Home :: DVD :: Drama :: General  

African American Drama
Classics
Crime & Criminals
Cult Classics
Family Life
Gay & Lesbian
General

Love & Romance
Military & War
Murder & Mayhem
Period Piece
Religion
Sports
Television
An American in Paris

An American in Paris

List Price: $24.98
Your Price:
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 .. 3 4 5 6 7 >>

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great
Review: This was a great musical. The dance numbers, espicially Dance of the Fountain, were wonderfully staged and performed by Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, who make a great pair. The songs, by Ira and George Gershwin, are great, espicially "I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise", "Love is Here to Stay," "I Got Rhythm", and my favorite, "'S Wonderful, 'S Marvelous." When the direction of Vincente Minnelli, the screenplay of Alan Jay Lerner, the songs of the Gershwin brothers, and the performances of Kelly and Caron come together, you have a really great movie. I don't know why, but I'm not sure if it's as great as Singin' in the Rain. Still, it's a fantastic musical movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Superb
Review: This film starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron is the greatest musical of all times . the romance is not sappy,and it has great songs and dance numbers the music is also written by George and Ira Gershwin and 15 minute record holding dance number and it won seven oscars including Best Picture "Who could ask for anything more"

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Correction to earlier review
Review: The customer who complained that this video isn't wide screen is wrong... It wasn't filmed in wide screen, so the full-screen format of this release is absolutely correct.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great movie/musical on flawed DVD.
Review: Great movie for fans of George Gershwin, Oscar Levant, Gene Kelly. Also Noell Neill, who was TV's Lois Lane (Superman's girl), appears in one scene. But the DVD is flawed. First, it's not wide screen. Second, purple blotches appear from time to time in the upper right and other scenes have visible video noise. Third, the only place I could find the complete cast list was on Amazon.com. This is a MGM movie owned by Ted Turner. I wish Ted had spent some of his movie colorization budget on improving the colors in this one. I own over 500 DVDs and many of them are perfect, some unwatchable, and most like An American in Paris: There are scenes that are gorgeous and others that are faded and noisy. But I did love it!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Gorgeous Color! Dynamite Dance! Kelly at his Best!
Review: Finally available in DVD, this stunning tribute to George Gershwin is as good as can be. Visually, it is a stunning display; the saturated bright reds and oranges just could not have been shown to advantage in any earlier home video format. The dancing is top notch, and of course the film finally emerges as a great tribute to George Gershwin and his versatility. Performances are top of the line also. Though I have occasional problems with Gene Kelly's performances in other films (he is a far better dancer than actor, and DOES incline towards sentimentality), here is is at his dynamic and youthful best. Leslie Caron is stunning, and Oscar Levant is a most happy surprise. Though the bulk of this film came from MGM's backlot, it is as Parisian as can be! Buy it, then watch and enjoy it!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: ohhh baby! i luv this movie
Review: !!!I freaking luv this movie so much, I cant get enough of it!!! I have been watching it ever since i can remember, i guess i am not the ordinary teenage 15 year old girl... no one my age knows anything about this stuff! but anyways the dancing scenes rule, the cast, and the songs!!!!! i luv it!!!! so much thank you for reading y review maryanne

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wow!
Review: Gene Kelly does it again, this time with Lesley Carron. This is a charming, magical film which reaches its peak at the ballet at the end. Buy it and you'll watch it over and over and over again. END

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: S'WONDERFUL ROMANCE ON THE BANKS OF THE SEINE
Review: "An American In Paris" is the charming Arthur Freed musical Oscar winner about a painter, Jerry Mulligan (Gene Kelly). An ex-G.I., Mulligan is a starving artist until a wealthy playgirl, Margo (Nina Foch) takes an interest in both him and his work. But Jerry, seemingly oblivious to Margo's romantic advances, begins to fall for young Parisian, Lise Bouvier (Leslie Caron). The wrinkle of the plot occurs when Jerry learns that Lise is engaged to marry his best friend, Henri Burell (George Guetary). The Gershwin score is among the finest produced for a musical with such indelible hits as "Embraceable You", "S'wonderful", "I Got Rhythm" and the immortal "American in Paris ballet."

It was Gene Kelly who discovered Leslie Caron while on a vacation. She was performing in a Paris ballet. He brought her to America to star in this film. Apart from the opening sequence which sets up the film with vintage travelogue shots of Paris, the entire production was shot on a backlot at MGM. Reportedly, when Irving Berlin learned that Arthur Freed, Kelly and director, Vincente Minnelli were planning to end the film with a nearly 20 minute dance sequence and no dialogue, he curiously commented, "I guess you know what you're doing." Indeed they did. "An American In Paris" became the first musical to win Best Picture since "The Great Ziegfeld" made some twenty years before!

Warner Brothers Home Video has presented this film on DVD in an adequate looking transfer that is a direct import from the MGM/UA initial release. Colors are well defined, nicely balanced and fully saturated. Occasionally there is a noticeable change in the color depending on the film stock. Age related artifacts are tempered. There are very few instances of digital anomalies for an image that is generally smooth throughout. The audio is mono but nicely balanced. Occasionally, dialogue sounds a bit strident and the music carries a slightly muffled characteristic. But these are expected shortcomings for a soundtrack of this vintage. There are NO extras.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An excellent film
Review: "An American In Paris" is an amazing film. It won the Oscar for Best Picture and Gene Kelly was awarded a special Oscar for his choreography. I, and I'm sure that most people would agree, feel that "Singin' In The Rain" is Gene Kelly's best film, but this is a close second.
Basic story: Kelly is an ex-GI who stuck around in Paris to become an artist. He's now an artist, but a struggling one. He meets Leslie Caron and through the wonders of movie musicals, he falls in love with her in about ten seconds. He starts his pursuit of her, but he is also being pursued by a wealthy older woman who wants to sponsor him in an art show. The woman is interested in more than Kelly's art and Caron also has her own problems. She is engaged to an older man whom she doesn't love, but rescued her during the war and so she feels indebted to him. However, even with all these complications we must remember that this is a '50s musical so there can only be one outcome, a good one. Also worth noting is Oscar Levant. He plays Kelly's best pal and brings his usual cynicism and humor to the role.
The plot is exceptionally good for a musical, but what makes a person watch this movie is the musical numbers. Gene Kelly does the dancing and George Gershwin's catalog is used for the music. What could be better? Kelly shows his "everyman" qualities by dancing in a small cafe, on a sidewalk with a swarm of French children, and in the apartment of his best friend. He also does an incredibly romantic dance with Leslie Caron to Gershwin's "Our Love Is Here To Stay". Its beautiful.
The whole movie climaxes in a 17 minute ballet finale. Yes, ballet. Now I don't like ballet, but Kelly brings such an earthy and sexy feel to it that you almost forget its ballet. There are elements of humor in the finale, but for the most part it is incredibly romantic. Its set to a beatiful orchestration of Gershwin's "An American In Paris" suite. The ballet is set on a massive scale, there are many dancers and the fact that Kelly was able to choreograph everything so flawlessly is just a testament to his genius. Everyone is different and for some this isn't a "rewatch" scene, but the first time you see it, it is breathtaking. It took me a few viewings before I think I fully appreciated everything that was going on in the scenes.
One last note, any woman who enjoys seeing good looking men must see this film. Gene Kelly is very handsome and has a strong, dancer's body. During the ballet he dons a skin-tight costume and struts across the screen. Women, keep a glass of ice water handy. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Beautiful
Review: I'm not that big into musicals but I love this movie. I can watch An American in Paris any time day or night. I would rather watch the fantasy dance sequence at the end 10 times in a row than watch most movies all the way through once. Leslie Caron is beautiful, Kelly is fun, and the sets and costumes are fascinating. Definately a must have on dvd for anyone who knows movies.


<< 1 .. 3 4 5 6 7 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates