Le joyeux prisonnier

SMALL TOWN GIRL was a 1953 musical from the MGM stable about a rich playboy (Farley Granger) who gets arrested for driving too fast through a small town and falls for the sheriff's pretty young daughter (Jane Powell). Nothing really special here, Granger and Powell are charming enough, but this film will always standout in my mind because of two musical numbers performed by supporting players Ann Miller and Bobby Van. Both of these numbers would later be featured in different installments of THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT. "You Gotta Hear that Beat" was a sizzling production number featuring Ann Miller dancing amongst a disembodied orchestra where you only see the arms/hands of the orchestra playing various instruments. The second number "Take Me To Broadway" featured Van as a human pogo stick, bouncing his way all over town, greeting people and interacting with people and places in town, but he never stops hopping. It's just an amazing number and because of these two musical highlights, SMALL TOWN GIRL is a film I will always remember.

The plot to "Small Town Girl" is very sweet...and I enjoyed it. The dancing to "Small Town Girl" is amazing...and I marveled at it. But the film simply had too much in the way of singing that I found it, after a while, to be a bit exhausting.

The story is set, naturally, in a small town. A rich and entitled jerk (Farley Granger) goes speeding through the neighborhood in his car and is caught and brought before the judge (Robert Keith). Amazingly, Richard is NOT contrite and acts very haughty and entitled....and as a result he's sentenced to 30 days in jail. What's next? See the film.

The two dance numbers that simply blew me away was Ann Miller dancing among musical instruments where the bodies and heads of the performers are hidden. It's really hard to describe...you just need to see it. The other, and even more amazing scene is where Bobby Van is hop-dancing...again, it's hard to describe but you have to see it. Add to that Cuddles Sakal as well as Nat King Cole (as himself) and these alone are reasons to watch the film....even if the songs are a bit too many and not exactly memorable.

It's just too bad more people didn't appreciate Bobby Van when he was around. I've never seen him before, but I certainly will remember his energy and incredible footwork. Where are they now? 50 years seemed to have taken away the fun of making a entertaining musical. Watching rappers and boy bands has diminished our appreciation of what dance was all about. Donald OConnor, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Danny Kaye all had desire that is lacking in movies now. Perhaps the cycle will return and will get away from Gangsta rappers and back to a style of entertainment that celebrated life rather than threaten it. Great work Bobby... Too bad I missed you. ......Wayne

'Small Town Girl' is a pleasant and entertaining film, but it is a case of some parts faring much better than others.

One shouldn't expect too much from the story, which makes even the thinnest of ice seem thick in comparison and is so old-fashioned with very little variation that in the non-singing and dancing moments one can hear the creaks. Or the script, which does have some light-hearted moments and some sweet and amusing comedy but the more romantic parts lack warmth and momentum, and don't go looking for depth (know this is not the kind of film, but even for a comedy/musical/romance there is a lot of fluff and pleasant moments but not much more than that.

The supporting cast do fare much better than the leads. Bobby Van is an energetic charmer and Ann Miller is a sheer delight. Hearing Nat King Cole sing is always a pleasure, and S.Z. Sakall and Billie Burke sparkle. To be honest Van and Miller would have made better leads perhaps than Jane Powell and Farley Granger, whose performances or scenes are nowhere near as good or as memorable.

The problem by all means does not lie with Powell, who is cute as a button and radiates in charm, her voice bell-like in its clarity. The problems are her lack of chemistry with Granger, one gets the sense that they either didn't have much rehearsal or didn't get on, and with Granger, who is handsome but is a complete blank and looks like he took part in a bet, lost it and is regretting it on screen or something because he doesn't look as though he is enjoying himself one bit and it's draining to watch.

It is Van and Miller that bag 'Small Town Girl's' best scenes. For me, Miller's ingenious routine in "I've Gotta Hear that Beat" (one of my favourite dance numbers from her, and this is from such a talented performer whose dancing and routines were highlights in films she appeared in) is the highlight. Will admit to have not always liked Van's hopping routine in "Take Me to Broadway", on first viewing (which actually wasn't from this film, it was when it was featured in 'That's Entertainment II') it seemed bizarre and too silly a scene but on repeat viewing it is actually a lot of fun and the energy is astounding, whatever opinion one has of the number that it won't be easily forgotten is undeniable.

Cole's soulfully beautiful rendition of "My Flaming Heart", with Cole sounding as dreamlike as always, is another highlight. The scene does feel thrown in somewhat but when it features such a lovely song so beautifully performed that is forgiven very quickly. 'Small Time Town' looks great with the cinematography and costumes being especially pleasing, and while the songs themselves are not exactly timeless (as good as "My Flaming Heart" is, it's not one of Cole's greatest hits in a list that includes "When I Fall in Love" and "Unforgettable") they are very easy on the ear and they along with the dances accompanying them provide the energy, momentum and emotional impact lacking elsewhere in the film.

All in all, a decent film that is worth seeing for the supporting cast and the dance sequences but anybody wanting a good story, depth good lead performances and chemistry between the leads will find themselves short-changed. 6/10 Bethany Cox

The tagline I quote above was prominently featured on the posters outside the Bay Theater in Pacific Palisades, California, where I saw this film in mid-summer of the year of its release. I hadn't yet entered my teens and, up to that point, had only seen "Singin' in the Rain" from among the treasure trove of M-G-M's greatest musicals. So with my admittedly undeveloped critical tastes, this amiable pastiche seemed pretty good. And Busby Berkeley's showstopping inventions - Ann Miller's tap dance among all those disembodied instrumentalists and Bobby Van's seemingly endless pogo dance through the small town of M-G-M's backlot (One can only imagine Berkeley slave-driving Mr. Van to achieve that amazing feat of energy and agility!) - are still moments I can distinctly remember from that first viewing.

Even when M-G-M wasn't adding a Midas touch to one of their musicals, the studio assembled some talented professionals both before and behind the cameras, and this one has its share. And for fans of Nat King Cole, one of the all-time greats, there's even a brief song in a nightclub (the sort of thing that M-G-M could easily excise to spare the sensitivities of white Southerners, as they did with Lena Horne's solos in previous Technicolor memories, although by the mid-Fifties, Mr. Cole's appearance was probably not removed for bookings below the Mason-Dixon line.)