Bojangles

Starring:Gregory Hines, Peter Riegert, Kimberly Elise, Maria Ricossa, Savion Glover, Linette Robinson, Jonathan Higgins, Lea Golde, Novie Edwards, Jackie Richardson, Caliaf St. Aubin, Aaron Meeks, Donovon Ian H. McKnight, Philip Akin, Roger Montgomery (II), Arnold Pinnock, Quancetia Hamilton, Richard Yearwood, Martin Doyle, Martin Roach
Director: Bill Lake, Joseph Sargent
Studio: Showtime Ent.
Product Type: DVD

Description

The award-winning actor and dancer Gregory Hines stars in this look at the life of extraordinary tap dancing legend Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. This is the story of an incredibly talented man who struggled with the demons of his past and the racism of his time, but still entertained millions with his unique and complex dance style.

Customer Reviews:

Bojangles vs. Tap.......2006-12-12

If you didn't like Bojangles...get TAP. It's GREAT, and it just came out on DVD.
Check out Savion Glover dancing in HAPPY FEET the movie. You see where he also added some of Gregory Hines steps in some cuts.

Should have been fantastic... Something went horribly wrong!.......2006-03-22

I bought this movie simply because it stars Gregory Hines and themes tap dancing. That should be a recipe for success, Gregory Hines and Savion Glover, two of the greatest tap dancers to have lived, in a movie about tap dancing. Unfortunately if that is also what you are thinking, you will be sorely dissapointed.

I watched this with my dance partner who has been tap dancing for over 19 years, even with my limited knowledge of tap I could tell that Gregory Hines was either screwed over by the choreographer, or what is sadly more likely, already suffering from cancer. He never in the entire movie came even close to tapping at his own skill level, which just made him and Bojangles look bad. The only top-notch tapping in the whole movie was a short 1 or 2 minute scene where Savion Glover busts out, which made the movie worth its purchase price for me. I've seen Bojangles routines danced by other contemporary dancers who aren't even great tappers, and they looked far better doing them than anything Hines did in this movie. It's really a shame.

Now that covers the tap dancing. As for the actual movie, I could have cared less had the dancing been good, but it wasn't, and the screenplay was even worse. First off, never... and I mean NEVER have your characters turn around, stare into the camera, and start telling the audience what is going on, or what their character is thinking. Not only is it incredibly annoying to the viewer, but the whole point of hiring actors is so they can act out a story without having someone sit there and TELL us the story. Talk about ruining the mood! There I am, getting into a scene, and all of a sudden a character turns around and starts telling me how in hindsight they weren't really making the best decision with their life at that time?! WTF!!? Is the cameraman -interviewing- the character?! What's going on?! I'm trying to -watch- the movie, this is like when your friends start kibitzing to you in the middle of a movie, it drives me nuts! Moving on from that little annoyance, it really doesnt get much better, the story is weak, something about gambling and his 2nd wife... I watched it like 2 hours ago and I'm already having trouble remembering what happened... The directing was atrocious, I love Gregory Hines, for his dancing and acting, and although he was still a good actor, he didn't give nearly the performance that he gives in other movies, BAD directing.

Anyhow, I could go on, but that would just be mean. If you worship tap dancing, get the movie for the 1 minute scene of Savion Glover busting out some SWEET moves. If not, I'd steer clear of this movie, you'd be better of watching a documentary with a bunch of interviews... It'd be a lot mor entertaining.

A Gift.......2006-02-23

My older brother danced with the nicolas brothers before they passed away and he teaches tap dancing. thought i send it as a birthday present.

Call that man Bojangles.......2005-10-25

This movie was awsome. THe coolest flick since titanic. I highly recommed it. Go Bo!

Bad Casting.......2005-06-25

Upon researching the true story of Mr. Bojangles, I thought his movie did not do him justice. First I will begin with the disappointment I felt with the casting. As most of people who took a chance to watch this televised biography, we are aware of what Bojangles looked like. No offense to Gregory Hines, but his casting was horrible. No similarities what so ever, besides the fact that he taps. I believe this movie would have meant more to me had the actor been a no-name. You can't get passed the fact that you're looking at GREGORY HINES. Another issue I have is that, this is nothing short of a recall of Bojangles courtship with his wife Fannie, who he dogged out. The movie spent way too much time on this subject and didn't give us the "MEAT" of this man's life, like his fall out with Stepin' Fetchit, or where he & black hollywood were confined to while recreation was segregated, the western version of Harlem, Central Avenue in Los Angeles ! The place that was hot in the 30's & 40's. The street that had a hotel where Bo always stayed when he came to LA, the Dunbar, where he fraternized with other black stars of his era. The club that they named after him. None of this priceless info was mentioned or recreated. This movie was a waste of my time. 2 hours of nothin'. Fannie's charector was a bad casting move too. She was light complected in real life and a sharp hollywood wife that was involved in a WHOLE lot more than messin' around with ice-cream. Then the movie speeds up once Bo & Fannie actually GET married and by the time you think you're gonna actually see some GOOD STUFF, he's dead and the movie's over. I sold my copy of this movie. It wasn't on the same level of other old biographies of other famous black stars. If you're trully interested in learning more about this legend, please take the time to READ about it first and not just rent or buy this movie believing it as Gospel to Bojangles life. The books tell you more. One in particular is The Experience of Black Hollywood written by Donald Bogle. Very enlightening. Don't waste your time on garbage like this movie. I wish I hadn't.

Shirley Temple Collection 12-Pack DVD Box Set

Average customer rating:

Shirley Temple Collection 12-Pack DVD Box Set

Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Classics | Genres | DVD | Video

Shirley Temple - America's Sweetheart Collection, Vol. 5 (The Little Princess / Stand Up and Cheer / The Blue Bird)
Blue Bird
Shirley Temple - Little Darling Pack (Little Miss Marker/Now and Forever/The Runt Page)

ASIN: B000MPQLLU

Product Description

Rarely have audiences embraced a youngster as gifted as America's biggest little star, Shirley Temple, and rarely have a dozen films become such enduring classics! Co-starring cinematic legends like Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Lionel Barrymore and many more, these Shirley Temple films have never looked better. Digitally recolored and remastered, Shirley's picture-perfect charm is more vivid than ever in this exciting collection! Contains the following 12 dvds in one box: 1. Heidi, 2. Curly Top, 3. Little Miss Broadway, 4. Baby Take A Bow, 5. Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, 6. Bright Eyes, 7. Dimples, 8. The Little Colonel, 9. The Littlest Rebel, 10. Captain January, 11. Just Around The Corner, and 12. Susannah of the Mounties.

Average customer rating:

A very odd musical that grows on you
Keep "Dixiana" Back in Dixie!
I am your baby now...

Dixiana
Starring: Joseph Cawthorn , Eddy Chandler , Bruce Covington , Bebe Daniels , and Ralf Harolde
Director: Luther Reed
Manufacturer: Alpha Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Comedies | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Musicals & Performing Arts | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Music Video & Concerts | Genres | DVD | Video

Comedy | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

Comedy | Independently Distributed | Stores | DVD | Video

Music Video & Concerts | Independently Distributed | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Comedy | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Music Video & Concerts | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

Independently Distributed | Indie & Art House | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( D ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Half Shot at Sunrise
Hook, Line and Sinker
Country Gentlemen
All Over Town
Laurel & Hardy - Air Raid Wardens / Nothing but Trouble

ASIN: B000BT96K0
Release Date: 2005-12-27

Customer Reviews:

A very odd musical that grows on you.......2007-03-25

I had never seen the comedy team of Wheeler and Woolsey before I saw this movie, and at the very least they are an acquired taste. Apparently they were a successful Broadway act that made several movies together, all along the same style as this one. Wheeler plays the wide-eyed innocent to the more caustic Woolsey, whose comedy is very reminiscent of George Burns. "Dixiana" is basically a musical drama played out in the pre-Civil War south with comedy bits by Wheeler and Woolsey interspersed with the dramatic storyline. The problem is, this movie is just not big enough for the two of them. Wheeler and Woolsey's comedy really has nothing to do with the dramatic storyline, and the dramatic storyline is totally divorced from Wheeler and Woolsey's characters. It may be that scenes have been cut from this DVD version, since apparently at one point in time it has fallen into the public domain, but large parts of the dramatic storyline never get sewed up. For example, there is a scene where the villain says he had something to do with rigging a duel involving a relative of the hero of the dramatic storyline - and that's the last we ever hear of it. Also, somehow at the end the heroine, Dixiana, and her boyfriend are reunited, but there never is anything in the movie showing exactly how this was accomplished.

The music is pretty good, and the musical numbers have very lavish and in some cases unusual sets and costumes. The prime example is the opening number with Wheeler and Woolsey dressed up as dancing ostriches and Dixiana popping out of an egg to do her part of the musical number. Wheeler and Woolsey's comedy in this particular film falls flat by today's standards, but it is watchable enough. I'd say it's worth viewing just for the weirdness of it all.

Keep "Dixiana" Back in Dixie!.......2006-11-10

"Dixiana" is perhaps the worst Wheeler & Woolsey comedy I have ever seen. The good news is, because it is so bad, rarely will you have to sit down and watch a movie as bad.

"Dixiana" is one of your typical RKO lavish musicals with big costumes and sets, a somewhat pleasant musical score, and a mixture of romance/comedy/musical. But the film fails to live up to the standard other RKO pictures have set.

First of all, I'm not the biggest Wheeler & Woolsey fan in the world. I have however seen 14 of their films together. Why? I like to collect rare films and Wheeler & Woolsey films are rare. If I see one I don't like to pass up the opportunity of collecting them.

I don't think Wheeler and Woolsey were as funny as some of the other comedians and comedy teams of their era. I find I'm much more involved in the work of Chaplin, Keaton, Fields, Laurel and Hardy and the Marx Brothers. This is not to say I'm incapable of enjoying one of their films. I am. I have seen a few that I really enjoyed.

"Dixiana" takes place in the old south and tells the story of Carl Van Horn (Everett Marshall, whose mustache looks like it is about to eat him alive) he has fallen in love with a circus performer, Dixiana (Bebe Daniels) and plans on marrying her, which will break up her act with two comics, Peewee (Bert Wheeler) and Ginger (Robert Woolsey). Carl's father and stepmother however do not know about Dixiana's past and his stepmother will not allow Carl to marry the women fearing it will ruin her chance of getting into society, especially since Carl's father Cornelius (Joseph Cawthon, who appeared in the much funnier Wheeler and Woolsey comedy "Peach-O-Reno") has just inherited his family's Southern planation.

One of the film's biggest mistakes is not allowing Wheeler and Woolsey room for their comedy, even though it is pretty dated with Woolsey's stale one-liners. But, it is my opinion, the best Wheeler and Woolsey films were the ones that didn't concentrate so much on the plot but gave the comedy team plenty of room to do their stuff, that would include "Diplomaniacs" (their best film and one of the funniest comedies of all time), "Peach-O-Reno" and "Hips, Hips, Hooray". "Dixiana" on the other hand take too much time away from the team and injects too much romance. Over half the film involves the love story going on between Dixiana and Carl. We've seen this situation before, especially in Marx Brother comedies made after "Duck Soup" and Laurel and Hardy films of the 40's. It usually upsets fans of the comedy teams because they are mainly there to serve as comic relief, but the comedians usually have all the best parts. And that's pretty much true in the case of this film as well. While I admit, the film as a whole isn't very funny, the film's best moments are when Wheeler and Woolsey are on-screen.

Some people also complain the film is racist. I thought only the film's beginning moments, including the title song sung over the opening credits, showcased a kind of racist humor, that no doubt was seen as harmless in the day. I don't think a large number of people though would find the film offensive, in less of course you find unfunny films offensive.

Dorothy Lee has a very minor, and useless part in the film as Nanny, a dancer in a gambling casino Wheeler and Woolsey find themselves working in. Lee makes her appearance 50 minutes into the film, and the movie is only 99 minutes to begin with! Her character provides nothing to the story at all, despite the fact that I usually like her. I will in all fairness say her first appearance in the film gives Wheeler and Woolsey perhaps their best routine in the film as each man tries to go up to her room without the other one knowing.

"Dixiana" was directed by Luther Reed, a studio director whom had directed Wheeler and Woolsey's first film, "Rio Rita". "Rita" in my opinion was not a great film either, it suffered from this film's same problem of having Wheeler and Woolsey as comic relief, but it is more watchable than "Dixiana". Reed also wrote the film but it was based on a story by Anne Caldwell, who served as a writing source for Wheeler and Woolsey's next film, "Half Shot at Sunrise" (another far better Wheeler and Woolsey comedy). I mention this because Reed and Caldwell have worked with the team before so I find it odd how badly things went here. "Dixiana" was the team's third film (coming behind, in order, "Rio Rita" and "The Cuckoos", the latter being the better of the three) and proves to be lackluster and boring at best.

Bottom-line: The stale humor of Wheeler and Woolsey mixed with some racist undertones of the ol' south make "Dixiana" better left unseen. The comedy team is reduced to comic relief (and they barely provide any relief) and is plagued by bad joke after bad joke. Perhaps their worst film.

I am your baby now..........2006-03-10

Recently at the Silent theatere in L.A. 30's style singer Janet Klein revived a song from Dixiana "I am Your Baby Now". In the film Bebe Daniles sings it, and she sings it after being carried on stage by two giant Ostriches, and she pops out of an egg, so sing it! Great performance. The film is funny and faetures soem great vaudevillians. A cute film with loads of charm, and a nice roamntic comedy. Although I must admid my favorite part of the film is Bebe singing in the egg!!!

Charlie Rose with Bill Jones, John Greenwald & Paul Krugman; Gregory Hines; Irving Wladawsky-Berger (January 30, 2001)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Bill Jones, John Greenwald & Paul Krugman; Gregory Hines; Irving Wladawsky-Berger (January 30, 2001)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Educational | Genres | DVD | Video

Description

A panel discussion about the California power crisis with Bill Jones, representative of California, John Greenwald of Time, and Paul Krugman of The New York Times and Princeton University. Later, an interview with actor and dancer Gregory Hines on his portrayal of vaudeville star Bill Robinson in the movie Bojangles. Finally, IBM executive Irving Wladawsky-Berger speaks about his company's technology and the movement towards simplification in computing.

Average customer rating:

Mister Bojangles
Starring: Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band - Farther Along
Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. 3
Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy
Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. 2

ASIN: B000GIWUAO
Release Date: 2006-11-14

DVD:

DVD

DVD

DVD

Deadful Melody

Winston Churchill - The Wilderness Years - Vol. 3: The

On Approval

DVD: Deadly Actions 4 Pack

Guitar Method - In the Style of Van Halen