Blu-ray Review That’s Entertainment! 50th Anniversary Remastered Edition Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[Matt Hough]

That’s Entertainment! is a beautiful and loving look back at the magnificence of the MGM musical machine, now wholly remastered and looking sharp.



That's Entertainment! (1974)



Released: 21 Jun 1974
Rated: G
Runtime: 135 min




Director: Jack Haley Jr.
Genre: Documentary, Family, Musical



Cast: Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Bing Crosby
Writer(s): Jack Haley Jr.



Plot: Various MGM stars from yesteryear present their favorite musical moments from the studio's 50-year history.



IMDB rating: 7.8
MetaScore: 73





Disc Information



Studio: MGM
Distributed By: Warner Archive
Video Resolution: 1080P/AVC



Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HDMA...

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[Andrew Budgell]

Great review, Matt! As usual you’ve whetted my appetite for my copy to arrive. I’m currently travelling, so I look forward to watching it over Christmas!

 

[roxy1927]

Deleted.

 

[Daniel_BB]

I am confused: does it mean that ALL the numbers are now shown using the original academy ratio films (for example, the segments from Million Dollar Mermaid, The Harvey Girls) ?

 

[Joel Arndt]

I am confused: does it mean that ALL the numbers are now shown using the original academy ratio films (for example, the segments from Million Dollar Mermaid, The Harvey Girls) ?

I just watched this yesterday and it looks magnificent.

In answer to your question, the segments from Million Dollar Mermaid, The Harvey Girls and several others are shown as they were in the original release prints of TE! in 1974. They start off in Academy ratio then expand to widescreen.

 

[Garysb]

Thank you for the great review, Matt. One thing not mentioned was the manipulation of some of the clips. One obvious one is the placement of Louis Jordan singing "Gigi." It did not happen as he walked the stairs to the apartment to propose marriage as shown in "That's Entertainment". Another is the Judy Garland and her sisters singing La Cucaracha. The stars shown watching the performance were taken from another short. They were not in "La Fiesta de Santa Barbara " which is where the La Cucaracha clip is from. The clip as shown in "That Enterainment" was better than the actual clip in my opinion.

 

[Joel Arndt]

Matt, another excellent review. Thanks.

I received my copy yesterday and was just going to sample it, but was sucked in from the start and couldn't stop watching, so I spent 2 hrs. and 15 mins. watching some of my favorite performers of all time shown at their absolute peak of talent and creativity.

As I stated in a post above, this looks and sounds magnificent! WBMPI did a remarkable job of restoring these clips. In previous home video iterations we were given the option of watching either the original release print where a few of the segments expanded to widescreen or in their OAR. I hadn't watched the "widescreen" version in years because I always prefer OAR, however, I will say that I was bothered less by the widescreen expansion than I had expected. I was concerned there'd be increased grain, but they all looked pristine. What's interesting is that all of the "new" guest star introductions were shot in Academy ratio.

I haven't watched the Blu-rays of An American in Paris or Gigi in a number of years and to my eyes what's shown here looks and sounds far better. The High Society excerpts looked excellent with vibrant colors, so I hope that means a Blu-ray release is in our not too distant future. I know some posters are even hoping for a 4K release since HS is a VistaVision title.

Regarding your comment about Sinatra erroneously referring to Begin the Beguine as the last of the big black and white production numbers, for years I thought the same way as you. Hey, Sinatra made a mistake because MGM filmed many more large B & W production numbers after this. When I thought about it more, I believe he's referring to it as being the last of the big black and white numbers presented during his particular segment of TE!.

Highly recommended! I hope this sells well, so the remaining TE! films will be restored and released, also.

 

[cinefan]

Regarding your comment about Sinatra erroneously referring to Begin the Beguine as the last of the big black and white production numbers, for years I thought the same way as you. Hey, Sinatra made a mistake because MGM filmed many more large B & W production numbers after this. When I thought about it more, I believe he's referring to it as being the last of the big black and white numbers presented during his particular segment of TE!.

"You know, you can wait around and hope, but, I'll tell ya, you'll never see the likes of this again."

I remember seeing this film for the first time at some theater on Cape Cod while on vacation with my parents in 1974. That "wait around and hope" quote about Begin the Beguine from Sinatra's narration stuck in my 11-year-old brain then and has never left. I still use some version of it occasionally after seeing something particularly sublime from a classic film.

 

[Paul Penna]

What's interesting is that all of the "new" guest star introductions were shot in Academy ratio.

Actually, some of them, such as Sinatra's and Stewart's, are widescreen in their first segments - they place them in high-angle vistas of the MGM lot - and then are Academy during their subsequent slots.

 

[battlebeast]

Ok, I’ll get this one. Thanks!!

 

[FlashGordon1980]

An absolutely stunning remaster. It's humbling to see the (then) older stars comment on their experiences and their co-stars, many of whom had passed away. Now all of them (save Liza) are gone. Legends. And the clips, wow. Seeing Bing and Frank harmonize in High Society is otherworldly. The picture and 5.1 sound maxed out and lush. One of the best discs of the year.

 

[The-Cinema-Upstairs]

WOW, everyone seems really happy with this release! Good sign and great to hear!

 

[Mikey1969]

I rewatched the DVD last night to decide if it was worth upgrading, and was surprised to find that the film itself hadn't held up as well as I'd remembered it. Yes, the nostalgia factor is a major selling point of the film, but unlike those who watched this in the 1970s, I have most of the films from which the clips are drawn, and can watch them in full at will. I also found the choice of celebrity hosts a bit odd. Many of them had very little to do with MGM musicals, and some of their segments like James Stewart's and Elizabeth Taylor's seemed only designed to embarrass performers who were awkwardly pushed into doing musicals. TE3 did much better with this. The structure was also sort of loose and meandering and lead to a few strange tangents (TE2 would be worse for this, taking ill-advised sojourns into comedy). Knowing the fate of MGM in the 1970's and beyond, it's also hard to get past the somewhat macabre sight of seeing these aged stars wandering the decaying backlots and stages, whose contents had been recently boxed up and auctioned off and which would soon be razed and sold off to real estate developers. The half-hearted phrase the film opens "Beginning our next 50 years" seems to sum it up nicely.

 

[cda1143]

I rewatched the DVD last night to decide if it was worth upgrading…
…I also found the choice of celebrity hosts a bit odd. TE3 did much better with this….(TE2 would be worse for this, taking ill-advised sojourns into comedy).

Interesting. Although I adore That’s Entertainment OG, I was so disappointed with TE2 that I never watched TE3. I’ll give it a try now.

 

[Matt Hough]

Interesting. Although I adore That’s Entertainment OG, I was so disappointed with TE2 that I never watched TE3. I’ll give it a try now.

TE3 is a superior film in almost every way. True, it doesn't have the last ever pairing of Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire, but its organization, presentation, and choice of rarely seen deleted numbers and outtakes gives it an identity all its own.

 

[Neil S. Bulk]

...much more problematic is director-producer Jack Haley, Jr.’s tendency to turn Academy ratio films into widescreen ones...for no great reason:

"That's Entertainment" was meant to be seen in a theater in 70mm. These sequences were blown up to take advantage of that format. It may not translate well to home video, but this is why Sinatra says, "it would look something like this." Note the audio is processed for stereo at this point.

 

[Matt Hough]

"That's Entertainment" was meant to be seen in a theater in 70mm. These sequences were blown up to take advantage of that format. It may not translate well to home video, but this is why Sinatra says, "it would look something like this." Note the audio is processed for stereo at this point.

Do you really think the majority of the engagement for That's Entertainment! in 1974 were in 70mm? It was when I saw it at the Ziegfeld during its second week, but it certainly was not in any of the local engagements I saw of it here.

 

[Rob_Ray]

I saw it in 70mm several times at Houston's Windsor Cinerama. It was spectacular on that giant curved screen.

 

[Neil S. Bulk]

Do you really think the majority of the engagement for That's Entertainment! in 1974 were in 70mm?

What I think is unimportant. The fact is the movie was issued in 70mm with six-track stereophonic sound and these sequences were altered to take advantage of that.

 

[RichMurphy]

I saw it in 70mm several times at Houston's Windsor Cinerama. It was spectacular on that giant curved screen.

Same in DC when I saw it at the late great Uptown with its giant Cinerama screen. I remember opening weekend being packed, so much so that, as previous shows that day had been delayed to accommodate the unexpected crowds, the curtains at the end of the next-to-last show closed and immediately reopened to start the last show of the night, leaving hundreds of people fumbling in the dark. I hope they adjusted the show times for the next weekend to allow more time between shows.