Ver, Gostar e Amar

The mostly negative reviews relating to this movie miss the mark. Although the script and special effects are undeniably weak, the partnered dancing of Fred Astaire and Vera-Ellen has never been equaled. One dance of particular note is the finale to the Currier and Ives number. It's simply breathtaking. Don't worry about the plot when you're watching the two best dancers in the history of Hollywood at the zenith of their powers.

The Belle of New York is not one of Fred Astaire's best movies but it is nowhere near his worst. Everything about the movie is sweet, charming and light. Vera Ellen is one of the best dancers in Hollywood and a great partner for Fred. The color is beautiful. The sets and the costumes are fantastic, and while it is true it is not one of the strongest stories, there are some good laughs along the way. The music is charming. The dancing is excellent. And the movie just glides along, mostly due to the very plentiful musical numbers. If you want some dramatic tension, look elsewhere. This movie has none. If you like musicals, if you like good dancing, in particular if you like Vera Ellen, this movie is a must see. The quality of the DVD release is excellent.

Nobody could truthfully say that "The Belle Of New York" is a great movie but it does showcase the dancing talents of Fred Astaire & Vera-Ellen which, for me at least, makes it worth watching. Astaire was the greatest Hollywood dancer of all with the only possible exception of Gene Kelly. Lovely Vera-Ellen was not only one of Hollywood's best female dancers but had a pair of the most gorgeous gams I have ever seen. Astaire is always great to watch & Vera-Ellen does a very sexy dance to a song entitled "Naughty But Nice". She is dressed in a kind of black chiffon can-can dancers outfit & looks fabulous in it. Squeaky-voiced comedienne Alice Pearce also makes an appearance in this movie & a very funny lady she was but, sadly, died fairly young. All in all this movie is pretty good & fairly entertaining.

This was not the best movie ever made. If it were much longer than 82 minutes it might have been much less interesting. But it was entertaining and amusing at that length. I also think that Fred Astaire proves once again that the seemingly effortless grace and style and rhythm and yes, even charm, that he displays in "I wanna be a dancing man" places him in the very top echelon of modern day dancers. Bojangles. Fred Astaire. Bob Fosse. And perhaps a dancer who has not yet been discovered. For 82 minutes of inconsequential entertainment you could do much worse than this. And did anyone else notice that the effects presage Mary Poppins some ten years later? I love to laugh.....lol...

This was one of Astaire's few critical and box office losers. The flaws, in hindsight, are obvious. The New York playboy Astaire plays is charming but an emotional light-weight. He finds love eventually and he never loses his charm. Still, he's a shallow guy. The Salvation Army-type lass he falls in love with is played by Vera-Ellen, who was always perky and a supremely proficient dancer. Still, there's something chilly, to my mind, about her dancing. She can do any step Astaire does, but does it with little spontaneity. The smile on her face while she dances never changes. The comedy relief doesn't seem very amusing. The story serves merely as a quick bridge between extended musical numbers. I don't mind this at all, but it does make the story seem like an afterthought.

But the good things are fine. The 1880's Currier and Ives look is warm and charming. The Harry Warren and Johnny Mercer songs are easy to listen to. Most of all, there is Astaire and his dancing. The film features, I think I got this right, eight musical sequences, most of them major productions. Astaire is in all but one. The highlights for me are:

--"Baby Doll," a sweet. wooing number sung by Astaire to Vera-Ellen and then danced in a relaxed and easy-going style by the two.

--"Seeing's Believing" has Astaire singing and dancing around and on the Washington Square Arch. The idea is that love has him floating. The routine uses camera tricks and false backgrounds to create the illusion he's on the top of the arch teetering and tapping. Not for viewers who suffer acrophobia, but this extended Astaire routine is a lot of fun.

--"I Wanna Be a Dancin' Man," is a classic. It's just Astaire, a stage and some sand on the floor. Everything works in this number, including the Warren-Mercer song:

I wanna be a dancin' man while I can, / Gonna leave my footsteps on the sands of time, / If I never leave a dime.

Never be a millionaire, I don't care, / I'll be rich as old King Midas might have been, / Least until the tide comes in.

The Belle of New York is a proficient movie, and you don't have to spend much time waiting for the next dance number to arrive.