Rating: 
Summary: Easily the best book on early musical film
Review: As the author of a popular website on the history of stage and screen musicals, I have read countless books on the musical film, and none can match what Barrios has done here. He approaches the mostly forgotten early sound era with genuine affection and a remarkable facility for detailed research. He also (thank heaven) writes with a delightfully readable style, avoiding the dry academic language that often makes studies of Hollywood's early sound era downright boring. Barrios includes a great selection of rare photos too. No other book on this subject is nearly as informative or enjoyable -- for those who are interested in early screen musicals, I cannot recommend this book too highly!
Rating:
Summary: Easily the best book on early musical film
Review: As the author of Musicals101.com, I have read countless books on the history of musical film, and none can match what Barrios has done here. He approaches the subject with genuine affection and a remarkable facility for detailed research. He also (thank heaven) writes with a delightfully readable style, avoiding the dry academic language that often makes studies of Hollywood's early sound era downright boring. No other book on this subject is nearly as informative or enjoyable -- for those who are interested in early screen musicals, I cannot recommend this book too highly!
Rating:
Summary: Great Read, over and over
Review: I found this book fantastic, I have read it over and over and find new things everytime.The only problem is, now I want to see the films and many are no longer available. It was a fun read also, not a dry , just the facts , study.Highly recomed to anyone interested in early talkies, not just musicals
Rating:
Summary: Easily the best book on early musical film
Review: I have read countless books on the history of musical film, and none can match what Barrios has done here. He approaches the subject with genuine affection and a remarkable facility for detailed research. He also (thank heaven) writes with a delightfully readable style, avoiding the dry academic language that often makes studies of Hollywood's early sound era downright boring. No other book on this subject is nearly as informative or enjoyable -- for those who are interested in early screen musicals, I cannot recommend this book too highly!
Rating:
Summary: A must-read, again and again
Review: One of the funniest, best-researched and readable film history books ever written. Not only does Barrios have his subject matter where he wants it, but his text is so witty I found myself frequently laughing out loud. A book to set by your VCR for quick checking, and for reading again and again. A great antidote to all-too-often stuffy "senior thesis" film books.
Rating:
Summary: As Enjoyable As The Movies Barrios Writes So Wittily About
Review: The poet Frank O'Hara once wrote that of all the American poets only Walt Whitman and Stephen Crane were better than the movies. While O'Hara's selection of poets is debatable, I think his point is applicable to this wonderfully witty analysis of the first generation of movie musicals: it's as much fun to read as the movies Barrios writes about are to watch.I was rather perplexed by the previous review that stated this book had no central thesis. It is, I believe, a serious misreading of the book. Barrios states quite clearly that the first generation of movie musicals were a matter of trial and error. Hollywood needed to find out what would--and what would not--work on FILM regarding musicals. This is one of the reasons why Barrios's analysis is so insightful. Busby Berkeley, for example, is such a great choreographer precisely because he realized that FILM choreography is a different art form from dancing on stage. His wonderful combination of vision and movement *as captured ON FILM* continues to delight us today. But Berkeley could not have known this without the previous examples of movie choreography that was filmed as if it were a theatre performance. Hollywood learned from its mistakes. And Barrios's writing is quite simply a delight. So much film analysis misses the popcorn for the postmodern theory. Whereas even a truly awful film can be a secret delight (as Barrios acknowledges over and over again), really dry criticism is like week old popcorn: pretty tasteless and hard to swallow. But I must admit that I laughed out loud again and again as I read about one disaster after another, all preserved on film for us to gaze at in wonder (as in "I wonder how in the world they thought THAT would work on film?"). And his analysis of the great musicals of the period made me long to be sitting in the third row from the back, transported to another world as only a really wonderful movie can do. The book is extensive in witty and incisive reviews of the good, the bad, and the truly ugly of early music musicals precisely to bear out Barrios's central thesis: that Hollywood did not approach the movie musical with preconceived notions of what would work like gangbusters on the screen. Rather they learned from their mistakes after watching gangs bust out in unintended laughter at some of the real bombs of the musical genre. And Barrios's book is the only one I am aware of that so truly captures the spirit of the age: hey guys, let's film a musical and see if it works. The auteur theory, while often instructive and interesting, has done some serious disservice to film criticism. It has led us to believe that directors all have these preconceived, "unified visions" that are applied to every film project they undertake. But I believe that Barrios is far closer to the truth: Hollywood laid some eggs and THEN learned to make some delicious omelettes. And Barrios is something that most film critics and historians are not: as much fun to read as the movies he analyzes are to watch. Put some butter on the popcorn, put your feet up and enjoy a book that is truly a joy to read.
Rating: 
Summary: Survey or display?
Review: The research that went into this one is top-notch, but the problem is this: Did this guy write this book in order to make a unified statement about this fascinating period (in the vein of Ethan Mordden in THE HOLLYWOOD MUSICAL) or did he write it to show off how thorough his knowledge of the subject is and have a frame to hang his assorted views of the films on? The fact is that a unified statement need not, and really SHOULD not, mention every single film available for viewing; moreover, too often this book detours into gleeful pans of odd films which, while usually pretty appropriate, really do not follow from any arc of argument. Thus after a while one feels like one is at a party with someone who just wants to dish about the weird movies they love so much while also making sure everyone knows they know EVERYTHING. I like having this book on my shelf because it indeed has EVERYTHING -- but really, a reference book would have done just as well and I would have been just as impressed by the author's command of the data and lore.
Rating:
Summary: An interesting book, but not passionate about its subject.
Review: Undiscovered areas of film history are getting more difficult to find. Surprisingly, the era when sound changed the film industry has been the least written about. When you consider the social and economic ramifications of the time, the area would seem to be rich with interest. Now we have TWO books out at the same time-THE SPEED OF SOUND by Scott Eyman, and this one, by Richard Barrios. In this book, author Barrios concentrates on the musical aspect of the transition, and how people at the various studios, through trial (and mostly) error, tried to entertain the public with music, drama, and (sometimes unintentional) comedy. What makes this book so interesting are the accounts of the disasters (THE MARCH OF TIME, GOLDEN DAWN, THE SHOW OF SHOWS) rather than the successes (THE BROADWAY MELODY, LOVE ME TONIGHT), and curiously, Barrios seems to give equal weight to both, which drains the book of a passion for its subject as well as making for a rather dry read. You don't feel compelled to keep on-you feel obligated. There are also factual errors, a selected filmography would have been helpful, and for all the mention of early color (and for the price), some color photos would have been nice. I would suggest buying both this and the Eyman book-this one for the amount of films, and the other for some "juice."
Rating:
Summary: Simply Wonderful
Review: When I picked up "A Song in the Dark" I was curious to see how someone could make a book about pre-42nd Street musicals. Most histories of the Hollywood musical start with 42nd Street and consign the earlier films to a dark, unknowable, unwatchable past. Barrios made this era come to life. He writes in an engaging, witty style that is a pleasure to read. He never takes a superior tone to his material, and he makes the reader want to track down and see some of these films. (He also makes it clear that some are best avoided.) "A Song in the Dark" greatly deepened my understanding of the Hollywood musical, and I strongly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Wonderful
Review: When I picked up "A Song in the Dark" I was curious to see how someone could make a book about pre-42nd Street musicals. Most histories of the Hollywood musical start with 42nd Street and consign the earlier films to a dark, unknowable, unwatchable past. Barrios made this era come to life. He writes in an engaging, witty style that is a pleasure to read. He never takes a superior tone to his material, and he makes the reader want to track down and see some of these films. (He also makes it clear that some are best avoided.) "A Song in the Dark" greatly deepened my understanding of the Hollywood musical, and I strongly recommend it.
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