An American musical romance directed by Stanley Donen, starring Fred Astaire and Jane Powell.A brother and sister dance team visit England and both find romantic interests there.The plot was exceedingly simple, but the execution was good. The choreography was absolutely brilliant, with moving belts that the dancers stood on and moving set pieces. There was even a scene in which the male lead danced with a coat rack that was genius. Also, there was a scene in which the same man danced in a room that was turning over so that he could dance on the walls and ceiling. I don't usually like musicals or romances, but this was done so well that my prejudices didn't hold up. I'm rating it good.
A disaster film directed by John Guillermin and Irwin Allen, starring Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, William Holden, Faye Dunaway and Fred Astaire.A huge skyscraper catches fire with lots of people inside. Rescue crews rush to help the people inside.The plot is stereotypical now, but at the time, it was original. The characters were good and I liked the action and tension. The style was typical of the '70s and the production value as well. The pace was very quick, despite the 2 hour and 45 minute length. I'm rating this good because I think it is a good milestone of it's time and I enjoyed watching it.
A musical directed by Charles Walters, starring Judy Garland and Fred Astaire.When a dancing team breaks up, the man decides that he can dance just as well with any woman and recruits a young cabaret dancer for his act.I've got this strange Judy Garland obsession, otherwise I wouldn't be watching a film like this. The lyrics were extremely predictable and the spring-loaded relationships kind of put me off, but Judy's managers obviously fed her the right combination of drugs to put on a great performance. Fred Astaire was cool, but old (even in 1948) and I so saw the ending coming from a mile away complete with "epic" final song). I'm rating it o.k. for the balance of Judy Garland in a crap movie.
