Kismet is a clunker. The best thing about it is the score and Dolores Gray. But Minnelli, who obviously directed it under duress and wanted, rather impatiently, to get on with shooting Lust for Life, just seems to be throwing away a golden opportunity here to make the most out of an obviously lithe and lyrical stagecraft that, unfortunately, remains stage bound in its execution. Just look at 'Night of My Nights' that Minnelli simply lets run, with a parade of extras running past his stationary camera. It's as though he just wants to stick it to Metro for forcing him to accept this assignment. There's no splash or flare to any of it. The musical sequences ought to have been expertly choreographed.
Alas, not since Nineveh - and never to be here. The gorgeous Andre Previn/Conrad Salinger orchestrations, and sumptuous E. Preston Ames production values are utterly wasted on flatly executed production numbers and even more static 'dramatic' sequences that Minnelli shoots as though this were his first flick utilizing Cinemascope. Minnelli didn't like 'scope' as a mode of presentation but proved he knew damn well how to use its elongated screen proportions to perfection elsewhere in his picture-making prowess. So, his lack of wherewithal on Kismet isn't a case of a novice doing his best, but a master craftsman woefully disinterested in doing any better.
Kismet is one of those truly missed opportunities for me, because I absolutely adore the score, and am a big fan of Dolores Gray, Howard Keel, and, Vic Damone - all sounding spectacular in stereo. But the movie tanks completely on Minnelli's lack of verve for the material. This one ought to have been assigned to some other director because it hopelessly lacks any of Minnelli's trademark touches to define itself as one of his best.
Alas, not since Nineveh - and never to be here. The gorgeous Andre Previn/Conrad Salinger orchestrations, and sumptuous E. Preston Ames production values are utterly wasted on flatly executed production numbers and even more static 'dramatic' sequences that Minnelli shoots as though this were his first flick utilizing Cinemascope. Minnelli didn't like 'scope' as a mode of presentation but proved he knew damn well how to use its elongated screen proportions to perfection elsewhere in his picture-making prowess. So, his lack of wherewithal on Kismet isn't a case of a novice doing his best, but a master craftsman woefully disinterested in doing any better.
Kismet is one of those truly missed opportunities for me, because I absolutely adore the score, and am a big fan of Dolores Gray, Howard Keel, and, Vic Damone - all sounding spectacular in stereo. But the movie tanks completely on Minnelli's lack of verve for the material. This one ought to have been assigned to some other director because it hopelessly lacks any of Minnelli's trademark touches to define itself as one of his best.