Summer Stock [1950] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Customer Reviews:

The work of Hollywood pros, with a vulnerable Judy Garland who was lucky to have Gene Kelly for a friend.......2007-08-13

Summer Stock is a movie which has charm, but it's creation was unhappy and uneasy. It's the work of Hollywood pros, who knew how to put a musical together, but whose creativity and enthusiasm, in my opinion, had seen better days.

Judy Garland was on her long slide into emotional break-down. Gene Kelly had no interest in the movie and agreed to do it only because he wanted to help Garland. Phil Silvers was tired of being a second banana; there is nothing he does here with Kelly that he didn't do six years earlier in Cover Girl. Eddy Bracken was a uniquely gifted comic actor who hit it big with Hail the Conquering Hero and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek. By 1950 his movie career was drying up; he was just too hard to cast. He'd soon be spending his time on television and in regional theater. In this movie Bracken is reduced to playing a character who is simply sour and disapproving. And any good musical has to have good songs. Most of these were composed by Harry Warren with lyrics by Mac Gordon. Warren was probably incapable of writing poor melodies, but his songs here are simply not top-rank Warren. In addition, we have songs contributed by Saul Chaplin and Jack Brooks and one classic by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler, Get Happy, which is shoe-horned in as a vehicle for Garland. These aren't good signs about how the score was developed. The comparison between these songs and the style, energy and originality of the Arlen/Koehler insert does them no good.

The story-line is simple and good-spirited. A theater director, Joe Ross (Gene Kelly), and his cast need a place to rehearse. Through a subplot they wind up at the farm owned by June Falbury (Judy Garland), which has a great, big barn. Boy meets girl. But complications arise. Boy loses girl. Complications are resolved and the show goes on in the barn. Not only that, June has to step in at the last minute and take over the lead role. She does a wonderful job, including a number or two with Joe. The show is a hit and boy gets girl. Could there by any doubt how unchallenged Kelly must have felt doing this film, or what a good friend he must have been to Garland. Kelly was ambitious and wanted to push boundaries. As soon as he finished Summer Stock he was working on An American in Paris. And then it was Singin' in the Rain.

Garland might look a little shaky at times and she's heavier than we're used to seeing her by at least 15 pounds. On her, it looks healthy. She was an extraordinary performer, able to put across a number, singing and dancing, no matter how she felt. She connected with an audience, they fed on each other, like few have before or since. MGM exploited this, and it's evident in the Get Happy number. It's the climax of the show and was shot several weeks after the movie was finished. Suddenly, here's Garland, sleek and sultry, 15 pounds lighter than we'd seen her 3 minutes before, black hat pushed over an eye, stockinged legs and a tux top. Watching Get Happy would be an uncomplicated delight if we didn't know what she was going through...and what MGM put her through for this one last scene.

If you can clear your mind of this unpleasantness, you might be able to enjoy what delights there are. The Happy Harvest number is optimistic and fun, and Garland on a tractor is endearing. You, Wonderful You is a minor Warren hit, and it makes a sweet song when Kelly sings it to Garland. Kelly later has a nice solo dance number to it. The square dance which becomes competition between the townsfolk and the show cast is high spirited. There's nothing wrong with the other songs and dances, they just don't seem very original to me. They are the work of Hollywood pros who needed to get the job done.

The DVD transfer is superb. There are a handful of extras.

Average customer rating:

Summer Stock [1950] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
Starring: Gene Kelly
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Musicals | Classics | Categories | DVD | Video

DVD | Format (binding_browse-bin) | Refinements | DVD | Video
ASIN: 1419807544
Release Date: 2006-04-25

Average customer rating:
Transforming Energy [2006]
Starring: Jeremy Rifkin , Hunter Lovins , James Howard Kunstler , and William McDonough
Director: Chuck Davis
Manufacturer: Passion River
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

All Documentaries | Documentary | Categories | DVD | Video
DVD | Format (binding_browse-bin) | Refinements | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000Y11B6W
Release Date: 2008-01-08

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