Cheap Ziegfeld Girl (Video) (Robert Z. Leonard) Price

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Customer Reviews of Ziegfeld Girl

VINTAGE WARTIME MUSICAL....
For sheer 1941 Hollywood glamour and spectacle, "Ziegfeld Girl" is what it's all about. Produced by Pandro S.Berman and with the all out musical numbers staged by Busby Berkeley, it also features the youthful beauty of Judy Garland and Lana Turner with the stunning Hedy Lamarr for extra eye candy. The hackneyed story of three star struck girls chosen as Ziegfeld showgirls and the resulting complications is glossed over by the stars including Jimmy Stewart as Lana's beau and Eve Arden as a been around showgirl watching as the newcomers take over the spotlight. Lana is the one who suffers the most and falls prey to tragedy. The costumes are incredible and the musical numbers very elaborate---especially Judy's tropical "Minnie From Trinidad" and the show stopper "You Stepped Out of a Dream". My only question is why wasn't it in Technicolor instead of b&w? The DVD print shows some wear but overall it's very good. For vintage film and musical buffs (as well as Garland and Turner fans) this is a treasure.

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GARLAND, LAMARR AND TURNER!
The adventures of three girls in show-business. ZIEGFELD GIRL is an immense backstage musical into which MGM poured tons of talent; it also marked Pandro S. Berman's first assignment with that studio after his years of success at RKO. Just why Jimmy Stewart received top-billing for this rather uneven but entertaining movie is a mystery - his role is virtually a minor one. Robert Z. Leonard directed this two and a quarter hours worth of stuggle, triumph, pain and music, but the two big production numbers, MINNIE FROM TRINIDAD and YOU STEPPED OUT OF A DREAM, were the work of the fabled wizard of cinematic choreography, Busby Berkeley. Judy is darling as Susan Gallagher and her scenes with her Irish Pop (Charles Winninger) are realistically executed. I felt Lana Turner's performance is a bit artificial and inept in her acting technique; she plays Sheila who succumbs to the bottle. As Sandra, Lamarr is astonishingly beautiful, but her acting hardly lingers in one's memory! Jimmy Stewart would enlist himself in the Army before this film premiered; he wouldn't make another film until 1946; it was a sleeper (just kidding) entitled IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE.

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OVERLONG STORY BUT THE MUSIC IS GREAT!
I am a great fan of the MGM musicals. This is an entertaining vehicle and Judy Garland's numbers "Minnie from Trinidad" and "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" are stellar!! Judy could do anything!!! They are worth rating the movie 5 stars for them alone. However, those numbers are not all there is to the movie. The film is overlong telling the stories of three girls (Garland, Lamarr and Turner)who enter into the Ziegfield realm. Lamarr is simply there for decoration, Judy, of course is there for the talent, and Turner in a surprisingly good dramatic role is there for the soap opera element. Jimmy Stewart is given top billing here but he is completely wasted and he and Lana Turner have absolutely no chemistry together. His screen time averages to less than 15 minutes. The story drags and is overlong. However, the musical numbers make up for the flaws in the story which is nothing more than trite soap opera drivel.

The DVD is high quality, great picture and sound.

If you're a fan of Garland or Turner, buy this DVD. You won't be disappointed. As I said, Garland is worth anything in anything she does. And Turner proves she can act.