Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938) YTS

Reviewed by steve d 4 / 10

There is nothing entertaining going on

There is nothing entertaining going on.

Reviewed by Mark B 7 / 10

I'm generally not a fan of musicals, at

I'm generally not a fan of musicals, at least in the traditional sense -- when characters burst into song and dance in the middle of a street or a workplace, I have trouble suspending disbelief. But when the music is part of the plot ("Spinal Tap," "The Commitments") I'm fine as long as the music is good. This film falls into the latter bucket, although they fooled me when the buck private *appears* to break into a song about Army life, but a slow pull back reveals that he's actually on stage. The film somewhat follows an evolution of mainstream jazz over a 20 year period. And while the script is short on depth ("Whadday say we get a divorce, doll?" "Ah gee, I guess so." "Ok. Bye.") the top notch performers make the most of it. #448/596 on my "Best Picture Nominees" Bucket List)

Reviewed by michael D 6 / 10

This film starred the top talent at Twentieth-Century

This film starred the top talent at Twentieth-Century Fox. Tyrone Power (who could not sing or play music), Alice Faye and Don Ameche star in this film directed by Henry King and featuring the music of Irving Berlin. Clearly it was a prestige film for the studio--a large budget film with high expectations for success. The film begins with Power playing sophisticated music for a crowd of high-class folks. Only moments later, however, he's playing Ragtime music for a crowd in a bar--and it's obvious that he's torn between the world of society and popular music. Quite by Hollywood accident, the feisty Alice Faye is pulled into Power's band and the way she and Power meet and get along is very clichéd--you know, the misunderstanding that results in them becoming enemies and you KNOW they'll be in love sooner or later! She is a low-class dame and over time, Power is able to polish her image and make her a success--along with his band. On hand is another cliché--the nice-guy friend (Ameche) who loves the girl but demurs when his friend and the dame become a pair. You almost feel sorry for Ameche getting such a thankless role as the 'nice' friend...though I am sure his enormous checks from the studio more than made up for this! And then there's the final big cliché when Faye and Power break up--only, naturally, to be reunited by the film's conclusion. The only question is what, exactly, will happen in between--and there are certainly a lot of twists that occur in the interim in their parallel journeys. WWI, another woman (a younger and amazingly pretty Ethel Merman), marriage and bootlegging all are among the things the film explores during this portion. And if all this seems familiar, it is if you've seen many Fox musicals. This plot, with a few changes, was used in "King of Burlesque" and many other films with Alice Faye. As for the film overall, it's pretty much what you expect from the studio--a lot of music (way too much, actually), a lot of polish and the best sets money can buy (Twentieth-Century Fox and MGM were the kings of such lavish productions). But, beneath all the polish, it is all formula and clichés--the sort of film that is pleasant but certainly not a must-see. Plus, oddly, the music, for the most part, isn't exactly Ragtime--often it's more the typical sort of musical numbers you'd see in just about any Fox production of the day.

Alexander's Ragtime Band

1938

Action / Drama / Music / Musical / Romance

Alexander's Ragtime Band

1938

Action / Drama / Music / Musical / Romance

Please enable your VPΝ when downloading torrents

Plot summary

Director

Top cast

Tech specs

Movie Reviews

There is nothing entertaining going on

I'm generally not a fan of musicals, at

This film starred the top talent at Twentieth-Century

No comments yet