I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Too much of everything

The Age of Commercialism

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Calling this a musical is like calling a biopic of Richard Rogers or Irving Berlin a musical. Strictly speaking, it's not a musical. Cagney not only captures the dancing style of Cohan, he also captures the human dynamo the real Cohan must have been; a guy who wrote his own plays and musicals, composed songs for them, acted in them and owned some of the theaters in which they played! Cohan also mentored several young actors, most notably Spencer Tracy. Furthermore, Cohan also streamlined plays written by others to make them more current and marketable, a process he called 'Cohanize'. There are several questionable 'facts' in the trivia section and outright untruths. "James Cagney had previously only shown off his song-and-dance abilities once before in Footlight Parade (1933). He was better known for playing gangsters." Not true. Cagney had also danced in "Taxi!" 1932 where he lost a ballroom competition to George Raft! He also did a lot of dancing in "Something To Sing About" 1937. Having read a bio of Cohan, it states that Cohan himself suggested Cagney to play him, not Fred Astaire. Cohan did not consider himself a great dancer, and having Astaire play him would be like taking a Stradivarius violin and plucking it like a banjo in "Deliverance". I seriously doubt that Cagney's patriotism was questioned and that was a driving reason for his taking this role. Being left of center was not a bad thing in the early 1940s when we were allied with the Russians; that came later in the early 1950s. Cagney took the role because it was a great part, maybe the greatest part he'd get that played to his talents; Cagney was a song and dance man on vaudeville before he went to Hollywood and did gangster movies; he and his wife even opened a dance studio briefly to make ends meet and took every opportunity to break free of his gangster typecasting to do musicals. I doubt that Cagney's tap dance down the White House stairs was completely ad libbed. Notice that the background music which begins at the top of the stairs, is in complete synch with his dancing. According to Cagney's biography, he didn't hate SZ Sakall; he did complain about Sakall's scene stealing, but it seemed to me that Cagney stole the scene right back from him. The movie is a delight not only for Cagney's performance, but for all the character actors who shined in their individual roles; George Barbier, who played the guy representing Fay Templeton, was also featured in "The Phantom President" 1932 which starred the real Cohan! I liked the scene in the barroom where Cohan meets Sam Harris; that's quite a free lunch spread! I liked how Eddie Foy mentions Moxie as his favorite drink; Moxie is a forgotten drink now, only available in New England, but at that time, it was bigger than Coca Cola. Reviewers also mention that the movie fictionalizes Cohan's life, but that was the wish of Cohan himself, who didn't want any mention of the unpleasant parts of his life.

Good entertainment and story-telling from the 1940's where James Cagney ruled films successfully by giving the viewers all he had. He proves this and more in this little gem. Be prepared to have your patriotic genes awakened and stirred and I dare you to not shed a tear or two during the singing of She's a Grand Ole Flag. That song holds up today and will continue too. Good supporting cast and this was the type of film back then where you truly got your monies worth and spent a nice two hours with your date or a group of friends. Heck, even alone it is good value. Grab a bite before and after and life was and is good. I enjoy eating with movie watching. This is a sandwich movie and a tasty drink with a snack of choice to follow. This movie makes a very good point in a scene where Cohan goes to enlist after Pearl Harbor and is declined because of age. However, his efforts where he did shine (song and dance) was worth more than all the fighting he could have ever done. I cannot imagine how it feels to make such a major contribution to life and your fellow man as he did. Congress could and they awarded him a medal to prove it. This supports the premise that whatever gifts or talents you have, use them, give them and share them for life is brief and over before one even has time to assess it. Rally around this movie and enjoy James Cagney as we celebrate the American way of life. How fortunate we are to have America

This biographical musical drama, that displays life and work of versatile Broadway author and performer George M. Cohan, deservedly won 3 Oscars out of 8 nominations and it is considered to be one of the best movies of all time. It is not kind of musical where a story is told through song and dance, but a regular movie with some theatrical musical scenes that are needed to represent his career. So this movie could be acceptable and enjoyable even for those who hate musicals. Personally, I am not a fan of musicals and I am strongly irritated by any type of pro-American or any patriotic propaganda, which this movie certainly is, but it has so many other qualities that it left really strong positive impression on me and I really enjoyed it.8/10

"A man may give his life to his country in many different ways, Mr. Cohan. And quite often he isn't the best judge of how much he has given. Your songs were a symbol of the American spirit. 'Over There' was just as powerful a weapon as any cannon, as any battleship we had in the First World War." That's a terrific piece of dialogue from the President of the United States Franklin D. Roosevelt (Cap. Jack Young) addressed to legendary Broadway songwriter and performer George M. Cohan (James Cagney) in director Michael Curtiz's 1942 musical biopic "Yankee Doodle Dandy". It follows the life of George M. Cohan starting from when he was born on the 4th of July (though a source I looked at says it's actually July 3rd). Amongst the big life events we follow Mr. Cohan through include joining his parents (Walter Huston, Rosemary DeCamp) and sister (Jeanne Cagney) in the family's vaudeville act as a young and cocky kid, meeting his future wife Mary (Joan Leslie) who is also in showbiz, and his successful partnership with struggling writer Sam Harris (Richard Whorf) in producing one popular musical production after another. Let's talk a little bit about the history of the picture's main actor, James Cagney. By doing this, it will help us understand what makes his portrayal of George M. Cohan so remarkable. Before this role, Mr. Cagney was best known for playing either gangsters or tough guys. Some of his best remembered roles included gangster pictures such as "The Public Enemy" (1931), "Angels with Dirty Faces" (1938), and "White Heat" (1949). By keeping this in mind, one can understand why an actor used to playing bad guys wouldn't seem like the ideal choice for playing a patriotic musician. It's difficult enough for an actor to try acting in a different type of picture. It's even more challenging for an actor to make us forget about what they did before throughout a role that's out of their comfort zone. But even with all these forces against him, James Cagney managed to pull off this role surprisingly well. Granted, we see that Mr. Cohan was a little mischievous when he was a young lad, whether it was carelessly interfering with a business conversation between his parents and a theatrical agent or testing out a song he wrote against the theater manager's wishes. Aside from that, you always got the sense that this person could do no wrong. I say that because he was not only a big sensation on Broadway (though maybe not with the critics apparently), but he was also a generous family man taking care of his family, wife, and business partner. From Cagney's performance, you got a sense that Mr. Cohen was looking out for the average Joe whether it was with his inspiring songs or his loyalty to the United States of America. If I were to explain why "Yankee Doodle Dandy" was on the list of the AFI's greatest films, it would be because of James Cagney's work since it proved that actors aren't limited to one film genre. Because this is a biopic about a famous musician, naturally we get a good variety of musical numbers, all of which were written by the real- life George M. Cohan himself. Obviously, the songs are very well done with the notable standouts being "Over There" (A song that helped motivate the troops during World War I), "Yankee Doodle Boy", "Give My Regards to Broadway", "For The Record" (A number with charm and energy to spare), and "You're A Grand Old Flag". All these numbers are given the high-end production values and quality sets that they deserve. The presentation of the "You're A Grand Old Flag" number particularly comes to mind when naming a number that has tremendous production value. The massive amount of people in the background, the camera angles, the scope of the sets, it's all there. They truly don't make musicals like this or any other musicals from that era any more. I have to admit though that while George M. Cohan and Mary are well- rounded characters, I was very underwhelmed by the other characters in this story. Specifically, the development of Mr. Cohan's family save for the father seemed hastily rushed. When certain plot developments came around in the second half, I felt they all went by a tad too quick and a bit out of nowhere. Because of this, the development of the mother and the sister felt very lacking and unsubstantial. There was also a big death scene with a major character in the film's second half that I found a tad problematic. The reason being was that I was more convinced that this person was exhausted from a hard day's work than undergoing an actual death. Nothing's bad about these characters as they are. They just simply needed more screen time in able to truly leave more of an impact on me. "Yankee Doodle Dandy" – even by looking at the title alone, it doesn't take a genius to figure out how much this picture relishes the spirit of the United States of America. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if people viewed "Yankee Doodle Dandy" every 4th of July since it truly deserves it. And this viewer can assure you that it's not just because it loves America and what it stands for. It's also because it further proves that any actor in the U.S.A., especially James Cagney, can be in any motion picture that they desire. America is a free country, so we can do what we want. I think "Yankee Doodle Dandy" is pretty awesome for subliminally reminding us of that and that is why I'm proud to be an American. And to you I say, Happy Early Fourth of July!