Skip to main content

The Music Man Review

Oh, the modern American musical. Such a rich and glorious tapestried history of songs that can make you laugh, get you to sing in the rain against your better judgement, go to Scotland looking for love, listening to sounds in music, or wonder how on earth that person got that part. Clearly they can't sing, but hey, when it's popular, you gotta get on board. Right Mr. Crowe?

I was once in this musical way back in high school, and now seeing it many years later, I've learned to appreciate the absolute insane amount of work to create a musical of this production value. The dance numbers, the music, the singing, the acting, it's an undertaking that is quite remarkable. The hundreds of extras, the size of the sets, there's just something wholly unique, something so beautiful about having real life in front of the camera.

Considered one of the most iconic musicals Hollywood has produced over the years, The Music Man is a tale of a con man who ends up singing and dancing his way into the hearts of the folks in River City Iowa.

Henry Hill, the main character and con man, comes to Iowa to dupe the people of River City thinking he's a band leader, but Marian the librarian, the main female lead, will have none of it. Hill goes through a whole hoopla of shenanigans(No Spoilers Here, even though this movie is 54 years old), to convince them his band is real, and they need it! They got a lot of trouble in River City!

It's a journey of a man who's lived to run from all his problems and get out of life the easy way, but he soon realizes you can't throw all your problems away forever. Well you can, if you fall in love, get the kids to play your instruments while looking adorable, and BOOM you get off scott free. It's just that simple.

Is the movie a little long? I would say, ah, yes it is, but then again, aren't all musicals a little long? I mean this one was 2 and a half hours long. It gave Chitty Chitty Bang Bang a run for it's money, but most of the songs I feel are much more necessary in this musical than that(Dick Van Dyke is awesome, but come on now).

This movie is a love story between a con man and a librarian. Two people who just don't fit where they are, but excel at what they do. Loneliness drives you to such things as being a con man, and even, a librarian. Gasp!

The film, if you are a fan of Hollywood musicals is a must see.  Even just for the visual and orchestral pomp and circumstance, it deserves at least one viewing. It's playful, fun, enjoyable, and gets you to sing some of the most memorable musical tunes ever produced, no matter the calibre of your singing ability.

I would recommend it if you have the time. There is nothing quite like a classic Hollywood musical. By the way, has anyone heard 76 trombones in a big parade? No? Well then, I must be crazy.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Skyfall Review

Daniel Craig. Javier Bardem.  Judi Dench.  Ralph Fiennes. Sam Mendes.  Roger Deakins.  Thomas Newman. All modern legends in their own right in the filmmaking industry.  You would think their new film, yeah not any film, a Bond film, would blow you away, wouldn't you?  Not today, not today. Skyfall was a film that had so much promise. So much.  And yet, it took a step back following in the footsteps of Quantum of Solace. Skyfall follows Bond as he is to retrieve a drive that contains all agents hidden in terrorist organizations across the world.  He can't find it and the chase pursues.  It ends on a train, where M orders an agent to shoot a man Bond is fighting.  She shoots, and hits Bond.  The rest of the film follows M16 and M, limping out with out Bond, hoping to stay afloat.  But things get worse and worse, and low and behold, Bond comes back to save the day, and does, with a story that well, isn't Bond...
2 comments
Read more

The Hobbit Review

"True courage is not knowing when to take a life, but when to spare one", Gandalf quietly says to Bilbo Baggins as he hands him Bilbo's first sword in Peter Jackson's return to Middle Earth. The movie is The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.    I really had no expectation for the film or any real vigor to go and see it, but as a fan and student of films why not go see the latest from arguably one of the best directors in the modern era.    After all the hype, the changing of directors, and extensive waiting period, Peter Jackson delivers a fun, thrilling, beautiful, and CGI happy return to New Zealand, I mean, Middle Earth.   The story is previous to the LOTR trilogy, so if you want to go see this movie and haven't seen any of those, you in all probability will be lost.    It begins explaining how the dwarf city of Erebor was lost to a dragon, and how the dwarves have been looking for a home since. We then go and follow Bilbo Baggins writing his book ...
1 comment
Read more

The Tree of Life

Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life is a hugely ambitious picture that not only deals with a family’s life here on earth, but the creation of our own and the beiiefs, religious or secular,   we grasp as the clear and definite truth.   The scope of Malick’s film is transcendental to our culture. ·       The film begins a child’s death and a family’s struggle to grasp this grievous concept.   We see them look back at life and how their relationships with one another has grown or decreased over the years.   The family is upheld by two parents.   The mother represents Grace, the kind and loving side of life, while the father represents Nature, the mentality that you must get ahead and do whatever you can to survive in this dog eat dog world of ours.   We see the children having to decide what side of life they want.   The main character, Jack, struggles with these natures.   He does not know which one to take hold...
1 comment
Read more