SWING TIME tells the story of John 'Lucky' Garnett (Fred Astaire), a brilliant dancer by profession, a truly fortunate gambler by instinct. When his marriage plans to Margaret Watson (Betty Furness) are temporarily foiled, he hops a train to New York with his sidekick Pop Everett (Victor Moore), hoping to earn enough money to satisfy his future father-in-law. What he finds there, however, is inevitably true love with Penny Carroll (Ginger Rogers), a sweetheart of a dance instructress who falls quickly for Lucky's charm and fast feet. Although Lucky feels guilty about his fiancee back home, he finds it difficult to deny his growing attraction to Penny.
It isn't really difficult to figure out how the story ends--it wouldn't be a Astaire/Rogers romantic-comedy-slash-musical if Lucky and Penny didn't end up together. But what makes this stand apart from TOP HAT, and in fact stand *proud* while doing so, is how that inevitable love story is told simply and effectively, and most importantly, in a credible fashion. While watching TOP HAT, I was too busy holding my breath at the sheer technical finesse involved in the dance sequences to really care that neither the characters nor their relationship with each other was very well-developed. Plot? What plot? It just really did not seem to matter with that film; what mattered was that we were treated to a gorgeously-choreographed song/dance sequence practically every other minute. (Which still does not make it a bad film, just a slightly uneven one that relies on the charm of its leads to succeed.)
SWING TIME certainly has its own faults, most notably repeating the reaction Ginger Rogers's character has to a perceived wrinkle in her relationship with the Astaire character--that is, impulsively marrying (or nearly marrying) the nearest person who happens to be male and who has a crush on her. The ending, especially Ricky Romero's response to Penny's decision between himself and Lucky, really makes one wonder whether the screenwriter for the film decided to clock out early when writing the last few minutes. But this is no less a problem in TOP HAT; for some reason, Rogers's character in both films always winds up nearly-married to someone other than Astaire, and the film must then take the time to regain the ground that has been lost through this 'plot twist'. (For me, this is almost salvaged in SWING TIME when Lucky and Penny finally serenade each other with a delightful blend of two of the best songs featured in the film, 'A Fine Romance' and 'The Way You Look Tonight'.)
This minor flaw aside, SWING TIME itself is delightful--it's much more a romantic comedy than it is a musical, whereas I think this is reversed with TOP HAT. You can't help but warm to the relationship between Penny and Lucky, particularly when she complains about the state of their 'Fine Romance'--decidely one of my favourite songs in the film (tough competition, considering the fabulous Jerome Kern score!), and a lovely touch that it is actually Rogers's character doing the pursuing for once. This number, sung amidst whirling snow, recalls my favourite song in TOP HAT, in which Jerry is asking Dale, 'Isn't This A Lovely Day?' while they're caught in a storm. The musical numbers are not compromised, however--the dance Astaire and Rogers perform to 'Pick Yourself Up' is fantastic, as is what appears to be their last dance together when Lucky tells Penny that he's 'Never Gonna Dance' without her again. As with Astaire's black-face solo in 'Bojangles...', the dance sequences are truly amazing to watch, but happily, not the focus of the entire film. In fact, they are somewhat more low-key and understated than those in TOP HAT--far less sweeping and dramatic dances, and more believable ones that fit perfectly with the story and the characters.
SWING TIME is without a doubt one of the best movie musicals I've ever seen, and to date, my favourite Fred/Ginger film. It's one of those films that's almost a masterpiece without trying, and that's probably the best recommendation I could give it. Mandatory for Fred/Ginger fans, and for fans of the musical genre in general.
It isn't really difficult to figure out how the story ends--it wouldn't be a Astaire/Rogers romantic-comedy-slash-musical if Lucky and Penny didn't end up together. But what makes this stand apart from TOP HAT, and in fact stand *proud* while doing so, is how that inevitable love story is told simply and effectively, and most importantly, in a credible fashion. While watching TOP HAT, I was too busy holding my breath at the sheer technical finesse involved in the dance sequences to really care that neither the characters nor their relationship with each other was very well-developed. Plot? What plot? It just really did not seem to matter with that film; what mattered was that we were treated to a gorgeously-choreographed song/dance sequence practically every other minute. (Which still does not make it a bad film, just a slightly uneven one that relies on the charm of its leads to succeed.)
SWING TIME certainly has its own faults, most notably repeating the reaction Ginger Rogers's character has to a perceived wrinkle in her relationship with the Astaire character--that is, impulsively marrying (or nearly marrying) the nearest person who happens to be male and who has a crush on her. The ending, especially Ricky Romero's response to Penny's decision between himself and Lucky, really makes one wonder whether the screenwriter for the film decided to clock out early when writing the last few minutes. But this is no less a problem in TOP HAT; for some reason, Rogers's character in both films always winds up nearly-married to someone other than Astaire, and the film must then take the time to regain the ground that has been lost through this 'plot twist'. (For me, this is almost salvaged in SWING TIME when Lucky and Penny finally serenade each other with a delightful blend of two of the best songs featured in the film, 'A Fine Romance' and 'The Way You Look Tonight'.)
This minor flaw aside, SWING TIME itself is delightful--it's much more a romantic comedy than it is a musical, whereas I think this is reversed with TOP HAT. You can't help but warm to the relationship between Penny and Lucky, particularly when she complains about the state of their 'Fine Romance'--decidely one of my favourite songs in the film (tough competition, considering the fabulous Jerome Kern score!), and a lovely touch that it is actually Rogers's character doing the pursuing for once. This number, sung amidst whirling snow, recalls my favourite song in TOP HAT, in which Jerry is asking Dale, 'Isn't This A Lovely Day?' while they're caught in a storm. The musical numbers are not compromised, however--the dance Astaire and Rogers perform to 'Pick Yourself Up' is fantastic, as is what appears to be their last dance together when Lucky tells Penny that he's 'Never Gonna Dance' without her again. As with Astaire's black-face solo in 'Bojangles...', the dance sequences are truly amazing to watch, but happily, not the focus of the entire film. In fact, they are somewhat more low-key and understated than those in TOP HAT--far less sweeping and dramatic dances, and more believable ones that fit perfectly with the story and the characters.
SWING TIME is without a doubt one of the best movie musicals I've ever seen, and to date, my favourite Fred/Ginger film. It's one of those films that's almost a masterpiece without trying, and that's probably the best recommendation I could give it. Mandatory for Fred/Ginger fans, and for fans of the musical genre in general.