I am clear that I am one of many who are incredibly inflamed about the upcoming release of these luminous Busby Berkeley musicals! Each of these films believe many of the ample screen’s most unforgettable moments, and all five merit inclusion in this exquisite DVD package.

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For fans of musicals and for those who simply be pleased pleasant cinema, these movies have it all! First and foremost, the artistry of Berkeley’s musical sequences gain these films a must-see! It doesn’t matter if you are a musical maven or not. The inimitable Busby Berkeley production numbers will dazzle you, even with the sound turned down! In addition to being eminent musicals, these films are also some of the wittiest comedies from the 30′s era. I don’t contemplate anybody can resist the well-written mercurial dialogue and sly innuendo, particularly from the pre-code releases included here.

My mini-reviews:

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FOOTLIGHT PARADE — Spacious pre-code dialogue, and a extraordinary showcase for the comedic talents of both Joan Blondell and James Cagney, the latter demonstrating his unbelievable footwork that helped him collect his Oscar winning role in Yankee Doodle Dandy!

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 — My personal approved of this collection. it features the famed Ginger Rogers number “We’re In The Money”, and the unforgettable “Forgotten Man” performed by Joan Blondell! Stout production numbers and more captivating pre-code comedy.

DAMES — In addition to the large production number of the title song, it features an hilarious performance by Hugh Herbert, probably (though debatably) his best!

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1935 — This one introduces the tremendous production number, “The Lullaby Of Broadway” and also features a ample comedic performance from Gloria Stuart (of “Mountainous” fame) .

42nd STREET — This is the film that reinvented the movie musical! Nuff said, except that Ginger Rogers’ chaffing is a incredible highlight.

The extras glimpse nice, though I’m sorry no commentaries seem to be included. I’m looking forward to seeing the unique featurettes. All in all, this is a very reasonably priced package that is worth every penny. Like!

BUSBY BERKELEY COLLECTION

By Brendan G Carroll

While I was overjoyed that Warners & Turner have issued these sizable films on DVD at last in terrific quality (for the most fragment) and with amazing extras, there were some opportunities missed here and one glaring omission which I hope I can location apt.

The opportunities lost pains the archive material that might have been included and which would have been so worth the anguish to pick up. As most Berkeley buffs know, he gave a very engrossing and rare interview for a 1966 TV documentary called “The Movie Crazy Years” (about Warners) which also included a nice interview with Joan Blondell. It would have been salubrious to search for the relevant excerpts from this agreeable programme (which I contemplate was made by David Wolper) included in the various featurettes on these DVDs, rather than the endless gushy on-camera posturings of the likes of John Landis. Do I really need to be told over and over in hyper-gushy language, that Buzz was a genius, by so-called celebrity fans? I really wish Turner would at least include either contemporary witnesses or film historians (like Bob Thomas or Rudy Behlmer) to add pertinent commentary to projects like this. WHAT has John Waters got to do with Busby Berkeley I ask you?

The second “missed opportunity” is the rarely (and barely) seen 96 diminutive documentary “Busby Berkeley” made by Russ Jones in 1974 to co-incide with the publication of Tony Thomas’ expedient biography of Buzz, which included rare interviews with Winifred Shaw (about the Lullaby of Broadway number) and Ruth Donnelly (about Footlight Parade) among other treasures.

Surely Turner could have acquired both of these archive resources (at diminutive cost!) for this definitive DVD residence? It would have added such expansive historic value to the collection and first-rate insight. I really felt we never got to know remarkable about Berkeley as a man from any of the short documentaries or how he achieved his improbable effects. In fact, I realised that I knew more about him and his techniques, than I learned from any of the featurettes.

Much worse though, is the total absence of any comment about Ray Heindorf, the genius arranger and orchestrator at Warners, from 1931 on, who was responsible for the entire musical style of these films and especially the superior job he turned in for the mammoth numbers – creating seamless 10-15 microscopic arrangements of Harry Warren’s mammoth songs (and those of Kahal & Fain – they wrote `By A Waterfall’ by the intention, not that you would know it from watching the short documentary on Footlight Parade!!) .

Heindorf was also responsible for the marvellous, brassy orchestrations throughout – yet he never even gets a mention. He was a genius – in fact, according to Erich Wolfgang Korngold, (as told me by Eleanor Aller & Harry Warren himself) he was the best and fastest orchestrator Korngold had ever encountered, high praise indeed from maybe the one man in Hollywod who would know – and it was Heindorf’s ability to provide an endlessly varied treatment of each song that allowed Berkeley to come by away with making a number lasting a quarter of an hour without we, the viewer (and listener) ever getting bored with the tune!

Well, in spite of these shortcomings, it is incredible to have these at last in better than average prints (and in the case of 42nd Street, fantastic prints!) and of course, the historic trailers & shorts are all marvellous to have at last, rescued from the vaults.

However, I hope next time Turner puts out a major collection, somebody will hold the grief to compose a tribute to Ray Heindorf. It’s long overdue.

Totalgym

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