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Top Hat

Top Hat

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: beautiful
Review: A masterpiece, ever. Perfect music, perfect dancing. The plot is a mere trifle to bind together the extraordinary dancing acts. A light, entertainig comedy that makes you feel at peace with the whole world. A pity that I was born too late to enjoy it on the wife screen....

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Top Hat on DVD
Review: As funny as it is, but the French have relased TOP HAT a long time ago on DVD. French Amazon provides us with a beautiful disk by Edition Montparnasse, which has a very good quality transfers both in French and English (the French version is slightly shorter). It's region 2. They also feature other Fred Astaire films on DVD - strrrange, no?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: To Watch "Top Hat" Is To Be "In Heaven"
Review: Ask fans of Astaire and Rogers what their favorite film of their's is with the two. Chances are "Flyin' Down to Rio" may come up even "The Gay Divorcee" but I bet with almost certainty that "Top Hat" will be one you'll hear most of them say. Sure, "Swing Time" is also considered their best among some fans, but, "Top Hat" is my all-time favorite. It's also one of my 10 favorite films. This is Astaire and Rogers at their best with one of the best scores they ever sang and dances to, though "Shall We Dance" is a close runner-up (That movie had "Lets Call The Whole Thing Off", & "They Can't Can't That Away From Me"). Every song in here has become a standard. "Cheek to Cheek", "Isn't It A Lovely Day", "Top Hat, White Tie, & Tails", & "I'm Fancy Free".

This was the team's 4th film and already by now there was plenty of chemistry going on. The two knew how to play off each other. "Top Hat" is the film most people think stealed the deal and made them an offical "team". In their film before this "Roberta" they were reduced to supporting players. And didn't get to sing many songs. Irene Dunne received that honor.

The plot to "Top Hat" has Fred playing Jerry Travers an American dancer who is going to perform in a show put on by Horace Hardwick (Edward Everett Horton). Soon, Jerry meets Dale Tremont (Ginger Rogers). But, Dale mistakes Jerry for Horace after many mishaps occur. Now, this is a bit used often in Astaire & Rogers films. They used it in "The Gay Divorcee", & "Shall We Dance". But, here I think it's used best. Infact, if I could only recommend one movie for someone to see by the team, I would suggest this film. It has all the elements that made the team famous. Wonderful songs, good chemistry, great dancing, and an unbelieveable amount of charm.

Highlight moments in the film have to include one of the team's best remembered moments, Fred telling Ginger he's "in heaven" as they dance "Cheek to Cheek". Check out Fred's dancing in the "Top Hat, White Tie & Tails" number. A song that to this day is STILL associated with him. And I personally love when they dance to "Isn't It A Lovely Day".

Bottom-line: A timeless classic Astaire and Rogers musical. For my money and time, their best! Many standout moments.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Top-Notch Dreamlike Escapism, One of Astaire & Rogers Best!
Review: Astaire & Rogers second best film, 'Swing Time' still holds the throne. What separates this one from the others is an endearing supporting cast, beautiful eye-catching art-deco sets, Astaire & Rogers in top form and those seductive 'Cheek to Cheek' dances. A twisting comic plot about mistaken identities that is pushed to the extreme. Astaire's solo 'Top Hat, White Tie and Tails' is still, along with 'Swing Time's 'Bojangles of Harlem' routine, one of the most impressive of his career. Also Astaire & Rogers rendition of 'Isn't this a lovely day to be caught in the rain' is a highlight. But still the film's highpoint and probably Astaire & Rogers's most famous dance number; 'Cheek to Cheek'. Edward Everett Horton is a hoot as Astaire's best friend. The screwballyness of the story can get a bit tiresome at times but it worked in the 30's and still holds well today. From a scale of 1-10 I give this film a 9!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Smashing!
Review: Astaire and Rogers really light up the screen in this musical hit. Their combination of voice and dance talent make this brilliantly written film into a heavenly masterpiece

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: THE BEST OF ASTAIRE & ROGERS
Review: Between 1933 and 1939, Astaire and Rogers appeared in nine pictures for RKO. The fourth of these, TOP HAT is easily the most popular among fans. It epitomizes their legendary elegance, charm, sophistication and dancing style. Indeed, if one film crystallized their screen personalities it would be this one! Irving Berlin regarded his score for this film as the best he ever wrote for a film and the thoughtfully conceived and beautifully executed dances in the film give resonanace and meaning to the slender plot surrounding the stars at their zenith. The able comic performances of such veterans as Eric Blore, Edward Everett Horton and Helen Broderick (as the sardonic Madge Hardwick) are exquisite. A silly plot, romance, dapper outfits, art deco sets and plenty of terrific song and dance numbers make this a classic thirties production. The Irving Berlin score is superb ("Top Hat", "Cheek to Cheek") and the duo are seen gallavanting from London to Venice; Ginger and Fred are sensational while the supporting cast shines: Edward Everett Horton, Helen Broderick, Erick Blore, Donald Meek and, in a bit as a flower clerk, 24 year-old blonde Lucille Ball. The film cost just over $600,000 to produce and made a profit of 3 million. Katharine Hepburn once sized up the Astaire/Rogers chemistry quite frankly: "He gives her class, and she gives him sex"! TOP HAT has a special quality which goes beyond the excellence of the singing, dancing and acting. Together Ginger and Fred created a uniquely blissful and distinctive screen presence; together they created a style and mood which is still remembered - and as many would say - unequalled.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: GREAT EXPERIENCE...!!!
Review: Even tough this is not the best copy of the movie it will be always great to watch Rogers and Astaire flying on the air and showing why they will always be the best..!!! The Piccolino number is just great as well as I'm in Heaven..I have been seeing this movie since I was a little boy and it will always be one of my favorites in my collection.. This movie is ageless..and will always bring joy no matter how sad you may be...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: rivals swing time
Review: Fred may have danced with other girls, and Ginger may have had other leading men, but together, there were no others. (despite what the plot suggests, we know they'll end up together) Ginger is absolutely gorgeous in every scene, and in the cheek to cheek scene, she looks like a porcelain doll. Fred of course is unbeatable, just watch top hat white tie and tails to see what I mean. They go beyond chemistry in this film, they are the greatest dancing team in history for a reason. We can't imagine them with anyone else. In KITTY FOYLE, for which Ginger won the oscar, she had to choose between 2 men. If Fred had popped in, she wouldn't have given it a second thought. In TOM DICK AND HARRY the following year, Gin has to choose between 3 men. Had Fred been one of the choices, the movie would have been and hour shorter. In TOP HAT, we can't imagine them in any other movies, for they are just ASTAIRE AND ROGERS, and to quote Shall we Dance "they can't that away from me."

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Wait for the US release
Review: I have four Fred and Ginger movies on DVD -- Top Hat, Swing Time, Follow the Fleet and Shall we Dance -- released as a box-set in France by Editions Montparnasse through Buena Vista. [...].BR>By and large the transfers are fantastic -- beautifully clear, and certainly better than anything I've seen on video. I'd recommend the set.
But Top Hat does have an unusually harsh or edgy soundtrack, and I'm hoping that Warner Vision, when they remaster Top Hat (and Swingtime too) this year, will sweeten the sound somewhat - it's the only poor aspect of this French Region 2 PAL system release.
But if you've got a multi-region system, [...] check out the box set -- it was great value, and my whole family is loving it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Top Hat
Review: I highly recommend this movie for people who like old classics. It is about a local girl and a dancer, they go through hilarious mistaken identity and all ends well.


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