Fotograf aus Liebe

I love tap dance, and Donald O'Connor is a Tap Master. When I saw him today, I was surfing to my favorite TCM, and wondered what movie this was. I looked at the channel guide, saw the name, and decided to watch. I remembered Debbie Reynolds' name associated with this movie, so I ended up watching. Debbie and Donald were really cute, as was Noreen Corcoran (Moochie's sister, of original Mickey Mouse Club).... Judy's mother's face I remember from Ginger Rogers movies. It was nice how first Melvin got rid of Judy's dumb suitor, first temporarily and later permanently. I enjoyed seeing Jim Backus. I also liked seeing Central Park from 1953; I visited NYC two weeks ago (almost one year after 9/11). At the end, I liked the search and run scene through the park, everyone looking for Melvin, and I was really surprised when he and Judy literally ran into each other (the whole thing was excellent choreography). I also liked when Debbie was being thrown around as the football, but I know that this was the subservient-50's when a female was stereotyped as an object - but a job's a job, ya know? The movie was a delightful romp. Judy's father was funny. Changing his name because he thought his daughter was going to be a big star. I saw Barbara Ruick in the closing credits, I think she was in "Carousel". I hope to see more Donald O'Connor dancing movies. Too bad he has all that fame for "Francis, the Talking Mule." I am a tap dancer. Let's hear it for the hoofers!

Delightful follow-up to "Singing in the Rain" (minus Gene Kelly, which is fine with me), "I Love Melvin" is a snappy(76 minutes), tuneful Technicolored treat with one show-stopping musical number after another. A serviceable plot (Donald O'Connor plays a free-lance photographer who becomes so enamored with aspiring singer/dancer Debbie Reynolds that he promises he'll get her the cover of Look Magazine) provides a nifty frame for a series of first-rate, beautifully choreographed musical numbers that make one wonder why this terrific little MGM gem has been overlooked. The music is sensational (thank you, Joseph Myrow), the evocation of the Manhattan setting is a visual delight (MGM actually went on location for a few scenes--watching Ms. Reynolds walk across Central Park South is a time-capsule come to life.) And O'Connor and Ms. Reynolds have probably tbe best displays of their singing & dancing talents in their entire careers (their frenetic "Where Did You Learn to Dance?" is a knockout; O'Connor's solo "I Want to Wander" is a classic; and Debbie's opening dream number, "The Lady Loves," wherein she is attired in slithering pink as she delivers the sultry lyrics, hint at the dreamy sexiness she was allowed to exude in future films.) MGM produced so many classic musicals in the early 1950s that "I Love Melvin" has been unjustly neglected. Too bad, because it's a sparkling, melodious, toe-tapping treat that ranks among MGM's finest and is long-overdue for the accolades it deserves.

Cute B musical with a so-so plot. Best thing is the dancing by O'conner and Reynolds. His big solo number would be better if it were a dream sequence or fantasy. No one could do a number like that with those numerous costume changes in real time. Ending is quite abrupt. When Donald goes missing for three weeks he's actually living in Central Park??? How could he survive with no food or change of clothes. He should have held up in his home or Apartment. That's the big mistake in this otherwise cute little musical. Kudos for little Noreen Corcoran as Debbies sister.

This film is an absolute delight from the pre-credit sequence where Debbie Reynolds writes the title of the film in lipstick on a mirror to the hilarious chase through Central Park at the end. In between Debbie dreams of becoming a Hollywood star in some magnificently staged dream sequences, thanks to the genius of Cedric Gibbons, in one of which she meets Robert Taylor as Robert Taylor! In another sequence she dances with three dancers in Fred Astaire masks and three in Gene Kelly masks - before winning an Oscar! Great stuff.

Debbie is perfect as both great movie star and girl next door. Her Broadway performance as a football is a riot. Equally good is Donald O'Connor as her lover and aspiring photographer. His roller-skate sequence is brilliant, as is a dance sequence in which he travels the world and plays numerous characters (again thanks to Gibbons). There is great support from Allyn Joslyn, as Debbie's exasperated father, and from Jim Backus as a crabby photographer. And the little girl has a good song too.

The score is jazzy and upbeat, and it's great to see the real Central Park and other New York locations, shot in gorgeous technicolor. I think this terrific musical is very under-rated.

Undemanding but energetic fare from MGM teaming the vivacious Debbie Reynolds as the day-dreaming dancing football and the late Donald O'Connor as the goofy magazine gopher who wants to put her on the front cover. It's hardly "Singin' in the Rain" but it does have glorious Technicolor, a snappy dance number set in a park, and a memorable song in "The Lady Loves" (which doubles as a glamour showcase for Reynolds). Nice cameo from Robert Taylor too!