Blu-ray Review Ziegfeld Follies Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[Joel Arndt]

such a shame the movie as a whole just didn't match the quality of the few wonderful bits, especially those including Fred. Even the Judy Garland entry leaves me cold, compared to the thrills she usually delivers. Ah well, a canape is a feast to a starving man.

Disagree, respectfully, of course, but I think Garland is brilliant in this and she was only 21 or 22 when this was filmed.

 

[Matt Hough]

And that type of sophisticated parody was not typical for her at that time, so it was a GREAT departure for her to attempt it. I love it, especially once the song starts and the reporters start dancing around her.

 

[Mark B]

Wowee, wow, wow. My expectations were exceeded with this one. It was a long time ago...2am, NY WNEW 5 "Hollywood's Finest." Who remembers? In 1987/8 they were on a spree with the MGM musicals. Cabin in the Sky, Girl Crazy, Love Finds Andy Hardy, The Harvey Girls. Terrible prints. Didnt matter. The magic came through. My first time with ZF was the same. 2am made such a weird film even stranger. I loved it then, and now...I do skip Pay the Two Dollars and am very tempted during the Melton/Bell bit (set the mold for the way tv variety shows shot musical numbers in the 69s and 70s.) But the rest is good to classic.
The detail. Check out the fabric of those cat women costumes. And that audio. Sweet
Great release.

 

[roxy1927]

The Garland number it leaves me cold as well. Garson's ambivalence was pretty understandable considering not only did it make fun of her but the material was so mediocre. The safety pin? Thompson could do a lot better than that.

 

[Richard M S]

I watched it last night and indeed the picture quality is terrific.

The film itself is admittedly a mixed bag, but I love the Fanny Brice sketch and find it absolutely hysterical. However I also skipped the irritating Pay The Two Dollars and I won't see the Keenan Wynn and Ted Skelton sketches unless I am forced.

The musical numbers are just a total pleasure. This time, the one sequence that I found myself repeating as soon as the film ended was the Fred Astaire/Gene Kelly number. The improved sound and picture quality was better than ever, I can even see a bead of sweat on Astaire's forehead as it ends.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Lotsa varying opinions on individual parts of the movie!

FWIW:

-I like the Garland sequence and think it's better than with Garson, who I don't enjoy.

-Gene and Fred are great together. Fred as an Asian guy? Not so much.

-The Fanny Brice stuff doesn't amuse me at all, but the $2 sketch is pretty good.

The Ziegfeld Follies [Blu-Ray] (1945)

Reviewed by Colin Jacobson: As a compilation of performances from many of the era’s biggest stars, The Ziegfeld Follies offers a lot of entertainment for fans of this period. The film feels spotty to me, but I suspect others with greater affinity for the styles of music on display will love it...

dvdmg.com

 

[AnthonyClarke]

I totally understand the differences of opinion on the various performances in this movie, especially when those opinions involve our beloved Judy Garland. But I think it would be hard to find much support for the abysmal Red Skelton sketch here. And there are too many other stinkers to make it a winner. More Win, Lose, Lose.
Still, Warners has to be congratulated for delving into its archives and coming out with such a wonderful transfer of historic material. I'll put up with a string of bum ones for one solid-gold release.

 

[David Weicker]

I’ve always liked the Smooooooooth Skelton sketch

(and I’m not being sarcastic). My Mom and I used to get a big kick out of it. I believe he redid it on either radio broadcasts or his show

 

[roxy1927]

Is that where Lucy got her inspiration for the Vitameatavegamin sketch? She starred with a very young looking Skelton in Du Barry was a Lady. I guess that could use a bluray release but is it on the top of anyone's list?

 

[lark144]

I totally understand the differences of opinion on the various performances in this movie, especially when those opinions involve our beloved Judy Garland. But I think it would be hard to find much support for the abysmal Red Skelton sketch here. And there are too many other stinkers to make it a winner. More Win, Lose, Lose.
Still, Warners has to be congratulated for delving into its archives and coming out with such a wonderful transfer of historic material. I'll put up with a string of bum ones for one solid-gold release.

And yet, if you read Bowsley--the definitive grouch who panned Doris Day's first film--Crowther's NYTimes review, the Red Skelton sketch was his favorite part of the movie. I'm not sure if it's a matter of taste as much as cultural differences. Humor is a very undefinable and changeable phenomena. Skelton was hugely popular in the US in the 1940's, but what may have been funny in the middle of WWII was no longer funny twenty years later. Also, Skelton first became famous on the radio. There's a big difference between listening to him and watching him. That being said, I always found his sketch in Ziegfeld Follies difficult to sit through. But that's me.

 

[ahollis]

After going through Ida, I used this to hold up my window wo let

 

[Will Krupp]

After going through Ida, I used this to hold up my window

and I have the photgraphic evidence that he did just that!

Though I didn't notice till just now that the shrink wrap is STILL on the goddamned thing! Do you ever WATCH anything you buy? I swear you got more money than sense (as my sainted grandmother used to say.)

Stay safe and I hope your power comes back sooner rather than later and you can get back home to your things. We're all pulling for you, bub!!

 

[Matt Hough]

Yes, many good thoughts as you make your way through recovery. We endured Hurricane Hugo in 1989, and power was off around me for two weeks. I got mine back in three days because the elderly mother of the then-mayor of Charlotte lived down my street, so guess whose street was a priority?

 

[ahollis]

and I have the photgraphic evidence that he did just that!

Though I didn't notice till just now that the shrink wrap is STILL on the goddamned thing! Do you ever WATCH anything you buy? I swear you got more money than sense (as my sainted grandmother used to say.)

View attachment 110852

Stay safe and I hope your power comes back sooner rather than later and you can get back home to your things. We're all pulling for you, bub!!

I bought this one for a gift later this year. I in better use now and will still be able to gift it on. Lol.

 

[ahollis]

Yes, many good thoughts as you make your way through recovery. We endured Hurricane Hugo in 1989, and power was off around me for two weeks. I got mine back in three days because the elderly mother of the then-mayor of Charlotte lived down my street, so guess whose street was a priority?

Thank you.

 

[RobertMG]

She wanted to be paid a license fee for the use of his image. The Kennedy Center had never paid for the use of clips, they were always donated. The Kennedy Center did not want to start a precedent. I don't believe the amount requested was exorbitated. It was more about the estate protecting the rights to his image so others wouldn't exploit it. Though she did sell his image for use in a commercial for a vacuum cleaner . The commercial showed Fred Astaire dancing with a Dirt Devil.

Fred Astaire dances with vacuums in commercials set for Super Bowl debut

NEW YORK (AP) _ Fred Astaire set the standard for elegance and style in Hollywood musicals. A decade after his death, he will turn up toting vacuum cleaners in Super Bowl commercials that use some of his best-known filmed dance routines. Robyn Astaire said she agreed to give the makers of...

apnews.com

Fred and Fred Jr