Can-Can (1960) Review

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(More customer reviews)Shirley MacLaine and Frank Sinatra kick up their heels in CAN-CAN, the sparkling film adaptation of the Cole Porter musical comedy.
The setting is the Montmatre district of Paris, circa 1896. The can-can dance has been ruled as immoral and scandalous by the polite society, but that doesn't stop Simone Pistache (Shirley MacLaine) from performing the routine at her cafe. She is helped by her boyfriend--crooked lawyer Francois Durnais (Frank Sinatra). Simone's happy existence comes crashing down when she's arrested on the orders of the new district judge, Philipe Forrestier (Louis Jourdan).
Francois decides that the best way for Simone to continue her activities is to seduce Philipe. Pretty soon, Simone has well and truly fallen for his charms, but the hilarious love triangle has only just begun!...
This version of Cole Porter's 1953 Broadway musical is a very enjoyable, breezy viewing experience. The costumes from Irene Sharaff are lavish, and the art direction is flawless. MacLaine and Sinatra (continuing the screen partnership they had established with "Some Came Running") have a very fun rapport. Maurice Chevalier and Louis Jourdan switch on their Gallic charm to maximum effect here.
The original Cole Porter tunestack was augmented with "You Do Something to Me", "Let's Fall in Love", and "Just One of Those Things"; whilst several extra character numbers were deleted ("If You Loved Me Truly", "Allez-Vous-En", "Never Give Anything Away"). The score was lushly arranged and conducted by Sinatra's frequent collaborator Nelson Riddle.
Choreography from Hermes Pan is full of colour and excitement. MacLaine (with the help of a life-sized dummy) is thrown and throttled in a precision-drilled "Apache Dance", and leads the troupe in the "Garden of Eden" Ballet. Juliet Prowse, as Claudine, offers a top performance, too.
TRIVIA: During her early Broadway days, Shirley MacLaine briefly considered applying for Gwen Verdon's understudy in "Can-Can".
The brand-new 2-disc DVD from Fox's "Marquee Musicals" series presents a beautifully-restored print, in complete Roadshow length with overture, intermission and exit music sequences. Extra features on the second disc include "A Leg Up: The Making of Can Can" which delves into the history of the Broadway musical (and features some superb rare footage of Gwen Verdon from the original production). "The Classic Cole Porter" offers a brief glimpse into the life of the celebrated composer. "Book by Burrows" is a salute to CAN-CAN's original author Abe Burrows with reminisces from his children.
The "Restoration Comparison" allows to you see the new DVD master with the earlier 1993 video/laserdisc release-print, and it's quite evident that the good people at Fox have gone above and beyond to restore CAN-CAN to it's original brilliance. There are also some still galleries plus the trailer. In addition, Fox has packaged a set of four postcard-sized lobbycards in the DVD case!
The new edition of CAN-CAN is a must for all fans of the classic musicals.

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A 1890's Montmartre Dance Hall Owner Constantly Raided For Performing The Illegal Can-Can Has To Use Her Own Resources When An Elderly Judge Is Replaced By A Younger More Serious One. Based On Abe Burrow'S Play. Music By Cole Porter.

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Romance on the High Seas (1948) Review

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(More customer reviews)Doris Day began her long and phenomenally successfully screen career when she arrived on the Warner Brothers lot in 1947 to begin filming "Romance on the High Seas".
The project had been kicking around the lot for a while and there had been, at various times, talks about borrowing Judy Garland from MGM or Betty Hutton from Paramount to star in it.
At the time Doris Day was a recognized singer with a very successful six year career as a top big band and solo vocalist to her credit, including a couple of Gold Records. She had no interest in pursuing a film career but was heard singing at a Hollywood party, was screen tested, and the rest is cinema history.
"Romance on the High Seas" is a glossy, bon-bon of a film, decked out in lush settings, with a lot of nice-looking people, pleasant tunes, and wrapped up in some breathtaking technicolor. It's irresistable.
The plot involves a married couple who don't trust one another. The husband hires a private eye to follow the wife on a cruise she is taking to find out if she is being faithful. In the meantime, the wife hires someone to take her place on the cruise so she can remain in New York City to check up on the husband. The private eye falls in love with the woman who is purporting to be the wife and by the closing minutes of the film all of the confusion has been settled to everyones' satisfaction, especially the audiences.
Thanks to the skill of Director Michael Curtiz, who keeps the proceedings moving along smoothly and the attractive cast making the improbabilities rather believable, it works much better than it sounds.
The husband and wife are played by Don DeFore and Janis Paige. It's clearly evident why Defore's movie career was never stellar. On television's "Hazel" he was more at home.
Miss Paige handles her limited screen time with grace and charm. She wears a stylish wardrobe attractively but displays not one iota of chemistry with DeFore.
Jack Carson, as the detective, tends to overact in a number of scenes but in his scenes with Doris Day there is genuine warmth and, at times, subtlety. This was the first of three films they made together and it is clear that their personal friendship contributed to their on-screen playing.
Although billed fourth in the credits, Doris Day stole the picture and received the lion's share of acclaim from critics and moviegoers.
She is a natural, and it's difficult to believe that this is her first film. She has a natural affinity with the camera and it has a love affair with her. In color, she is a radiant dream, genuine, sincere, unaffected, and heartfelt. There are already traces of the comic timing and skill that would serve her so well in her later box-office blockbusters in the 1950's and 60's.
As a "dreamer" who hangs around a travel agency wanting to go someplace, there are traces of Betty Hutton in her style, but once she gets her chance to masquerade as Paige's wife, she develops her own unique personality that has the audience clearly on her side.
S.Z. "Cuddles" Sakall is his usual self and Oscar Levant, the famed author, wit, and musician, is wry and sarcastic as Day's longtime boyfriend. Year's later he boasted that he knew Day "...before she was a virgin...", a remark that has followed her to this day.
Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne put together a pleasing group of songs for this film including "I'm in Love", "It's You or No One", "Put em in a Box...." and the film's mega-hit, "It's Magic". Doris Day's recording of this Oscar nominated song, topped the charts for months, becoming a Gold Record hit and a tune forever identified with her. When she initially sings it during a lovely scene with Carson at an outdoor cafe, a star was indeed born.
If you're looking for an entertaining film that won't place any demands upon you but will leave you feeling warm, fuzzy, and uplifted by the time the end credits roll, then set sail for some "Romance on the High Seas".

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Elvira is supposed to go on a cruise, but decides to stay home when she suspects her husband is cheating on her. Her husband suspects the same of his wife, and sends an investigator to spy on her on the cruise - but he is really spying on Elvira's husband.

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