st.lyons

I didn't clock the musical numbers in this quirky but not entirely successful whodunit. However, it would be nice to see this film without the awkward musical interludes that are often downright embarrassing. Sure, the film does brings together some formidable acting talent with the like of Deneuve, Ardant, Huppert, Darrieux, Béart (the order is arbitrary!) et al, but with a plot as familiar as toothpaste, there is little for the stellar cast to really sink their teeth into. The 1950's set design is overdone, claustrophobic (Okay! Perhaps this was intentional given certain elements of the plot) and downright distracting at times. Oh yes, the fashions are colorful and of the same period but the roles are either over acted (Huppert has a field day. She really knows how to chew up the scenery! Histrionics galore) or just lacking in any real depth. Not a boring film but vastly overrated to my mind. Worth a 6 which I consider generous given the potential(or was there potential given the story line?). Rent it on video and you won't feel quite so ripped off. A curiosity piece but nothing exceptional except for the stellar cast which is not particulary original as gimmicks go. You'll have a lot more fun with Les Demoiselles de Rochefort.

Great ensemble work in this domestic comedy/drama that features outstanding performances by Bette Davis, Ernest Borgnine and Debbie Reynolds and Joan Camden. Bette Davis really surpassed herself in this one, providing more than ample proof that she also had a flair for comedy.

The turmoil caused by a working class mother's insistence that the family should finally do right by their daughter by financing a formal wedding brings a lot of suppressed emotions and frustrations to the surface. There is much truth to be found in this story that shows us how dreams can sometimes get in the way of happiness.

This film has become one of my perennial favorites. Check it out and it might become one of yours.

This hocus opus adds nothing of positive value to the legacy of Judy Garland. With such a large number of Judy Garland's performances available on video, CD and DVD, a more balanced treatment of Judy Garland's trials, tribulations and triumphs(!) would still seem to be waiting somewhere in the wings. Furthermore, given the fact that Judy's personal life has been in public domain for a long time (check the number of works available on her life and career) this new and overly abbreviated re-hashing of her life only proves that her daughter's catharsis is really what this is all about and I just don't buy it. And consider the partial sponsorship of this opus by pharmaceutical companies plying their wares with equal time, of course, for the usual spiels about side effects and another message becomes patently clear: this movie (?) is also posing a public service announcement with Lorna Luft's endorsement and Judy Garland's silent seal of approval. Catch the final scene with the actors portraying Lorna, Liza and Joey watching Judy Davis' rendition of "Get Happy" and the sweet little message about mama not approving of some things. Yeeech ! Exoneration is lurking in the wings !

Now, if Lorna Luft had decided to forego a television adaptation of her memoirs and chosen instead to expand "Judy Garland, The Concert Years", we would have been left with a work far more enduring and worthy of her mother's incredible talent. Which is not to say that the above-mentioned documentary was without its faults, but they were indeed minor ones because this documentary never made any claims to be anything other than a tribute to her incredible talent as a performer.

As much as I was moved by Judy Davis' efforts, there was something particularly grotesque about watching Judy Davis give it her all in her rendition of "The Trolley Song" or assorted gems from Carnegie Hall. Try as she might she did not capture the essence of Judy Garland because, in the final analysis, there was only one Judy Garland and she died in 1969.

If choosing Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis guaranteed effective look-alikes, lip-synching, gestures and movements, the final effect is just another drag show. But this time around, a Hollywood drag show far more elaborately staged with a story line that leaves out so much of her personal and professional life that at the end of it all I was asking myself, is that all there is to Judy Garland. For my money, I would rather sit through a drag show that wouldn't attempt to rejuvenate selected trials and tribulations with a smattering of triumphs.

Maybe one of the saddest truths about Judy Garland's life was that throughout much of her career she performed to live instead of living to perform and the reasons for this can be found in the numerous biographies available on the market today. But, at the end of the day, the whys and hows take very little away from her legacy to the many people who are continually inspired by her incredible talent. And, on a far more positive note, the public has been left with a particularly impressive body of work that will always hold countless pleasures and surprises.

I look forward to purchasing more of the real Judy Garland performances. No reasonable(?)facsimiles for me.