Gene Kelly - Anatomy of a Dancer

Starring:Donald O'Connor, Kenny Ortega, Beth Genne, Adolph Green, Elvis Mitchell, Frank Sinatra, Jean Hagen, Vera-Ellen, Jeanine Basinger, Clive Hirschhorn, Judy Garland, Deborah Jowitt, Nina Foch, Arthur Laurents, Fred Astaire, Esther Williams, Ann Miller, Phil Silvers, Betty Comden, Stephen Silverman
Director: Robert Trachtenberg
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
This biography of Gene Kelly comes from the American Masters series, and even by the high standard of that pedigree, it's an unusually fine portrait. The clips from Kelly's films are superbly chosen (and in sparkling condition), illustrating his low-to-the-ground dancing style and his sky-high choreographic ambitions. "Singin' in the Rain" is here, of course, but so is his lonely, lovely solo with a newspaper in Summer Stock and his double-exposure "Alter Ego" number from Cover Girl. The documentary is not fawning; testimony from collaborators such as Debbie Reynolds and André Previn leaves no doubt about his vanity and his perfectionism. The best of the interviewees is the actress Betsy Blair, Kelly's first wife, whose intelligence and frankness reflect well on him. A running theme is Kelly's masculine, blue-collar image, which allowed audiences to accept sailors and baseball players dancing with balletic precision. It's the precision of genius. --Robert Horton
Description
The life and career of this film star and innovator whose work includes Singin' in the Rain, On the Town, and An American in Paris are vibrantly recalled in this profile of the driven genius--often narcissistic, always a perfectionist--who reenergized the movie musical and redefined dance on screen. Packed with marvelous clips (including rare footage of Kelly's breakthrough Pal Joey Broadway role) and interviews with family members and Hollywood colleagues, Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer is the definitive look at a magical talent whose story has never been fully told until now. It's a life to be watched, celebrated, enjoyed. 87 minutes.

Gene Kelly Collection (Singin' in the Rain / An American in Paris / On the Town / Anatomy of a Dancer)
Average customer rating:

Great classics

Gene Kelly Collection

The Best Musical Ever

I Love Gene Kelly!

It could be better

Gene Kelly Collection (Singin' in the Rain / An American in Paris / On the Town / Anatomy of a Dancer)
Starring: Gene Kelly
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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ASIN: B00006JMSZ
Release Date: 2002-09-24

Amazon.com

The Gene Kelly Collection is an unbeatable selection of DVDs showcasing the marvelous Gene Kelly, the Pittsburgh kid whose ballet shoes burst with muscle and ambition. Singin' in the Rain (1952) is everybody's favorite musical, a sarcastic spoof of the early days of talking pictures directed by Kelly and longtime collaborator Stanley Donen. (Ah, the joys of DVD: to be able to zap into the blissful title number or Donald O'Connor's "Make 'Em Laugh" at the touch of a button. Plus, the 2002 special edition is exceptional.) An American in Paris (1951), a dream project for Kelly and director Vincente Minnelli, is at its best in its glorious Gershwin numbers. Kelly's lengthy fantasy ballet, drenched in all the Technicolor MGM could muster, may have you thinking that this, after all, is why movies were invented.

Kelly and Donen forced MGM to let them shoot on location in New York for the exteriors of On the Town (1949), the movie that took musicals into the open air (and remained Kelly's favorite of his films). The spirited dancing and the wisecracking Comden-Green script make this an ebullient tale of three sailors on a 24-hour leave. The choreography plays multiple variations on the triangular team of Kelly, Jules Munshin, and a still-gawky Frank Sinatra. Finally, Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer (2002) is a terrific American Masters documentary, with oodles of superbly chosen (mint condition) film clips and interviews with many of Kelly's friends and colleagues. The emphasis is on how Kelly changed the image of the male dancer, complementing the aristocratic Fred Astaire with a more blue-collar, regular-Joe approach. It's an unblinking portrait, acknowledging the taskmaster behind the pearly grin. Those revelations make perfect sense when you see the astonishing dances: how could anyone this great not be a perfectionist? --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Great classics.......2007-05-08

Movies for all ages even the little one liked the music and dance

Gene Kelly Collection.......2007-01-18

For all Gene Kelly lovers, this is a great collection to watch and own. He is one of the two masters of the dance/musical genre (Fred Astaire being the other). The dance sequence in "Singing in the Rain" gives me goosebumps everytime I watch it. They don't make 'em like that anymore. Also the documentary On the Town/Anatomy of a Dancer was very interesting. Enjoyed it thoroughly.

The Best Musical Ever.......2006-11-24

The first time I saw Singing in the Rain I wanted to see it over and over agin. It was the most greatest musical and romance movie I ever seen. I loved the movie so much that I really really want to watch it again. it is the best black and white movie I ever saw. the last time I saw the movie it was on channel 13 or (Kera). I liked to watch the musical part the most, it's the best part. I hope I could see the movie again on Kera channel.

I Love Gene Kelly!.......2006-07-15

I grew up with Gene Kelly performances and so this box set is wonderful. "Singin' on the Rain" is one of his classics, as well as one of his best performances. "On the Town" and "An American in Paris" are suberb too, highlighting Kelly's different strengths. I especially liked "Anatomy of a Dancer" though because it shed light on Kelly's life that I did not know. As such I grew to respect him and his work even more. I highly recommend it for Gene Kelly followers and musical lovers alike!

It could be better.......2005-09-22

The sound track for "On The Town" didn't work at all. The sound track for the other two was very uneven. Too loud, then too soft. Apparently it was still at theater levels. That should be easily repaired.
These wonderful movies are worth a re-do.

Average customer rating:

A Knock Out DVD on a Superb and courageous Artist
Excelent
documentary
Singin' in the Dance!
Fulsome But Fair-Minded Portrayal of Kelly as Blue-Collar Dancer Extraordinaire

Gene Kelly - Anatomy of a Dancer
Starring: Betsy Blair , Stanley Donen , Deborah Jowitt , Kerry Kelly , and Fayard Nicholas
Director: Robert Trachtenberg
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00006FDCQ
Release Date: 2002-09-24

Amazon.com

This biography of Gene Kelly comes from the American Masters series, and even by the high standard of that pedigree, it's an unusually fine portrait. The clips from Kelly's films are superbly chosen (and in sparkling condition), illustrating his low-to-the-ground dancing style and his sky-high choreographic ambitions. "Singin' in the Rain" is here, of course, but so is his lonely, lovely solo with a newspaper in Summer Stock and his double-exposure "Alter Ego" number from Cover Girl. The documentary is not fawning; testimony from collaborators such as Debbie Reynolds and André Previn leaves no doubt about his vanity and his perfectionism. The best of the interviewees is the actress Betsy Blair, Kelly's first wife, whose intelligence and frankness reflect well on him. A running theme is Kelly's masculine, blue-collar image, which allowed audiences to accept sailors and baseball players dancing with balletic precision. It's the precision of genius. --Robert Horton

Description

The life and career of this film star and innovator whose work includes Singin' in the Rain, On the Town, and An American in Paris are vibrantly recalled in this profile of the driven genius--often narcissistic, always a perfectionist--who reenergized the movie musical and redefined dance on screen. Packed with marvelous clips (including rare footage of Kelly's breakthrough Pal Joey Broadway role) and interviews with family members and Hollywood colleagues, Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer is the definitive look at a magical talent whose story has never been fully told until now. It's a life to be watched, celebrated, enjoyed. 87 minutes.

Customer Reviews:

A Knock Out DVD on a Superb and courageous Artist.......2007-03-23

This is one of the finest Biographies of a Dancer every put on film. Kelly's form of masculine dancing and his deep involvement in the technical problems of filming dance are brilliantly underlined in this film. He was a complex man, but a dedicated Artist

Excelent.......2007-02-15

Thisv video realy make me know the life of Gene Kelly... I was not so sure to buyit but is one of the bet buys that i made in amazon... buy it is Excelent

documentary.......2007-01-05

Interesting documentary - factual - good footage and interviews with first wife, daughter and long-time associate. Nothing new - good reference work.

Singin' in the Dance!.......2006-11-06

Superb DVD which told me more about this genius than I thought knew. Gene Kelly is one of our American treasures and the honest portrayal of his life and contributions to dance and film is outstanding. Hope I can meet him in heaven and thank him for making life a better experience for all of us.

Fulsome But Fair-Minded Portrayal of Kelly as Blue-Collar Dancer Extraordinaire.......2006-07-09

Just this week, Time Magazine cited this 2002 documentary as one of seven must-see films for any lover of dance, and I agree this is an extremely well-done feature on an indisputably gifted practitioner, Gene Kelly, by filmmaker Robert Trachtenberg (who did a similarly insightful film on Cary Grant, "A Class Apart", two years later). Originally aired as part of PBS's "American Masters" series, the film follows Kelly's life and career chronologically with an obvious emphasis on his golden decade between his 1942 film debut co-starring with Judy Garland in "For Me and My Gal" to his career peak as star, choreographer and co-director (with protégé Stanley Donen) of 1952's "Singin' in the Rain".

While his artistry and perfectionism are well-known with the results proving as much, Kelly is also portrayed fairly for his ego-driven decisions, intolerance for others who did not uphold his standards and an almost obsessive need for attention. But his intentions were clear, and his first wife, actress Betsy Blair, who provides the most cogent and insightful comments among the interviewees, shrewdly observes Kelly's desire to democratize dance for the masses. So focused on this idea was Kelly that he even produced a 1958 TV special, "Dancing: A Man's Game", excerpts of which are shown in the film showing how dance and professional sports were akin to one another.

The film spotlights memorable moments - his newspaper-tearing dance in "Summer Stock", the impressionistic ballet finale from "An American in Paris", the roller skating number in "It's Always Fair Weather" and of course, his effusive turn in a downpour in "Singin' in the Rain". His failures are also documented - an all-dance film, 1956's "Invitation to the Dance", held back from release for four years; 1955's "It's Always Fair Weather", the cynical flip side to "On the Town"; his leaden direction of 1969's elephantine disappointment, "Hello, Dolly!". Several of Kelly's surviving colleagues are interviewed in brief though telling clips - Debbie Reynolds, Cyd Charisse, Leslie Caron among others.

The inevitable comparisons with his only comparable contemporary, Fred Astaire, are here, but the analysis of their individual styles is thoughtful and respectful to both. For me, Kelly is undeniably brilliant but somewhat aware of it in his onscreen persona, which comes across at times as abrasive and preening. His last years are given just a cursory glance as he was beset with illness, but it would have been nice to see his valedictory turns in 1967's "The Young Girls of Rochefort" or even the soft shoe he does in 1980's execrable "Xanadu". No matter as Trachtenberg has made an exemplary record of a most accomplished career. Actor Stanley Tucci narrates.

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