On the Town (1949)

Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra fall in love with local girls while on a brief shore leave in On the Town. What's that? You've seen that movie already? Yes, I know, it sounds awfully similar to Anchors Aweigh, but this one is slightly different. For one, in addition to Gene and Frankie, On the Town features Jules Munshin as a third sailor on leave, the same actor who joined the pair in Take Me Out to the Ball Game. Also, Kathryn Grayson, the love interest in Anchors Aweigh, is replaced by Vera-Ellen, Ann Miller, and Betty Garrett. And finally, Gene Kelly doesn't dance with a mouse in this one.Instead of the famous "Gene and Jerry" dance sequence, On the Town features the well-known title song "New York, New York", "Prehistoric Man", and "You're Awful". While there are some memorable moments from the movie, it's not one I choose to watch over and over again—even though Gene and Frankie look adorable in their uniforms. The troubles are Ann Miller and Betty Garrett. Ann Miller was a famous dancer, and I'm not going to dis her talent, but I really didn't like her. I didn't like her style, her expressions, or her attitude. Betty Garrett is unappealing, obnoxious, and reminds me of Celeste Holm's more annoying sister.I do love Vera-Ellen, though, so at least one of the three love interests doesn't make my skin crawl. If you love Gene Kelly, or young Frank Sinatra, you'll probably want to see On the Town and Anchors Aweigh, since a few famous songs came out of them.

Prior to this Movie I Really thought Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra were an unbeatable pair but I really feel this Movie was lacking any originality or showed off any of the extreme Talent from it's Main Stars. I'm not sure if it was the fact it just felt like a cheaper version of Anchors Aweigh but I feel Frank didn't really get many memorable Songs and Gene didn't get his chance to Shine in the magical Dance numbers he usually delivers.The Women in this Movie really stole the Spotlight with their variety of personalities and Charm. I found myself being drawn to them instead of Gene and Frank mainly due to the female Characters carrying the entire Film.

Broadway purists have debated this for over 60 years. But it was obvious that the ballet heavy original could not be done on screen as it was on stage. What remains are the choice bits of music and dance plus a few great new songs. The basic storyline remains of three sailors on leave in the Big Apple and the three women they fall in love with over a 24 hour period. Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra return into their sailor suits from "Anchors Aweigh" and are joined by the comical Jules Munshin and three of MGM's top singing and dancing beauties. Betty Garrett stands out as the flirtatious taxi driver ("A lady cab driver, how revolting", she cries in one hysterical comic moment) who makes it her ambition to get Sinatra all alone at her place. Ann Miller adds her usual enthusiasm and fiery tapping in an amusing if somewhat silly museum set musical number, "Prehistoric Man". The dubbed Vera-Ellen has the least showiest role but stands out in the dance sequences. A hysterically funny Alice Pearce steals her brief scenes with her squeaky dead pan delivery as Garrett's lovable plain Jane roommate, and when she joins the leads for a comical production number, it is a moment of pure joy. Another scene stealer is lovable Florence Bates as a dipsomaniac dance instructor.There is one ballet moment left for fans of the Broadway show to enjoy, plus a few of the original songs which includes "New York, New York". Up until Kander and Ebb wrote the same-titled song for diva Liza Minnelli in the 1970's, this was probably the definitive song about the Big Apple. How many people have gone to Manhattan and not gotten lost because of those lyrics, "The Bronx is Up, and the Battery's Down!"? That lyric was even used comically in Tim Burton's adaption of "Sleepy Hollow". When Sinatra and Garrett duet "Come Up to My Place", the lyrics are slightly different than the original version, but they are just as witty. Ironically, Garrett would star in another altered version of the Broadway musical "Wonderful Town" with songs by Bernstein, given back its original title of "My Sister Eileen", where all of his songs were dropped in favor of a new score by Jule Styne. Unfortunately, the decision to drop the beautiful "Lonely Town" from the original was a mistake, as well as "Lucky to Be Me" and the totally profound "Some Other Time" which could have been the anthem for sailors on leave during World War II. "Lonely Town" could really have been a great solo for Sinatra as he had the perfect pipes to sing it. Otherwise, this ends up being perhaps the best movie musical of a hit Broadway show with tons of changes only slightly affecting its impact.

Gene Kelly, Vera-Ellen, and Ann Miller again showed that they were super dancers, Frank Sinatra exhibited his unequaled singing ability,and Jules Munshin showed that he was a nut. The storyline was simple: three sailors were on a twenty-four-hour pass in New York, (though most of the movie was filmed in Los Angeles), and each made the best of it by finding a female companion and touring the city. While Betty Comden and Adolph Green let the public know via this classic that they were adept at writing screenplays, the movie lacked good acting, though the music was entertaining. I personally liked the songs "New York, New York", "On the Town", and, my favorite, the dance number "A Day In New York". To reiterate, the acting was bland, the story was passable, but the music was great; in fact, the music made it worth the while.