberg.
Robert Alton ... musical numbers staged and directed by
Marilyn Christine ... assistant choreographer (uncredited)
Alex Romero ... assistant choreographer (uncredited)
Helen Rose ... (costumes: women)


In the Tap! Appendix for Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen.

Songs performed (24 chapters with menu):
  • ch1. When I'm Out With the Belle of New York, Sung by chorus 
  • ch3. Who Wants to Kiss the Bridegroom?, Danced by Fred Astaire, chorus 
  • ch4. Let a Little Love Come In, Sung by Alice Pearce, Vera-Ellen (dubbed by Anita Ellis) 
  • ch6. Seeing's Believing, Sung and Danced by Fred Astaire 
  • ch9. Baby Doll, Sung by Fred Astaire, Danced by Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen 
  • ch11-2. Oops, Sung by Fred Astaire, Danced by Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen 
  • ch14-5. A Bride's Wedding Day Song (Currier and Ives), Sung by Vera-Ellen (dubbed by Anita Ellis), Danced by Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen 
  • ch19-20. Naughty but Nice, Sung and Danced by Alice Pearce, Vera-Ellen (dubbed by Anita Ellis) 
  • ch22. I Wanna Be a Dancin' Man, Sung and Danced by Fred Astaire 
  • ch24. When I'm Out With the Belle of New York, Sung by chorus, danced by FA, VE
Notice that nearly every song is danced. And danced by experts. With lovely & lively choreography. And a chroma key gimmick (which didn't look much better in 2017's La La Land). I'm particularly fascinated when FA is jumping between the horizontal flagpoles(?), how his feet manage to show under the pole.

I really noticed the cop (familiar face Henry Slate) who walked Alice P down the aisle in the rehearsal. What a great face and voice. This is his 7th film of 48, spanning 1938-1985.

When the gowns get fancy, they are terrific. The best is reserved for VE when she decides to sample the sinful life.

MM provides an excellent cranky-aunt-with-money persona.

So why not a higher rating? I was aware of thinking, during the film, "funny that it doesn't bother me that FA (b. 1899) is so much older than VE (b. 1921)." If it were a thoroughly engaging film, I shouldn't think about that at all.

I also wondered whether this was some sort of Guys and Dolls (original B'way run Nov 24, 1950 - Nov 28, 1953) derivative, without the Damon Runyon characters. FA is just a playboy, not shown to be involved in the underworld.

It's not just me; among FA's 39 films, this ranks 36 in IMDb average rating (6.2).

But I like the dancing.

MGM, dir. Walters; 7+
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