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Easter Parade (Blu-ray)
Additional Multi-Format options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
Multi-Format
February 19, 2013 "Please retry" | BLU-RAY SINGLE | 2 |
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| — | $5.99 |
Watch Instantly with | Rent | Buy |
Easter Parade | — | — |
Genre | Musicals & Performing Arts/Musicals, Drama/Love & Romance, Comedy |
Format | Multiple Formats, NTSC, Blu-ray, Widescreen |
Contributor | Fred Astaire, Judy Garland, Charles Walters, Peter Lawford, Arthur Freed, Jules Munshin, Ann Miller |
Language | English |
Runtime | 1 hour and 47 minutes |
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Product Description
Easter Parade (BD) Winner of an Oscar for its wonderful musical score, this Irving Berlin musical classic is sure to entertain the whole family. Starring the elegant Fred Astaire ("The Gay Divorcee," "Funny Face," "Top Hat," "The Towering Inferno") as a rising Broadway star who tries to break away from former dance partner Ann Miller ("Kiss Me Kate") so he can be with newcomer Judy Garland ("The Wizard of Oz," "A Star is Born," "Meet Me in St. Louis"). Produced by Oscar-winner Arthur Freed ("Gigi," "An American in Paris"). Featuring a spectacle of song, dance, and costume. With the Rat Pack's Peter Lawford ("A Royal Wedding," "Little Women").
Product details
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Product Dimensions : 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 2.4 ounces
- Item model number : WHV1000332829BR
- Director : Charles Walters
- Media Format : Multiple Formats, NTSC, Blu-ray, Widescreen
- Run time : 1 hour and 47 minutes
- Release date : February 19, 2013
- Actors : Judy Garland, Fred Astaire, Peter Lawford, Ann Miller, Jules Munshin
- Producers : Arthur Freed
- Studio : Studio Distribution Services
- ASIN : B009VOLSA2
- Number of discs : 2
- Best Sellers Rank: #8,385 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #29 in Musicals (Movies & TV)
- #730 in Comedy (Movies & TV)
- Customer Reviews:
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Like "Alexander's Ragtime Band", "Holiday Inn", "Blue Skies" and "White Christmas", this film was built around the Irving Berlin songbook. All in all seventeen numbers are used, ten veteran and seven new songs. The time frame is Easter 1911 through Easter 1912. Don Hewes (Fred Astaire) one half of a very successful dance team is dismayed to find out his partner and girlfriend Nadine Hale (Ann Miller) is leaving him in the lurch to pursue a solo career. Since Don had discovered her, and had polished and groomed her performing and personal style, he's stung by Nadine's callous ingratitude. He claims to their mutual friend the wealthy young playboy Jonny Harrow (Peter Lawford) that he could do the same with any other partner. Spying Hannah Brown, (Judy Garland) a young woman in a chorus line, he picks her to be his new partner. However, Don is still at first carrying a torch for Nadine, and tries initially to make Hannah over in Nadine's image. This proves disastrous for their fledgling partnership until Don recognizes Hannah's own unique spirit and talent and channels it into an outstanding vaudeville act, with the potential for Broadway stardom in their own show. Yet, there are bumps along the road, Hannah begins to fall in love with Don, Nadine is pursuing Jonny, who in turn has meet Hannah and is smitten with her, and is Don still hung up on Nadine?
Judy Garland is the only member of the starring quartet that was actually in the originally planned cast. Fred Astaire and Ann Miller replaced Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse who both were sidelined with injuries just prior to filming, and Frank Sinatra was the initial choice for the role played by Peter Lawford. Vincente Minnelli then married to Judy Garland was slated to direct, yet after their tension fraught collaboration on "The Pirate", the MGM powers that be decided a professional break was in order for the couple, and he was superseded by neophyte director Charles Walters. The first script by husband and wife screenwriters, Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett was judged to be too somber and dark for a musical comedy and an additional writer Sidney Sheldon who had just won an Oscar the year before for "The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer" was recruited to lighten things up. Astonishingly, after all the pre-production chaos, the filming went relatively smoothly, and the result was a blithe, sunny winner with critics and audiences alike.
Berlin's score is splendid with old favorites such as "I Love a Piano", "Shaking the Blues Away" and of course the title song, supplemented with new numbers such as the ingratiating "Happy Easter" which immediately sets the tone for the film, the show stopping comic duet "A Couple of Swells", and the torchy "Better Luck Next Time". Garland, Astaire and Miller all do full justice to this score, even surprisingly Peter Lawford manages to acquit himself persuasively crooning a couple of verses of "A Fella with an Umbrella".
Going back to her pre "Meet Me in St. Louis" films, Judy Garland plays the "ugly duckling" at first ignored by the leading man until she transforms into a glorious swan. Ludicrous, since she is so lovely and appealing as always, yet again she makes it work. At times she looks too thin and frail though, as in her previous film "The Pirate", the physical evidence of her personal problems began to appear on screen. But, we the audience, are not shortchanged, she delivers and how! This star is coruscating, acting, singing and dancing the part of Hannah Brown impeccably at the top of her form with a marvelously adroit sense of humor. Her standout songs are: "I Love a Piano", " When the Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam'", "A Couple of Swells", "Better Luck Next Time" and of course "Easter Parade".
Thankfully for movie fans, "Easter Parade" ended Fred Astaire's early retirement. Here he's Don Hewes, but well he's really Fred Astaire, and that is more than enough. His big set piece is "Steppin' Out with My Baby", is which he really shines, particularly in his slow motion choreography. He's partnered well in both Garland and Ms. Miller, excitingly so when Garland and he pull out the stops in "When the Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam", and more lyrically with Miller in "It Only Happens When I Dance with You." The high spot of course for the Astaire-Garland partnership is the delightful "A Couple of Swells" in which they both romp in effortless glee; it's fun to see the usually dapper, immaculate Astaire as a grimy, bedraggled hobo.
Nadine Hale as played by Ann Miller, is not the heavy, i.e. the predatory other woman, but rather is amusing in her vapid self-absorption, as when she receives the gift of a puppy, and exclaims she knows just the suit she can wear with him! She's sleek, limber and attractive and scores heavily in her sizzling solo number "Shaking the Blues Away". Lawford as Jonny is earnest and good looking which is pretty much his character. MGM newcomer comic Jules Munshin is given a nice bit of business as a very grand waiter at the restaurant in the Brevoort Hotel. Rounding out the cast is the reliable Clinton Sundberg, a mainstay in MGM musicals of the late 1940's to early 1950's, as Hannah's sympathetic friend Mike the bartender.
This version is I believe a new one disc release that does carry most of the extra features of the two disc set, the major exception I think is the exclusion of the American Masters biography "Judy Garland: By Myself". The highlights are: "Easter Parade: On the Avenue", a short but informative documentary on the making of the film featuring Ann Miller, writer Sidney Sheldon, Garland biographer John Fricke and Astaire's daughter Ava Astaire McKenzie, an audio commentary by Fricke and Ms. Astaire McKenzie, that is interesting and entertaining with facts and stories, although there is some overlap with "On the Avenue", the theatrical trailer and a Lux Radio Theatre broadcast of the film with most of the cast. What I found the most intriguing was the deleted musical number "Mr. Monotony" a Garland solo. Unfortunately, musically the song lives up to it's name, it's dull, and deserved to be cut from the film. I read Irving Berlin was stubborn about this number and was bound and determined to use it somewhere, it was cut from his next Broadway show "Miss Liberty", then it was put in "Call Me Madam" Berlin's following show. Ethel Merman it's star, had the song cut after I believe two performances stating flatly it didn't work, and it was out! Finally, Berlin wanted to use it in the 1954 film "White Christmas" but Bing Crosby put his foot down. If Garland, Merman and Crosby, three consummate singers couldn't put this song across, you know it had to be a dog! What is fascinating about this extra are two things, first it's multiple takes, and it makes you wonder about the legendary Garland temperament when you see her uncomplainingly do it over and over again. To my untrained eye, it looked and sounded like she did it perfectly the first time. The second is when you see her come out of the curtains you will get a preview of coming attractions of an iconic Garland image, which was quite the surprise to see.
To conclude, this is a marvelous package from the glory years of the MGM musical, chock full of wonderful songs and dances, memorably the one and only time two legendary musical superstars would work together, brightly wrapped in a Technicolor rainbow of color. After the interminable winter that's just passed, this is one way to celebrate that welcome bout of spring fever!
For those wanting the “By Myself” documentary: the DVD (aka Disc 2) IS the documentary. There is no Easter Parade film on it. There is no menu. That disc is simply the documentary. If you get Disc 2, you’re getting “By Myself.” Do not give the disc away or put off watching it if you are wanting this documentary. You and the person hoping for a copy of Easter Parade will both be disappointed for different reasons. I repeat: Disc 2 ONLY has that documentary on it (and no Easter Parade film) The bluray has the film plus other documentaries/special features. The only sad thing about the lack of menu on it is that you can’t get captions. I have a kid who is hard of hearing so that’s a bit disappointing. Otherwise it’s great. The Easter Parade bluray DOES have captions (subtitles) and a cool pop up menu. I really like the way it’s set up.
That’s about it. I haven’t watched the special features on the bluray yet. If anything changes I’ll update. I’m just really happy to find this film for such a great price.
If you’re looking for a copy of the film and you’re not picky about true bluray quality or the way that “By Myself” is included, I say don’t hesitate to order this. Just make sure before you order that you’re getting the two disc version if you want that particular documentary.