Ziegfeld Follies

1945

Action / Comedy / Musical

7
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 57% · 13 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Spilled 57% · 5K ratings
IMDb Rating 6.4/10 10 3957 4K

ziegfeld follies dance performance musical revue stop motion sketch comedy

Plot summary

The late, great impresario Florenz Ziegfeld looks down from heaven and ordains a new revue in his grand old style.

Director

George Sidney Photo
George Sidney

Top cast

Dante DiPaolo Photo
Dante DiPaolo as Chorus Boy
Keenan Wynn Photo
Keenan Wynn as Caller
Victor Moore Photo
Victor Moore as Lawyer's Client
Edward Arnold Photo
Edward Arnold as Lawyer
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
1.06 GB
988*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 57 min
Seeds 1
1.96 GB
1472*1072
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 57 min
Seeds 15

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by AlsExGal 6 / 10

The Hollywood Revue of 1946

The premise of this film is that Ziegfeld (with William Powell reprising his role) is in heaven thinking of his dream revue, with the rest of the movie just a playing out of that dream revue. I rather wonder about the direction, because this film managed to do what I've never seen done before - make William Powell appear hammy and amateurish in the opening moments as he plays Ziegfeld once again and then disappears for the rest of the film. Believe me, I say this as a huge fan of William Powell. Thus there is no plot. It involves the big musical and comedy stars of MGM putting on a show of their various capabilities, and for all intents and purposes could be renamed "The Hollywood Revue of 1946" for those familiar with the original from 1929 which basically had the same purpose. Of course, technology has advanced considerably over the ensuing 17 years, but there are still some missteps. Basically, the musical numbers are good, but the comedy skits that punctuate them fall very flat and detract from the entire film. The highlight for me was seeing Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly perform together in a number. The musical numbers make this an above average film, but just barely.It is most valuable because it shows MGM just as it begins to lose its grip as a leader in the film industry in the post-war era, and also because it reinforces what Buster Keaton always said - that MGM never "got" comedy.
Reviewed by jem132 5 / 10

Disappointing show

Given how much I love musicals, this was disappointing. It's a mish-mash of musical numbers and comedy routines from an all-star MGM cast, and it's only really worth watching for a couple of segments. The comedy bits are awful. I ended up skipping through the Red Skelton bit because I found it all so annoying. I watched the film primarily to see Kelly and Astaire dance together, and I'm glad I did, but it's an odd number. Neither look entirely comfortable throughout. Out of all the big name players, Astaire gets the most screen time in this, although he is partnered with Lucille Bremer in two of them, who is clearly far beneath him as a dancing partner. Her dancing lacks any personality or passion, and she's very limited (a debuting Cyd Charisse, dancing with the bubbles, would have been much better!). But the numbers are exquisitely staged, and the Technicolour is lovely. Garland's number is okay, because she has a great talent for comedy, but she never gets to belt it out so she's wasted. The less said about the pretty, pleasant-to-watch-when-she's-not-screeching Kathryn Grayson, the better. Her hymn to "Beauty" closes out the film, and it's hardly a winner. Esther Williams gets to show off her water skills, but it's all a bit so-so. A crazy bit is when Lucille Ball appears to be dominatrix to a bunch of cat women. Overall, it's hardly the great stuff you would expect from MGM
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