david_kravitz

I am a great fan of musicals, I own over 700 of them on DVD and lecture on the subject all over Israel. I eagerly anticipated this film which arrived in Israel on December 16th. I am disappointed.

In parts this film is good, the opening sequence on the freeway superb, but parts of the film were, simply, boringly slow. The music and songs were good but not outstandingly memorable. The "hit" song City of Stars was not allowed to be performed fully and the marvelous and colorful dance sequence towards the end was cut shamefully short. The jazz sequences were terrific, if you like jazz as the dialog points out.

Ryan Gosling is a revelation as a singer,dancer and pianist but everyone else was average. The constant panning of the camera was a distraction but the long, continuous, single takes work very well, particularly Emma Stone's audition song. The dance sequence between the two stars into the clouds was poor, not even in the same class as as Woody Allen and Diane Keaton.

The film is described by some as a tribute to Fred and Ginger. Hardly. And I wonder how many of the current reviews from such limited distribution are from actors and luvvies from la la land?

Yes, this is a good film, one I might watch again but the advance hype is not supported by what I saw on screen. The audience seemed to like it, with the odd exception and, maybe, I am being too critical which is likely reflected in the "likes" for my review. But this is not, in my opinion, a musical that will stand the test of time as a blockbuster.

To quote the critic of the Daily Mail, "The best live film of a stage show that I've seen". And I fully agree with him. I am an avid fan of musicals with a DVD collection over 700+.

Having had to wait 25 years since my late wife and I saw it at Drury Lane, London, I have had to be content with the CD.

This production and the DVD are worth more than 10. If you buy only one DVD of a musical, stage or screen, it has to be this one. From the two showstoppers at the beginning and end, The heat is on in Saigon and American Dream, to the beautiful duet, The last night of the World, the score and the performances are fantastic.

After Les Miserables, still the best musical ever, Boubil and Schonberg came up with another smash, this time based on Madame Butterfly. And thanks to Cameron Mackintosh for his foresight in producing both shows.

Bringing this show to a smaller stage than Drury Lane created several problems the least of which was the helicopter and the number involving the statue of Ho Chi Min was more cramped.

There are two extras with the DVD, one giving a history of the musical and the other, the after show performances from the original cast which reduced me to tears of joy. Each member of both casts and the production team deserve a huge amount of applause, which they duly got.

The close up singing shots strongly suggest there were so many cameras, that many were on stage and thus part of the performances were filmed not on the night. If you love musicals, this one totally without fault with a dream cast and incredible production values. Enjoy.

This may well be the worst movie I have ever seen and, most certainly, the first I walked out of since Modesty Blaise in 1966.

It is simply not funny and is completely childish. The lead actors seem to think that anything that comes out of their mouths is hysterically funny when actually five-year-old's speak and behave infinitely better. Beyond the scenery there is nothing but nothing to recommend it. How such famous actors became associated with this rubbish is beyond me and, at least, Susan Sarendon had the commonsense not to have her name included in the cast list.

Nominated for a Excellence in Title Design and also as a comedy(!!!) by some teen choice award lot, simply avoid this film at all costs. In fact, simply avoid Ben Stiller who not only starred but co-wrote it.