The Age of Commercialism

Sorry, this movie sucks

People are voting emotionally.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Unless you absolutely hate musicals, there's no reason to think that you would not enjoy "That's Entertainment!". That's because as a celebration of the MGM musical, it contains a bazillion clips from their greatest films in the genre. If you don't like one, you are bound to love the next. And, with so many great films, there is so much to like.The clips are not just thrown together in a random manner but are arranged in blocks. Each block is narrated by an MGM icon from their golden age--such as Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire, Debbie Reynolds and Gene Kelly. Each is shown walking the VERY sad MGM backlot while discussing the films. I say sad because the sets were in dilapidated condition and were bulldozed right after this film was completed--a pathetic ending to some wonderful movie moments and locales.By the way, it sure would have been nice if each clip had been identified--perhaps with a small title in the corner in the beginning. As a huge fan buff, I really tried to identify all the clips but couldn't.

Okay, I just rewatched this tribute to M-G-M musicals which was released on the 50th anniversary of the merged studio, 1974. It attempted to show us-in a little more than two hours-just how great the movie company was during the prime of its first three decades when they had, as the slogan went, "More stars than there are in heavens". If you wanted to see the great numbers from the likes of The Wizard of Oz, The Band Wagon, Meet Me in St. Louis, On the Town, An American in Paris, and, especially, Singin' in the Rain in one picture, well, they're all here! And many of the studio's past stars in Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Lawford, James Stewart, Mickey Rooney, Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, and Fred Astaire provide pretty good commentary, although obviously written for them, along with occasional loan-outs from other studios like Donald O'Connor and Bing Crosby and the famous offspring of two of the studio's most valuable players-Judy Garland and Vincente Minnelli: Liza Minnelli whose then-husband Jack Haley, Jr. was responsible for those stars' words. If there's some quibble with Haley's script, it's how he glosses over some more troubling things behind-the-scenes like when a Lena Horne number is shown, nothing is mentioned of her usually having to just "do a number" that could be easily be edited by Southern cinemas without hurting the plot, simply because most of their white audiences didn't care to watch anyone of color in other than domestic roles at the time. And it's a little overwhelming to watch one big musical number after another straight through for the amount of time I mentioned at the beginning of this review with barely a break in between. Still, having watched this on HD DVD in stereo, That's Entertainment! can still be quite an exhilarating experience to go through! So on that note, this is highly recommended.

A rousing tribute by use of a compilation of great movies made by this fabulous studio over a 50 year period.With a myriad of narrators, the film succeeds since at it said, "Boy, do we need this now." No, it wasn't the depression, but it was Watergate in full view as this great film was shown to audiences.The film gives us an opportunity to enjoy the many talents that MGM gave us. It is just too numerous to mention.Of course, I beg to differ with Frank Sinatra. The best of the MGM musicals was not the Oscar winning "An American In Paris," in 1951, as stated. Sinatra and others called that famous scene a ballet scene. That was part of the problem with this film. While everyone danced around Paris, there was absolutely no plot. Please remember that when the film won the best picture Oscar, there was a wave of protests. The academy received a record number of protests. 7 years later, "Gigi" would win the best picture of the year award. There were no protests then because the picture deserved to win.That being said, the film succeeds as it allowed us to delve into the world of the musical, which helped us to get through the depression and a World War.The ending credits here were memorable as MGM paid tribute to all those- the writers, directors, song writers, and the stars themselves who gave us such musical delights.

This is one movie that everyone who loves movies should see. It documents beautifully the history of MGM from 1929 to 1955, and the great musicals that were created there. Every moment of this movie is a 'highlight' - the makers took all the best bits of the best MGM musicals and rolled them together into a wonderful package that makes you smile for 2 hours.Its very rare indeed to watch such a thoroughly entertaining movie. And it even laughs at itself, particularly when showing the insanity of Esther Williams' mega-productions. These have to be seen to be believed!