Gene Kelly--Anatomy of a Dancer on DVD

After my recent first and last with Gene Kelly, I was glad to find in my mailbox something I thought might help me understand Kelly's place in the dance world of musical movies. Gene Kelly--Anatomy of a Dancer was an American Masters PBS broadcast from 2002 and includes lots of clips from Kelly's films and talking head interviews with people who worked with Kelly and critics who put his work into the perspective of dance history on film.

Knowing very little about dance, I can tell that Mr. Kelly doesn't dance in the same way as Fred Astaire, and one critic puts it rather simply, in a manner even we neophytes can understand: Kelly puts everything down into the floor, while Astaire lifts everything off the floor. I can appreciate that critics here refer to Kelly's style being more athletic, but I think perhaps that does a disservice to the other dancers' styles. Kelly's choreography looks more athletic.

I wanted to see more early history on Mr. Kelly in the feature, but touting itself as analyzing the contribution to film dance of its subject, I guess I need to find a more traditional biography to fill in the early blanks.

It was especially nice to include so much information from Kelly's first wife Betsy Blair and their daughter. I also enjoyed seeing Betty Garret--the Edna Babish of my youth, from Laverne and Shirley. And Arthur Laurents may be one of the last connections to that era of musical-making, both on stage and on film--and he's still directing, with a new Broadway production of West Side Story in both Spanish and English set to open soon.

Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer
PBS American Masters Series
Broadcast in 2002
Released on DVD in 2004
Cast: Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Cyd Charisse, Leslie Caron, Besty Blair, Elvis Mitchell, Betty Garret, Betty Comden, Adolph Green, Nina Foch, Arthur Laurents

On The Town film on DVD

New York, New York, it's a Wonderful Town. And this is a Wonderful Film! Deservedly a classic musical picture with a star-studded cast. The stage show of On The Town has some music that didn't make it to the film, most notably for me is "Lonely Town", a ballad which Gabey sang in the original Broadway production. It's a great song and I miss it. I also miss "I Can Cook, Too" which Nancy Walker sang in the stage version as cabby Hildy. The songs that Roger Edens wrote for the film, aren't all that special when compared with Bernstein.

With Gene Kelly as star and co-director, it's not surprising that dance plays a big role in this film, as it must do in the stage version, too, since the show originated as an idea for a Jerome Robbins ballet with music by Bernstein. As the theatrical trailer, which is about the only DVD extra, states--"It's twice as gay as 'Anchors Aweigh' " and boasts "A Torrent of Talent and Tunes."

I wonder if there is a more accurate version of On the Town on film, perhaps a taping of a stage production.

On The Town
Music by Leondard Bernstein
Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
Screenplay by Comden and Green based on their stage play
Additional music by Roger Edens
Directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen
Cast: Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Jules Munshin, Betty Garrett, Ann Miller, Vera Ellen.