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By
NICK ZEGARAC
Arthur Freed's "The Band
Wagon" is the other great Vincente Minnelli
musical from a canon of rarified entertainment. It
stars Fred Astaire as washed up matinee idol, Tony
Hunter. Seems Tony's career in Hollywood has
entered the realm of forgotten legend. But that's
about to change when his old time pals, Lily
(Nannette Fabray) and Lester Martin (Oscar Levant)
conceive of a big Broadway show for Tony to star
in. Unfortunately for all concerned, the project
is passed on to Broadway thespian and director,
Jeffrey Cordova (Jack Buchanan). Jeff conceives
the light-hearted show as a heavy-handed musical
rendition of Faust. He casts prima ballerina,
Gabrielle Gerard (Cyd Charisse) opposite Tony and
sets to work on dismantling Lester and Lily's
preconceived notions of mainstream fame. But after
the show bombs all concerned have a delightful
change of heart and, as the old showbiz moniker
declares, the show does indeed go on.
Scenarists, Adolph Green and Betty Comden
fashioned the husband and wife team of Lily and
Lester after their own tempestuous marriage and
fill the screen with in jokes of subtle hilarity.
The score, featuring one hit after another, is
over the top toe-tapping perfection. Of particular
interest here are Astaire and Charisse's lampoon
of the pulp novel with "The Girl Hunt Ballet,"
Astaire's catchy "I Love Louisa," the charming
"Triplets" routine, the perfection gleaned from
Astaire and Charisse "Dancing in the Dark" and, of
course, the great tributary ode to actors
everywhere, "That's Entertainment!"
Employing their ultra-resolution film restoration
process, the good people at Warner Brothers have
delivered another outstanding transfer for the DVD
consumer. "The Band Wagon" has never looked
better. The Technicolor print is exceptionally
rich and vibrant. Blacks are rich deep and solid.
Whites are crisp, but never blooming. The audio
has been impeccably remastered. Extras include two
marvelous documentaries; one on the making of the
film, the other on the career of Vincente
Minnelli; as well as wonderful audio commentaries
from Liza Minnelli and Michael Feinstein; a trite
short subject featuring Jack Buchanan, and an
Astaire theatrical trailer gallery. Great stuff
and well worth the price of admission. |
