Hollywood: The Dream Factory

Anyone who criticizes "Hollywood: The Dream Factory" is naively unaware of the effort it took to get MGM to open its vault to allow filmmakers Irwin Rosten and Nicholas Noxon to make this remarkable compilation documentary. Seasoned by working on the "Hollywood and the Stars" TV series for producer David L. Wolper, Rosten and Noxon brought their expertise to a then-ailing Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. They used the framing device of the MGM auction to flash back to the studio's heyday, offering a concise capsule of the studio's corporate history with a startlingly wry description of its artistic achievements. Having Dick Cavett narrate, and Fred Foy announce, the program begins with a deliciously witty faux trailer that not only sends up every preview ever produced but lets the viewer know that this will be no paean to M, G, or M (in contrast with the bloated, sycophantic 1992 Turner production "MGM: When the Lion Roars").

It's important to remember that, when this film was made, nobody was getting access to studio vaults, especially MGM's, which then had the golden library. Indeed, the success of "Hollywood: The Dream Factory" doubtless gave the studio the idea to go ahead with "That's Entertainment!," made by another Wolper alumnus, Jack Haley, Jr.

"Hollywood: The Dream Factory" is that rare clip documentary with a personality. Picture quality is first-rate, the modern footage is shot by John A. Alonzo ("Chinatown," "Sounder"), and the script maintains a wise balance between nostalgia and pragmatism. It can be found among the special features on the two-disc DVD of "Meet Me in St. Louis," and it also turns up on TCM now and then.

Hollywood: The Dream Factory (1972)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Decent documentary that takes a look at the history of MGM. I'm really not sure why the title is what it is since you'd think that a film called "Hollywood" would discuss, well, Hollywood but not this one. The 45-minute documentary takes a look at the history of MGM including how the studio was made, it's golden years, their major stars and their current years. Dick Cavett narrates the action as we take a look at countless movie clips and hear a few things about the people involved in the studio. Louis B. Mayer gets the majority of the attention as we hear about how he got his job and eventually lost it. Film clips are countless but they include: BEN HUR, TARZAN THE APE MAN, GONE WITH THE WIND, THE WIZARD OF OZ, MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY, SAN FRANCISCO, BOYS TOWN, NATIONAL VELVET, MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, SINGIN' IN THE RAIN and ADAM'S RIB among others. The documentary, for its time, is pretty good in giving on the idea of how big the studio was in its heyday and how many terrific stars were under contract there. The most interesting part of this documentary are some clips from an auction where many famous MGM props, including Dorothy's shoes, are being sold. I do wonder how much of this footage is out there because it would make an interesting documentary on its own. For a more detailed look at the history of MGM one should certainly check out MGM: WHEN THE LION ROARS.

Had I never seen documentaries like "MGM: When the Lion Roars", I am sure I would have enjoyed "Hollywood: The Dream Factory" lot more. However, when you compare the two you realize just how poor this earlier documentary is--mostly because 50 minutes is way too short to adequately explain the history of MGM studio. Plus, with so many zillions of clips, it would have been nice had the documentary labeled them so you know what you're seeing.

The film begins with one of the most depressing scenes I can think of--the 1970s auction of the back lot and props from almost 50 years of MGM. Seeing the wonderful pieces of history sold off just breaks your heart. Then, after seeming to stay with this way too long, Dick Cavett begins narrating. He has a nice voice and way of speaking and I think he had nothing to do with the documentary coming up short--as I said, there was too much material. And, oddly, at the end, instead of continuing to talk and explain the studio's history, they just showed VERY long clips with no narration--essentially wasting time that SHOULD have been on the history of MGM!

Overall, not all that bad a film...but just not enough.

By the way, this film was included as a DVD extra with "Meet Me In St. Louis". I have no idea why it was included with this particular film, as the only relationship with the full-length film is a brief shot of the back lot showing the house from the film. BUT, it was never identified as it and Cavett said nothing about this film. Hmmm.

This is the best of all the documentaries about Hollywood and specifically about MGM. It is creatively written and edited and wonderfully narrated by Dick Caveat and is so much better than the "That's Entertainment" series which it certainly inspired. It is not a promotional film for the studio but rather an interesting and seemingly honest depiction about this "beehive" of 5000 persons of so many different skills, talents, crafts from practically every industry: accountants, artists, musicians, actors, carpenters, stylists, bankers, writers, publicists, landscapers, historians, teachers (for the child stars), gourmet chefs, mechanics, electricians and on and on and on. The ending line is so tender and touching regarding the amazing theatrical enterprise that the studio was: "And while we can't be sure, the world is likely to never see anything quite like it again"

A mixed bag of a documentary, which is mostly an MGM clip show. There's some interesting behind-the-scenes clips about the making of movies, but it mostly focuses on the history of MGM, starting with a live auction of some iconic props from classic films and some footage of the deteriorating backlot. It's an easy watch, though, at less than an hour, so I'd recommend it for die-hard movie history buffs, especially MGM fans. The best thing about this short documentary is that it (presumably) inspired the much longer, better, and better-looking That's Entertainment series, in which the first one premiered two years later.