Rating: 
Summary: ohhh baby! i luv this movie
Review: !!!I freaking luv this movie so much, I cant get enough of it!!! I have been watching it ever since i can remember, i guess i am not the ordinary teenage 15 year old girl... no one my age knows anything about this stuff! but anyways the dancing scenes rule, the cast, and the songs!!!!! i luv it!!!! so much thank you for reading y review maryanne
Rating: 
Summary: Great musical, an embarrassment for best picture
Review: "An American in Paris" is a great musical with great numbers and choreography. It had Gene Kelly at his best with good score. However, the story is too predictable, I was unable to remember the story like in most musicals except the special ones such as West Side Story or Fiddler on the Roof. While the movie is enjoyable, it was outrageous to give the best picture Oscar to this movie considering that there was almost no acting and quality directing especially given the competition that year. Let us be honest, who remembers Gene Kelly for his acting. That year had "A Streetcar Named Desire" with Marlon Brando and Vivian Leigh, having screenplay by Tennessee Williams and directed by Elia Kazan. That movie is still considered one of the greatest movies ever in most aspects, though it is harsh. Given the various dialogues and acting pieces in that and the incomparable Brando at his peak, I was sad that they awarded this movie the best picture. Though these two pictures are of different genres, they are so far apart in class, one is cheesy, the other classy, one stands the test of time, the other is slowly forgotten, and so on. It is sad that the academy made such a mistake, I hope that they do not repeat such errors. You cannot watch a movie just for song and dance, it has to have a decent story, classy dialogue and good acting. Sadly, I cannot accept that from this movie.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent film
Review: "An American In Paris" is an amazing film. It won the Oscar for Best Picture and Gene Kelly was awarded a special Oscar for his choreography. I, and I'm sure that most people would agree, feel that "Singin' In The Rain" is Gene Kelly's best film, but this is a close second.
Basic story: Kelly is an ex-GI who stuck around in Paris to become an artist. He's now an artist, but a struggling one. He meets Leslie Caron and through the wonders of movie musicals, he falls in love with her in about ten seconds. He starts his pursuit of her, but he is also being pursued by a wealthy older woman who wants to sponsor him in an art show. The woman is interested in more than Kelly's art and Caron also has her own problems. She is engaged to an older man whom she doesn't love, but rescued her during the war and so she feels indebted to him. However, even with all these complications we must remember that this is a '50s musical so there can only be one outcome, a good one. Also worth noting is Oscar Levant. He plays Kelly's best pal and brings his usual cynicism and humor to the role.
The plot is exceptionally good for a musical, but what makes a person watch this movie is the musical numbers. Gene Kelly does the dancing and George Gershwin's catalog is used for the music. What could be better? Kelly shows his "everyman" qualities by dancing in a small cafe, on a sidewalk with a swarm of French children, and in the apartment of his best friend. He also does an incredibly romantic dance with Leslie Caron to Gershwin's "Our Love Is Here To Stay". Its beautiful.
The whole movie climaxes in a 17 minute ballet finale. Yes, ballet. Now I don't like ballet, but Kelly brings such an earthy and sexy feel to it that you almost forget its ballet. There are elements of humor in the finale, but for the most part it is incredibly romantic. Its set to a beatiful orchestration of Gershwin's "An American In Paris" suite. The ballet is set on a massive scale, there are many dancers and the fact that Kelly was able to choreograph everything so flawlessly is just a testament to his genius. Everyone is different and for some this isn't a "rewatch" scene, but the first time you see it, it is breathtaking. It took me a few viewings before I think I fully appreciated everything that was going on in the scenes.
One last note, any woman who enjoys seeing good looking men must see this film. Gene Kelly is very handsome and has a strong, dancer's body. During the ballet he dons a skin-tight costume and struts across the screen. Women, keep a glass of ice water handy. Don't say I didn't warn you.
Rating: 
Summary: S'WONDERFUL ROMANCE ON THE BANKS OF THE SEINE
Review: "An American In Paris" is the charming Arthur Freed musical Oscar winner about a painter, Jerry Mulligan (Gene Kelly). An ex-G.I., Mulligan is a starving artist until a wealthy playgirl, Margo (Nina Foch) takes an interest in both him and his work. But Jerry, seemingly oblivious to Margo's romantic advances, begins to fall for young Parisian, Lise Bouvier (Leslie Caron). The wrinkle of the plot occurs when Jerry learns that Lise is engaged to marry his best friend, Henri Burell (George Guetary). The Gershwin score is among the finest produced for a musical with such indelible hits as "Embraceable You", "S'wonderful", "I Got Rhythm" and the immortal "American in Paris ballet." It was Gene Kelly who discovered Leslie Caron while on a vacation. She was performing in a Paris ballet. He brought her to America to star in this film. Apart from the opening sequence which sets up the film with vintage travelogue shots of Paris, the entire production was shot on a backlot at MGM. Reportedly, when Irving Berlin learned that Arthur Freed, Kelly and director, Vincente Minnelli were planning to end the film with a nearly 20 minute dance sequence and no dialogue, he curiously commented, "I guess you know what you're doing." Indeed they did. "An American In Paris" became the first musical to win Best Picture since "The Great Ziegfeld" made some twenty years before! Warner Brothers Home Video has presented this film on DVD in an adequate looking transfer that is a direct import from the MGM/UA initial release. Colors are well defined, nicely balanced and fully saturated. Occasionally there is a noticeable change in the color depending on the film stock. Age related artifacts are tempered. There are very few instances of digital anomalies for an image that is generally smooth throughout. The audio is mono but nicely balanced. Occasionally, dialogue sounds a bit strident and the music carries a slightly muffled characteristic. But these are expected shortcomings for a soundtrack of this vintage. There are NO extras.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent film
Review: "An American In Paris" is an amazing film. It won the Oscar for Best Picture and Gene Kelly was awarded a special Oscar for his choreography. I, and I'm sure that most people would agree, feel that "Singin' In The Rain" is Gene Kelly's best film, but this is a close second.
Basic story: Kelly is an ex-GI who stuck around in Paris to become an artist. He's now an artist, but a struggling one. He meets Leslie Caron and through the wonders of movie musicals, he falls in love with her in about ten seconds. He starts his pursuit of her, but he is also being pursued by a wealthy older woman who wants to sponsor him in an art show. The woman is interested in more than Kelly's art and Caron also has her own problems. She is engaged to an older man whom she doesn't love, but rescued her during the war and so she feels indebted to him. However, even with all these complications we must remember that this is a '50s musical so there can only be one outcome, a good one. Also worth noting is Oscar Levant. He plays Kelly's best pal and brings his usual cynicism and humor to the role.
The plot is exceptionally good for a musical, but what makes a person watch this movie is the musical numbers. Gene Kelly does the dancing and George Gershwin's catalog is used for the music. What could be better? Kelly shows his "everyman" qualities by dancing in a small cafe, on a sidewalk with a swarm of French children, and in the apartment of his best friend. He also does an incredibly romantic dance with Leslie Caron to Gershwin's "Our Love Is Here To Stay". Its beautiful.
The whole movie climaxes in a 17 minute ballet finale. Yes, ballet. Now I don't like ballet, but Kelly brings such an earthy and sexy feel to it that you almost forget its ballet. There are elements of humor in the finale, but for the most part it is incredibly romantic. Its set to a beatiful orchestration of Gershwin's "An American In Paris" suite. The ballet is set on a massive scale, there are many dancers and the fact that Kelly was able to choreograph everything so flawlessly is just a testament to his genius. Everyone is different and for some this isn't a "rewatch" scene, but the first time you see it, it is breathtaking. It took me a few viewings before I think I fully appreciated everything that was going on in the scenes.
One last note, any woman who enjoys seeing good looking men must see this film. Gene Kelly is very handsome and has a strong, dancer's body. During the ballet he dons a skin-tight costume and struts across the screen. Women, keep a glass of ice water handy. Don't say I didn't warn you.
Rating:
Summary: The whole is a treat; the quiet moments are a triumph.
Review: "An American In Paris?" "Singin' In The Rain?" Apples and pomegranetes. However, the dancing here is not to be believed- from Kelly's "I Got Rhythm" romp with the kids to the "Embraceable You" tableau of Leslie Caron in various styles and moods, to the much-discussed long ballet which ends the film. But for me, the quiet moments are what really make this a lovely, almost silky, film. After an awkward series of encounters (what musical dosen't have these?) Kelly and Caron's first date, which ends with the Seine River walk under the bridge, transforms into the gorgeous, deceptively simple song-and-dance, "Our Love Is Here To Stay." This sequence, with its after-hours lighting and fog-infused cinematography, is the 'brio' of romance. It is reminiscent of the 'Dancing In The Dark' pas-de-deux in "The Band Wagon," right down to the outdoor setting and Caron's swirling white dress. But the background colors- the muted blues and purples- give it a truly amorous sensation. And the choreography of small walking steps, sways, and lunges is not backbreaking and looks simple- as if anyone unrtained could do it. (Yeah, right.)
Rating:
Summary: It's Very Clear This Movie's Here to Stay
Review: 1951 was a tense year in America. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted of selling U.S. nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. In North Korea, truce negotiations failed. McCarthyism reigned and Hollywood suffered as many of its key players were blacklisted. It is no wonder, then, that the movie-going public sought lighter fare. With its simple script, lush color, and innovative choreography, An American in Paris was just the ticket. An American in Paris is the story of boy meets girl, boy gets girl-with not much in between. Gene Kelly plays Jerry, an ex-GI trying to make a go of it as an artist in the city of artist's garrets and cheap cheese. When he spots Lise (Leslie Caron) he knows instantly that she's the gal for him, and he sets about wooing and winning her, ignorant of the fact that she's dating Henri (Georges Guetary). Complicating things (but not much) is his wealthy patroness Milo (Nina Fochs). Another ex-patriot, Adam (Oscar Levant), plays the fifth wheel, adding comic relief to a script that doesn't need it. But people don't really watch this movie for the script, they watch it for the beautiful cinematography and the singing and dancing. The set design is gorgeously colorful, making Paris dangerously magnetic to anyone who might be making travel plans. This is the Paris of sweet children seeking bubble-gum, kind elderly Parisian ladies who break into dance in cafes, a happy nightclub scene on clean stone streets, and of course lavish flowers, safe riverbanks, and Parisian churches. It's a perfect setting for the score, which includes such songs as "Our Love is Here to Stay," "I Got Rhythm" (sung by Kelly with a team of little urchins), and "'S Wonderful". And the dancing is. Quite wonderful, culminating in a 17-minute ballet (choreographed by Kelly) at the climax. That things resolve just a little too quickly and easily thereafter will bother no dance fan-and all the moviewatchers who have a low tolerance for song-and-dance will have been flushed out of the room long before then. An American in Paris was Leslie Caron's first American film, shot when she was a just-turned 18. Her inexperience with movie making shows on the screen as kind of a gamine innocence and plays well with Kelly's confident American mien. The chemistry of all cast members (or should I say "the troupe") coalesces to make this musical a don't-miss. 4 stars for the average movie watcher; 5 if you're a big fan of dance.
Rating:
Summary: S'Wonderful
Review: A glorious movie that showcases Gene Kelly's breathtaking talent. Forget the silly story and just watch him dance and dance and dance. He does more with a turn of a shoulder than most dancers can do with their whole body. This movie also introduced the lithe and lovely Leslie Caron as the object of Kelly's affection. The film builds to its dramatic hallucinatory conclusion as Kelly dances his way across a Paris dreamscape, that brings all the elements of modern dance together in a tour-de-force that was unprecedented in musicals of that time. You can't help getting swept away in the feel-good spirit of this movie. It was another time and place.
Rating:
Summary: S'Wonderful
Review: A glorious movie that showcases Gene Kelly's breathtaking talent. Forget the silly story and just watch him dance and dance and dance. He does more with a turn of a shoulder than most dancers can do with their whole body. This movie also introduced the lithe and lovely Leslie Caron as the object of Kelly's affection. The film builds to its dramatic hallucinatory conclusion as Kelly dances his way across a Paris dreamscape, that brings all the elements of modern dance together in a tour-de-force that was unprecedented in musicals of that time. You can't help getting swept away in the feel-good spirit of this movie. It was another time and place.
Rating: 
Summary: Arrogance in Paris
Review: Although not a fan of musicals I did enjoy Gene Kelly in "Singing in the Rain." This movie, however, is no "Singing in the Rain." Kelly abandons his friendly demeaner and blusters his way through the film as a brash, arrogant artist. A wealthy society dame who is interested in more than his art begins partonizing him, and he eagerly soaks this up. That is, until he spies an attractive young woman at a nightclub. Abandonning his patroness he walks up to her and pretends to know her as part of a plan to bully her into dancing with him. When she expresses little interest in him, he stalks her to her place of employment and badgers her to go out with him. Did I mention that the woman is already engaged to a friend of Kelly's? If you think that this isn't the perfect recipe for romance, you haven't seen too many musicals. The arrogance of Kelly's character is minimal, however, compared to the overall arrogance of the film. Oscar Levant, for example, plays an completely extraneous role as Kelly's buddy. His only job in this film appears to be to make wooden one-liners, until we are offered a dream sequence where Levant plays every instrument in an orchestra while simultaneously conducting it and admiring it in the audience. While this does highlight Levant's obsessive love for himself, it makes for disturbing visual fare. Finally, there is the 17 minute ballet, an overblown production that brims with pretentiousness, does nothing to advance the "plot" and highlights the fact that the entire film was just a lead-up to this. The rest of Kelly's films were much better that this one, and frankly I can recommend any of them over "An American in Paris."
|
