CREDITS
1953, 112
minutes, Technicolor.
Producer, Arthur Freed; Director, Vincente
Minnelli; Screenplay, Betty Comden and Adolph Green; Cinematography,
Harry Jackson; Choreography, Michael Kidd; Music
Director, Adolph Deutsch.
CAST
Tony
Hunter, Fred Astaire; Gaby Gerard, Cyd Charisse; Lester
Marton, Oscar Levant; Lily Marton, Nanette Fabray; Jeffrey
Cordova, Jack Buchanan; Paul Byrd, James Mitchell; Hal
Benton, Robert Gist.
As Herself:
Ava Gardner.
SONGS
That's Entertainment; A Shine On Your Shoes; By Myself; Dancing In The Dark; Triplets; New Sun In The Sky; I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plan; Louisiana Hayride; I Love Louisa; You And The Night And The Music; High And Low; Something To Remember You By; Beggar's Waltz; The Girl Hunt Ballet by Howard Dietz and Arthur Schwartz.
PLOT SYNOPSIS
"As a
washed-up movie idol who returns to Broadway to recoup his
fortunes, Fred Astaire is debonair perfection itself. He agrees
to star in a show written by his pals, Nanette Fabray and Oscar
Levant, but clashes almost immediately with the star dancer, Cyd
Charisse, who thinks he's too old, while he's certain that she's
too tall. Their romantic problems become merely incidental,
however, when their simple little musical is transformed into a
monstrous modern-day version of Faust by the flamboyant
genius of a director, Jack Buchanan."
- Lawrence B. Thomas, The MGM Years
NOTES
"The
Band Wagon was the apotheosis of the backstage musical. . .It
was not only a sophisticated tribute to all those innocent
backstage movies that had preceded it, but was also a brilliantly
double-edged tribute to its star, Fred Astaire."
- Clive Hirschhorn, The Hollywood Musical
". . .a show that respectfully bids for recognition
as one of the best musical films ever made."
- Bosley Crowther, The New York Times
"The Comden-Green script isn't as consistently fresh
as the one they did for Singin' In The Rain but there have
been few screen musicals as good as this one. . ."
- Pauline Kael, 5001 Nights At The Movies
ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATIONS:
Writing (Story And Screenplay)
Costume Design (Color)
Scoring Of A Musical Picture
Cyd Charisse's vocals were dubbed by India Adams.
Alan Jay Lerner penned the narration for The Girl Hunt Ballet.