Thanks Twickster! I’ll have a look at Phantom on my own, and stick to the light happy ones with the kids.
Good heavens Twixter. Wish i would have known about this last Saturday. One of my fondest recent memories is a road trip Jayjay and I took where we sang the entire score of “Gypsy”. We even car danced to “Gotta Have A Gimmick” outside of a Sheetz store. Plus I got to actually watch “Golddiggers of 1935” at work today too! Quelle coincidence. Did you know that Busby Berkley was a choreographer for “The Wizard of Oz”? On the dvd there is an extended dance sequence with Dorothy and the Scarecrow that he worked on.
Jayjay and I often break out in song, badly out of tune though…lol. I have loved musicals since I can remember. I saw “The Sound of Music” when it was reissued to theaters in the early 70’s. I have several musicals on dvd and am always looking for more. I even love the odd ones and more modern ones too. “Hedwig and The Angry Inch” speaks to me in more ways than most movies ever could.
As for Astaire vs Kelly I have always been much more of a Gene Kelly fan. I love his work in “An American In Paris”, “Singin’ In The Rain”, and especially “Brigadoon”.
WHAT?!?!?!
That’s one of favorites. Try it again without the kids.
Oliver is a great one. I’ve watched the big production numbers and the editing is nearly flawless. It’s amazing to me how those are coordinated.
Here is a question for the group.
Is **My Best Friend’s Wedding ** a muscial. The actors sing throughout the film, though in Moulin Rouge style none of the songs are written for the film.
I absolutely agree with twickster’s post - from nixing Phantom to Esther Williams (you really have to love movie musicals to make it through those. Love them a lot.)Along with that, for older musicals, I’d also add “Easter Parade” after they’ve seen “Top Hat.” And not to forget “Meet Me in St. Louis,” and I flat out loved “Oliver!” when I was young. And everyone, everyone loves “Little Shop of Horrors” (or at least Steve Martin’s “Dentist”)
Astaire over Kelly.
No, the actors don’t sing throughout. One scene w/singing takes place in a karaoke bar, so the singing isn’t at all spontaneous. The other takes place in a restaurant and Rupert Everett, who playes Julia Roberts’ friend, starts singing a Dionne Warwick number as a joke. The lead in the movie also sings “The Way You Look Tonight,” but that’s because it was “their” song.
It isn’t a musical at all.
I didn’t like it right away because it was so dark. (I’m thinking especially of the red-lit dance scene.) One of the things I like about musicals is that they’re colorful and brightly lit, at least the others I have seen!
Also, I was expecting a closer parallel to Romeo and Juliet. Maybe I gave it up too soon. And last but not least, we couldn’t help but burst into laughter every time those tough gang members started up with that ominous finger snapping!
Sorry Zebra!
Sondheim’s lyrics are quite good, but he can’t write a decent melody to save his life. When he worked with other composers, he was good; when he worked on his own his lyrics got in the way of the music, leaving nothing worth listening to. Even now, even his apologists rarely play his music (with a few exceptions); they sing his lyrics. The idea of a Sondheim instrumental concert is ridiculous. (With the exception of “Comedy Tonight,” “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid” and “Send in the Clowns.”)
Webber was only marginally better as a songwriter, but he was able to write one or two first-class songs.
If I were picking my favorite movie musicals, I’d include:
*Singin’ in the Rain
Chicago
Moulin Rouge* (They are both great, and neither is greatly superior to the other)
Footlight Parade
Gold Diggers of 1933
42nd Street (I’m a great fan of Harry Warren, the most underrated composer in musical comedy history.)
Everyone Says I Love You (underrated, but was important in the revitalization of the musical. Woody Allen was smart enough to understand how to make a musical work, and the choice of Chicago was influenced by the same thinking).
The Music Man (one of the few scene-by-scene productions of a Broadway musical on film)
Cabaret (though the on-stage revival is better).
Kiss Me Kate
Guys and Dolls (better than often credited, though Frank Sinatra is miscast and should have swapped parts with Brando – who was surprisingly good).
Meet Me in St. Louis
West Side Story
Top Hat
Little Shop of Horrors
Oklahoma!
Yankee Doodle Dandy
All That Jazz
Flower Drum Song
I prefer Astaire to Kelly. I always go with the guy who makes it look easy as opposed to the one that makes it look like so much work.
Worst musicals:
Bye Bye Birdie Why the hell did they have to screw up the plot with that stupid turtle?
Carousel Appallingly dated (“Sometimes a slap feels like love” :dubious: ), and one of R&H’s worst scores. Double points off for “Soliloquy” :eek:
A Chorus Line When you see a high school production and realize it’s better, there’s a real problem.
Annie Weak material to begin with, and a poor production of it.
OTOH, since we know now, we can plan ahead for Central PA DopeFest II. I’m thinking the “Triplets” number from The Band Wagon. Dibs on Nanette Fabray – you and jayjay can fight it out for who’s Fred Astaire and who’s Oscar Levant. 
This doesn’t really count, but there are direct-to-video productions of Cats, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and (especially) Jesus Christ Superstar that are quite good.
There’s also a little-known, but quite good, movie version of The Fantasticks from a few years back.
The musicals I’d most like to see made into movies are Les Miz and Rent, either of which I think would translate nicely. The ones I’d most like to see remade are A Chorus Line (because the current version sucks) and West Side Story, (although the current version doesn’t suck).
Oh, and a truly great movie musical not yet mentioned is the overperforming South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut
Astair. Chicago.
I was expecting a thread on Broadway musicals, but I see that this has focused primarily on movie musicals. A few to add to the list are Jesus Christ Superstar, Godspell, and Hair.
Webber was at his finest for Superstar. A few great moments in Phantom and Cats, but the rest of his work is marginal at best. I think perhaps the reason he is so vilified is that he came out of the gate so strong that it was impossible for him to meet the audiences’ subsequent expectations.
One could also list Tommy and The Wall I suppose. Technically they’re movie musicals, but not originally written for either Broadway or the movies.
On preview I see that MaxTheVool already noted Superstar.
I’ve never seen the movie (or stage version for that matter), but “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Carousel is one of the greatest songs of all time.
I have asked my hubby for season tickets to the musical theater company here in town nearly every year for almost 20 years. He must think I am kidding.
Don’t forget Oliver, Annie, Grease and Camelot, for good ones for the kids to see.
And Cats. We took TeenSthrnAccent to see Cats on Broadway when he was only 6 or 7 and he loved it. One of the cats came up on to a part of the set that extended up near the seats, it was sort of on the side of the theater and all the sudden the cat was there right next to him. You could hear the kid gasp. He said it was almost as good as Merlin in Camelot that we’d seen the night before.
::twirls into thread::
I could have danced all night!
I could have danced all night!
but [music falters] instead I lurked around MPSIMS wondering if Eve could get a good hair match…
::slinks out of thread::
Let’s give a shout-out to Robert Preseton, who had not one but two “role of a lifetime” roles – Howard Hill in The Music Man and Toddy in Victor/Victoria.
I will never forget the sight of Robert Preston in a clingy dress. Incidentally, Victor/Victoria was on TCM not too long ago. I walked around humming “You and Me” all day long… 
good evening friends
one of my fondest memories is going to see the movie the music man at the orpheum theater with my mom. we took the bus downtown, saw the movie and had chinese food (my first chinese restaurant.
ron howard and i are the same age, so i was about 8 years old for this outing. i remember it as if it were yesterday…
If you want bright, colorful musicals, check out some Bollywood stuff.