Lena Horne!

Uh-oh.

Is this just going to be a bunch of musical numbers associated with Jerome Kern?

I like that they show the songs in full. Kern did write some good tunes.

The biographical story in between the numbers isn’t that bad? It’s not outstanding (in a field) or anything, but it’s fine.

So I’m wondering why MGM let this fall into the public domain:

The film is one of several MGM musicals – another being Royal Wedding – that entered the public domain 28 years after production because the studio did not renew the copyright registration. As such, it is one of the most widely circulated MGM musicals on home video. Warner Home Video gave it its first fully restored DVD release on April 25, 2006.

Which doesn’t explain anything. But perhaps MGM felt there was no money in this movie? And I can see that.

It’s got all the stars.

Frank! He does Ol’ Man River! Is that even allowed!

I didn’t know his register went that far down. And he’s singing without his normal phrasing and er vibrato — it’s kinda fascinating.

I guess two thirds of this is just people performing the songs? So I can see why some would find this a pretty tedious movie, especially since it’s more than two hours long. But I found it pretty enjoyable… but I may have found it tiresome in a movie theatre.

Till the Clouds Roll By. Vincente Minnelli, George Sidney, Richard Whorf. 1946. ⚃

*gasp* Golan-Globus!

Oh my god. Rowlands is totes amazeballs. Totally riveting.

This movie is fabulous. Cassavetes playing the heroically pathetic rich (but cultured) guy, and Rowlands playing the distressingly crumbling woman… it’s… it’s like nothing else. It’s not even like any other Cassavetes movie. Did the Golan/Globus money finally free him to make the movie that he envisioned? After all those years of financing his movies himself?

Rowlands is always good, but Cassavetes has never been better (as an actor) than in this film.

The last fifteen minutes were really frustrating to watch. I mean, that’s the point. But it was hard.

I’m now watching the documentary extras on this Criterion bluray… And it turns out that Jon Voigt was meant to play the guy! But he pulled out three days before shooting was supposed to start, and Cassavetes himself stepped in. That’s… just mind boggling. With Voigt in that part, it would have been such a different movie — I can’t even imagine it. OK, I can, but all I’m imagining is… sheer horror.

Love Streams. John Cassavetes. 1984. ⚅

Oh! The Golden Globes people (partly) financed this restoration? Well, then I don’t know why people are so upset with them!

Anyway.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI87_X52wmk]

I got this Cassavetes box set, and this is the remaining movie from that set. It’s Cassaveteses (that’s a word) first film?

Yes.

Oh, this is very Nouvelle Vague.

But it’s not Godard — it’s not all thought out and stuff. It’s… it’s not that accomplished? I mean, I like it, but it’s just got these technical problems (with lighting, mainly, and, well the actors not being French, which is very technical indeed) that seem to make it totter on the verge of being an American B movie instead of an art movie.

Shadows. John Cassavetes. 1958. ⚂