Cheap State Fair (DVD) (Jeanne Crain, Dana Andrews) (Walter Lang) Price

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Customer Reviews of State Fair

STATE FAIR Like The One My Dad Took Me To
This 1945 musical is pure family fun. It's a good film staring Dana Andrews and Jeanne Crain, but I prefer the excellent 1962 remake also pure family fun. The kids will just love the scene when Tom Ewell sings to a pig in the 1962 version! That first-rate piece of Americana was filmed in 1961 at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. The CinemaScope photography was just beautiful and was a vast improvement over the 1945 version. Director, José Ferrer took full advantage of the fair grounds in Dallas where the Cotton Bowl is located. The Texas Hall of State building, an achievement of architectural Art Deco was prominently featured. Inside is the Great Hall and it has an Art Deco mural adorning both sides of its walls depicting the state's colorful history and these in turn are adorned by Texas' six flags: Spain, France, Mexico, Republic of Texas, The Confederate States and The United States. The 1945 version has a stronger cast but the 1962 version holds its own in more realistic fashion. There are many excellent stars in it including Pat Boone, Bobby Darin, Ann-Margret and Wally Cox. Alice Faye came out of retirement to play Pamela Tiffin's mother in a memorable performance. Walter Lang directed this 1945 version it too a remake from the 1933 version. Lang is a better director than Ferrer, but he doesn't have CinemaScope. All in all both films are strong on Americana and expound the virtues of man in harmony with his fellow man. This is great family fun and is great American nostalgia as we see a state fair when they used to look like a state fair.

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A grand night
This was the first movie I ever saw, at the age of four at the Victory Theatre in Wellston, Missouri (The Victory, a new name for the Mikado, dumped when World War II broke out for obvious reasons). During "It Might As Well Be Spring" I was horribly worried Jeanne Crain was going to fall out of the windowsill of her second story bedroom window. I was so relieved when the song was over. This is a colorful, sweet film, though it does demonstrate as so often was demonstrated that only M-G-M could make M-G-M musicals. Jeanne Crain, the mother of many, always seemed to be acting with her mind on what the kids would have for dinner that evening, but she was lovely, so totally natural (my favorite Jeanne Crain film is the totally forgotten "Take Care Of My Little Girl," about college sorority life). Poor Dick Haymes is totally out of his element, though a wonderful singer. Vivian Blaine pretty much steals the show. She should have enjoyed a much bigger movie career; it's Broadway that won her heart. I love the roller coaster scenes. The coaster in the closeups is not the coaster in the far shots. The studio had a limited budget and, because of World War II, even more limited resources to build the darned sets with. "State Fair" has a lot of pasted-together elements, consequently, but if you don't look close (so much doesn't match from shot to shot and the big, overall shots of the Fair clearly are shooting a miniature that if you think too much doesn't make any sense at all) you'll feel you are at the State Fair.

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Isn't the film kinda fun?
This is a better film for families to see, despite the kissing. It is better than Carousel(a nightmare,) but not as good as Chicago. The first time I saw it, it was fast, but now that I almost know it by heart, truthfully, it is going slower despite the running time being 100 minutes. Overall, an entertaing yet so-so film.