Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Good concept, poorly executed.

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

The first talkie to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards has an oft-used plot - people try to become famous amid complications - but it's not a bad movie. I'm not a fan of musicals, and many things about "The Broadway Melody" come across as dated. I guess that one has to try and imagine watching the movie when it first got released. It got released before the Hays Code got established, so some of the scenes look a bit risqué for the era (it even feels silly to write that sentence in an era when one can simply look for porn on the internet). The movie's a mildly fun look at 1920s music.* Most notably, the movie ushered in decades of musicals. Some of the musicals are among the most irritating movies.Anyway, this movie's okay just as long as you don't interpret it as the most serious type of movie. Accept it as plain old entertainment and you'll probably like it. As for me, my favorite movies from old Hollywood are gangster movies, horror movies, and slapstick comedies (especially the Looney Tunes cartoons).*Nowadays, probably the most famous 1920s song is "Midnight, the Stars and You", which featured prominently in "The Shining".

I went into my viewing of The Broadway Melody with almost no expectations, due to its constant appearance on "Worst Best Picture Winner" lists. I was more than pleasantly surprised, however, that the film was quite enjoyable. Harry Beaumont's 1929 feature starring Charles King, Anita Page, and Bessie Love holds a couple of distinct places in the history books. The Broadway Melody was the first all "talkie" to win top honors from the Academy, the film also has the honor of being the first musical to win the coveted gold statuette. With The Broadway Melody holding such distinguished honors, it was a must-see for me.Two sisters, Harriet Mahoney, known as Hank (Bessie Love) and the beautiful yet foolhardy Queenie Mahoney (Anita Page) have finally taken their vaudeville act to the big city. With the help of Hank's boyfriend, Eddie Kearns (Charles King) the girls have a part in one of Francis Zanfield's shows. As they settle into their New York apartment, Eddie meets Queenie for the first time and instantly falls in love. Eddie keeps this love to himself, as he had already been in a relationship with Hank. As the sisters make their way around town, Queenie begins to be courted by rivalry producer, Jock Warriner (Kenneth Thomson). While enjoying life in the high society, Queenie is trying to ignore her growing passions toward Eddie, whilst Eddie is attempting to remain faithful to Hank. The trio traverses the love triangle they've created all the while attempting to each break out into Broadway. What a melody!In spite of what the lists proclaim, The Broadway Melody has staying power. Anyone can relate to the story of loving two different people, anyone can relate to chasing a dream and nearly having it in your grasps, and many people can relate to the unfortunate feeling of losing the one you love to someone close to you. Life is a roller coaster best to be lived to music, that is the enduring message of The Broadway Melody; that and the history is enough reason for anyone to see this film.

Broadway Melody (1929): Dir: Harry Beaumont / Cast: Bessie Love, Anita Page, Charles King, Eddie Kane, Jed Prouty: Musical that began it all even after The Jazz Singer established the talkies. It regards a big event that will happen with two young women. They wish to embark upon a Broadway career, which leads to the obvious conclusion. It establishes the musical structure but shot like a 30 minute sitcom. Harry Beaumont establishes the feel and excitement of the Broadway process with dance numbers that carry through. This is an early musical and although hardly the best of its kind it establishes the feeling and celebration as to how musicals would advance. Both women are played with amusing enthusiasm by Bessie love and Anita Page whose attitudes shape the whole experience. Supporting players are not quite as broad and fall under predictable clichés that can deflate any charm the film had sustained. Charles King plays the main male lead whom will become a reason of tension when romantic notions set in and threaten the girls. Eddie Kane is also featured amongst the stereotypes. The film is about making it in the business of entertainment and the pressure that accompanies that pursuit. With that said the film is fun with charming musical numbers yet it isn't without its limitations. What it does do is stand as a landmark musical that would influence the genre. Score: 6 / 10

"The Broadway Melody" certainly has the obvious handicap to holding up; in that, it's 82 year old; but it still is a worthwhile view for lovers of either film, theater, music, or particularly musical theater. I, being passionate about all of those would be an ideal candidate to watch it. Thus with my appreciation for nostalgia no matter how ancient it may become, should be a prime target for this film today if there are any targets for it. Nevertheless, even as a nostalgic piece, the film still makes it off of others issues besides its writing. The plot is nothing stellar, the characters work well into the plot but aren't incredibly complex, and some of the outcomes can feel too contrived. Even for 1929, the film makes it off of novel breakthroughs for its time such as its catch music and its appropriate integration of music into the story.If the "Broadway Melody" deserves credit for nothing else, it deserves credit for bringing musical theater genre to film. It is even mildly disputable as to whether everyone would consider it a musical today or not. It naturally implements songs into the story, but the use of songs lacks the escapist element necessary to a true musical. Christopher Walken describes Gene Kelly as a master of performance who sang when he didn't feel words were strong enough spoken, and danced when words were meaningless. The songs in this film are all during scenes in which they show the film is about is being performed or when the writer of the songs is presenting his songs to someone openly. There are certainly no musical numbers that play on the obvious plot hole musical theater should lend itself to, leaving audience members asking how every person surrounding knows how to perfect perform in sync with each other. Most of the songs are solo songs anyway, with brief duet, trio, or chorus moments perhaps. It is basically a musical to the same extent that "The Great Ziegfeld" is or to the extent that "Topsy Turvy" is an operetta. Regardless of the implementation however, that songs illustrate the characters and pace the film nicely. The songs don't necessarily expand the plot the way musicals' songs generally should, but they do elevate characters' revelations at points, especially Eddie's lament to Queenie. Perhaps however, it was to the film's credit that it didn't immediately switch to true escapism when the movie was made. Musical theater escapism is always very tricky in cinema. Creating an atmosphere in which the audience really feels like the characters are singing and thus the viewers can feel attached to the moment is quite difficult in the more realistic setting film frequently calls for. Such handicaps have especially been prominent with film occasional exceptions such as Chicago in recent years, but the live-action musical theater scene has not been a too marketable since the 1960's in light of such difficulties."Broadway Melody" does not have a bad plot, but it does not have a particular novel one either. The plot allows conceivable conflict, but works little at all more your generic hallmark writing ploy. Film may have been still fairly new in 1929, but theater sure was not. The plot does not have the excuse of its outdated platitudes. Hank and Queenie Mahoney are sisters who have been doing a successful vaudeville duo act for a while now until Hank's boyfriend Eddie Kearns writes them both into his new show, "The Broadway Melody", getting them the chance to become stars in the big apple itself. As it turns out however, the real woman Eddie is in love with is Queenie, not Hank especially as Queenie becomes a bigger and bigger star on the stage. As Queenie becomes successful enough, a sleazy agent name Jack Wariner makes a pass at her, evidently using her to promote himself. While Queenie knows he's using her, she can't bring herself to express her true feelings for Eddie and cause conflict between herself and her sister. The outcome is nothing stellar; in fact, there are some details I will not spoil the movie and reveal, but that make the outcome less than masterful.This film is entertaining with enough going for it to fill 100 minutes of your life. The songs are catchy, the characters are likable, and the cast gives appropriate treatment to each conflict and resolution. The writing is nothing to shout about all though. The script is essentially an excuse to implement Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed's numbers. To the extent that it brought musical theater to cinema and broadened the potential of sound, it is a valiant effort to film history. It is thus, worth seeing for lovers of film or musical theater if not for the sake of marvelous entertainment, that sheer indulgence at the very least.