On my quest to see the 1000 Greatest Films of all time from They Shoot Pictures Don't They? I have the luck to have a television channel (Cine Pop) that presents classic films from the 40's to this day. This morning was the presentation of one of the best technicolor musicals of the 40's; Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly's On the Town. The story is very simple, three sailors have a 24 hour permission in New York City. One of them wants to see all the landmarks (Sinatra), the other wants to meet a girl (Kelly) (well the three of them ends with a girl, please don't act surprised here!) and the last one just want ot have fun (Munshin).A predecessor to their 1952 masterpiece Singin' In The Rain, this one is entertainning as well and very well choregraphed too. But it doesn't have the depths we can find in the story of Singin'In The Rain. Some scenes are written to present the wonderful dances by Kelly and the numerous girls of the film. The funny side is more present here too. The dance in the Natural Museum is hilarious and has a cartoonish look.
I think the thing that bothered me the most was the precipitated ending and that some gags don't hold up enough for the quality of the feature. For an musical comedy fans this is a Highly Recommended film and I personnally would recommend it to anyone who appreciate a classic entertainment of the 40's.
A Film retrospective by Michaël Parent
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