Rating: 
Summary: Marvelous String of Show Stoppers
Review: "The Bandwagon" gets my vote for best-ever movie musical. It tells a story within a story within a story (much like Cole Porter's "Kiss Me, Kate!") in which Fred Astaire pretty much plays himself as a maturing, but not yet over-the-hill song and dance star. He gets improbably teamed up with the magnificent Cyd Charisse in Jack Buchanan's send-up of the theater business -- an avant-garde redo of "Faust." (No doubt this is where Mel Brooks found at least a part of the inspiration for "The Producers"). Oscar Levant and Nanette Fabray are equally contributing co-stars, and the ensemble puts on an entire film that is a virtual non-stop high-light reel. Astaire and Charisse have the classic "Dancing In The Dark" duet which is so graceful and fluid you are reminded of Torrville and Dean, except Astaire and Charisse are not wearing skates.There are so many great tunes and dances in this film that it would take a couple inches of space just to list them; "That's Entertainment" and "The Girl Hunt," to mention just two. I believe MGM dubbed Ms. Charisse's singing, but it is done well and does not adversly affect the music. (I wish I knew the name of the singer to give credit for her voice.) Even if this rankles the purist, her dancing more than compensates. This movie is a joy to watch and listen to, and it never gets tired. It will definitely leave a shine on your shoes and a melody in your heart that never wear out.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice songs, stupid plot, Fred Wastes His Skill
Review: "Shine on your shoes" song is very cool, and I also liked "Triplets" which I have seen Danny Kaye sing in a mirrior, but all in all "The Bandwagon" is confusing and talent is wasted fluently by namely, Nanette What's-her-name, and Fred Astaire. The "Girl Hunt" number" was funny in it's stupidness.
Rating: 
Summary: Really, a 3.5...
Review: A muddled Fred Astaire musical, which starts out with a brilliant opening sequence wherein Tony Hunter, a thinly-veiled Astaire stand-in, returns to a modern, new, 1950s New York, which has adopted a brash, gritty form of glitz which feels foreign to the debonaire star of 'Thirties film and stage. Broadway has been overrun with garish and pretentiously lofty Big Concept plays, and the good clean fun of Fred and Ginger's era seems hokey and out-of-date. Still, his loyal pals, a successful playwright and librettist, hustle him up some work, which turns out to be with the most pompous of the new theatre elite. Astaire's outsider-looking-in view of Broadway in transition -- the sort of big city symphony that director Vincente Minnelli excelled at -- is fascinating (while Fred's visit to an old Times Square theatre that's been renovated into a penny arcade is amusing in retrospect, considering that the neighborhood soon became overrun with porno parlours...) Teaming Astaire up with Cyd Charisse is a joy to behold as well... Apparently he is quoted as saying she was his favorite dance partner (Ginger Rogers fans, all gasp now...) but you can kinda see what he means... Where the graceful Rogers was a perfect partner to Astaire, the statuesque Charisse is more of counterpoint, an equal presence, if not as intuitive and inventive a dancer. There's a much greater physical charge between them, and it's a very different viewing experience. Anyway, long story short: this film has a great premise, but falls apart when they actually find a barn and start to put on a show. The highbrow producer stages a flop, and Astaire and company decide they can't quit now, so they're just going to put on some good, old-fashioned singing and dancing revue, like folks loved in the old days. That's all very well and fine, but the big old, sockaroony extravaganza that takes up the last quarter of the film simply makes no sense. It's a bizarre Technicolor pastiche of old routines: a hick skit, a terrible old Vaudeville routine (Triplets), and a fun (but overlong) parody of then-contemporary film noir craze, featuring Astaire in the tough-guy role. It just doesn't hang together, which is a pity, since the film ultimately doesn't deliver on its promise to give the "new" theatre its comeuppance... Maybe with a little more delicacy or stronger writing, they would have, but the Really Big Show is kind of half-baked. Stiil, Astaire & Charisse... what's not to like?
Rating: 
Summary: Soft-shoeing
Review: A poor cousin to "Singin' In The Rain" (high praise, actually), "The Band Wagon" is painfully forced at times, but all the while Astaire glides through, and everybody seems to be having a good time (Jack Buchanan, as the director, is especially delightful). When was the last time you knew the people in a movie were actually enjoying themselves?
Rating:
Summary: Throwback to Vaudeville
Review: Astaire & buddies decide to put on a travelling show. This somewhat defiant response to Gene Kelly's forward looking & somewhat cynical Singin in the Rain, provided a big screen platform for an odd combination of small stage entertainment and Astaire's signature tap dancing mixed with ballroom dancing. The movie adopts a cheerful & innocent entertain the masses approach. Old fashioned on purpose. His dancing is wonderful and the film suffers in the scenes and numbers where he isn't front and center. Corny old songs like "Triplets" and "Louisiana Hayride" are dragged out & dusted off. Was Astaire really this devoted to his vaudeville roots or was it all he knew how to do? Astaire may not have born wearing a top hat and tails but he might as well have been. I wonder if it got to the point where someone he trusted had to sit down with Fred and convince him to let it go. Obviously, Singin in the Rain resonated more deeply with public. Astaire finally gave up on these throwback movies & took on dramatic roles in the late 50's. Big budget modernized musicals dominated the 50's & 60's.
Rating:
Summary: THE GREATEST MUSICAL I HAVE EVER SEEN
Review: beautiful, funny, sad, enchanting, fascinating. Minnelli never made a better musical film(well,''Meet Me in St. Louis'' almost),this is one of the movies that never leaves you. Fred Astaire at his best as an aging film star deciding to appear in a broadway musical for his writer friends, getting tangled in a mess and falling in love with beautiful costar Cyd Charisse.Minnelli melds everything together seamlessly in a narrative full of echoes and doubles, himself echoing the ballet scene from his legendary ''American in Paris'' with a smoldering noir dance sequence, Charisse herself becoming the double side of an innocent waif and femme fatale. Smoldering movie world envelopes you, as life is a stage, and the stage is life.
Rating:
Summary: It's true: The Best Musical Ever
Review: Better than "Singin' In The Rain?" Better than "Top Hat?" Better than anything else? Yes. If you haven't seen it, do so immediately-- it's the crowning achievement of the MGM shop, and a lot of fun.
Rating:
Summary: Cyd and Fred!
Review: Cyd Charisse, Fred Astaire, Nanette Fabray, Jack Buchanan and Oscar Levant star in the classic musical THE BAND WAGON, one of the greatest movie musicals ever made. Focusing on a troup of actors trying to make a musical version of "Faust", THE BAND WAGON centres on the stormy relationship between the two leads - the washed-up hoofer (Astaire) and the prim and proper ballerina (Charisse). The relationship climaxes in the stunning "Dancing In The Dark" sequence, where they test their limits. Fabray and Levant are endearing as the struggling writers/performers who come up with the impossible musical after the director (Buchanan) gets the wrong idea about the script. The film also features the classic "Triplets" song with Astaire, Fabray and Buchanan, and the "Girl Hunt" ballet, a spoof of the Mickey Spillane spy stories, danced by Astaire and a dual role by Charisse. Truly a masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: A Movie Musical Lover's Dream
Review: Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse do some of the most beautiful and romantic dancing ever in this classic showbusiness film. Dancing in the Dark and The Girl Hunt are fantastic sequences,and for comedy, this is a gem! Buy or rent this film today! It will be the best money you've ever spent!
Rating:
Summary: Perfect musical!
Review: Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse look great together! The dances and songs are great! I really like Nanette Fabray's character, but Oscar Levant gets on my nerves. Who cares? I still LOVE this movie!
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