Infamously tagged "a world of woozy song" by critic Kenneth Tynan, FDS gets less respect than Rodney Dangerfield*, and the recent PC mangling by David Henry Hwang on B'way did it no favors. But even second-tier Rodgers & Hammerstein can sneak up on you. Get past the dud jokes in Joe Fields’ first act and Hermes Pan ’s de rigueur choreography and there’s a lot of charm on display. The undervalued score has 100 Million Miracles, Sunday, Don’t Marry Me, You Are Beautiful, I Enjoy Being A Girl and the remarkable I Am Going To Like It Here, in standout perfs by James Shigeta, Miyoshi Umeki and the great Jack Soo. And luckily, the typically over-lit lacquered look of ‘60s Universal’s color processing agrees with Irene Sharaff’s Chinatown stylings. If only megger Henry Koster had a bit more zip & flair. And why a big dream ballet for a supporting character? She even gets the great Marilyn Horne on the soundtrack dubbing for her.
*Hold that thought. FDS just got placed on the LoC 2008 film registry! Go figure.
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You can check on all our titles by typing the Title, Director, Actor or 'Keyword' you're looking for in the Search Engine of your choice (include the phrase MAKSQUIBS) or just use the BLOGSPOT.com Search Box at the top left corner of the page.
Feel free to place comments directly on any of the film posts and to test your film knowledge with the CONTESTS scattered here & there. (Hey! No Googling allowed. They're pretty easy.)
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Monday, May 19, 2008
FLOWER DRUM SONG (1961)
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