American in Paris

Pros: Kelly, Caron, Levant, Guetary, Foch, music, dancing
Cons: Story is a bit thin

Paris is a city that has a romantic appeal to people all over the world. Some foreigners love the place so much, they decide to make it home. That's the case with several of the characters in the 1951 Oscar-winning Best Picture, "An American In Paris." ...

Pros: Gene Kelly.
Cons: Gene Kelly gone wild.

Best Picture?

Either 1951 was a bum year, or the Academy must have been smoking and/or dropping the same stuff the makers of An American in Paris were high on. A case could be made for its other five Oscars. The art...

Pros: Gene Kelly. Some sequences.
Cons: Jerry Mulligan. Climax is weak, weak, weak.

True classics feel new years after their releases. They're so revolutionary that imitators simply can't make their techniques feel tired or trite. In this case, Singin' in the Rain is a true classic, still as engaging and catchy as ever. But the ...

Pros: Decent music, Moments of performance
Cons: Obvious plot and character development, Melodramatic acting, Print issues, Light on DVD bonus features.

For those who might not follow my reviews, musicals seldom do anything for me. Before I began going through every film that won the Best Picture Oscar, I am fairly certain I had no idea how many musicals had won that coveted award. So, lately, I have ...

Pros: originality, audacity, Gene Kelly
Cons: weak story, lengthy production numbers

I don't understand it, myself. Since "Singin' in the Rain" is the greatest musical of all time, how come "An American in Paris", made just the year prior, and also featuring Gene Kelly, is not nearly as good? How can a film that has...

Pros: Great music and dancing
Cons: The story isn't groundbreaking

I have an obsessive personality. For months, I can be totally absorbed in one subject. Well, for the longest time, I ate, slept, and breathed Gene Kelly. I read books, looked at websites, and naturally watched movies. Singin in the Rain is his most...

Pros: Fantastic costumes and ballet routines
Cons: Boring, undeveloped characters

I rented this movie with very high hopes for a great classic musical. I have always loved Gene Kelly's great ability to act and perform singing and dancing routines. I however did not like this movie. An American in Paris had a lot going for it,...

Pros: Beautiful music, dance routines, settings, excellent cast
Cons: Not everybody gets their true love, but that's life

Oh, how I wish Hollywood would make more of those creme puffs, fairy tale endings, boy gets girl, dancing and singing all the way through. Enough of the Glass Menagerie and On the Waterfront. Gene Kelly can dance on all the table tops he wants and stop...