I’m using this series as a motivation to take a look at all of the Best Picture winners from the past 84 Academy Awards. This may take awhile… This Oscar winning musical was directed by Vincente Minnelli, choreographed by and starring Gene Kelly, featuring memorable music written by George Gershwin. It managed to score 6 Oscars, beating several dramas to become the big winner of 1951.
Directed by: Vincente Minnelli Written by: Alan Jay Lerner Starring: Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Oscar Levant, Nina Foch, & Georges Guétary.
This musical stars an American veteran, Jerry Mulligan (Kelly) who has settled down in Paris after WWII to live as a painter. One day an American woman, Milo (Foch) happens upon him selling his work on the street and becomes enamored with him. While Jerry isn’t interested in a romance with her, Milo stays in his life by financing a studio and planning a gallery exhibit for him as they become friends. Jerry has instead set his eyes on a French girl named Lise (Caron), and they begin an affair, although Jerry has no clue she is in a relationship. She has been dating a popular French singer Henri (Guétary), who happens to be close friends with Jerry’s friend Adam (Levant), a concert pianist.
My Thoughts:
An American in Paris is a very simple and cheerful musical. There’s not a lot to chew up here as the entire affair is quite basic. Gene Kelly of course sings and dances his heart out, but as a moderate fan of musicals this isn’t one I plan to revisit. The songs aren’t particularly memorable (the actual music stands out more than any of the lyrics). As far as culturally permeating show tunes, there’s not really one to boast about in this film. I didn’t find myself really getting caught up in any of the songs featured here.
There is however one stand out sequence, and likely one of the only reasons this musical deserves a watch in my book (besides Gene Kelly enthusiasts I suppose). The end of this film features a 16 minute ballet that is simply spectacular, all set to the fantastic song “An American in Paris” composed by Gershwin. Obviously this wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea—it features no actual lyrics and I’m sure not everyone will get entranced by the routine. But the sequence is very impressive, showcasing Kelly and Caron but including hundreds of extra dancers throughout interchanging scenes. The set design is artistic and the direction is actually quite noteworthy here. Besides this important footnote in musical history though, I can’t really wrap my head around this musical winning Best Picture.
It didn’t help that I felt so disheartened when I caught up with two classics that were also nominated and were both incredible. First up is A Streetcar Named Desire which took home awards in all three acting categories except Best Actor. Now I haven’t seen The African Queen, but if Humphrey Bogart surpassed what Marlon Brando did in Streetcar I have to see that. I’ll have a hard time believing it until I see it. Brando is simply astounding as a the iconic brute Stanley Kowalski. Paired up with Vivien Leigh and Kim Hunter as the two DuBois sisters, and you have a stunning film. Watching Blanche DuBois (Leigh) crumble while living with her sister and brother-in-law… seeing her abuse under her complex relationship with Stanley… it was a lot to take in. The only pass I’ll give for this film not winning is that it was pulled almost directly from its Broadway production, with almost all actors intact. I suppose that made it a bit easier to produce a film when everyone had been in part for so long beforehand. It’s still an amazing film in its own right.
And Streetcar is only slight surpassed in my mind by the film I believe should have won—A Place in the Sun. In it, Montgomery Clift plays a working class man, George Eastman, who starts a relationship with Alice (Shelley Winters) who works in the factory with him. When a higher class, beautiful society girl, Angela (Elizabeth Taylor) takes an interest he is caught between the commitment he made to Alice, and the more exciting prospect of both the new girl and the lifestyle he’d acquire. It’s quite a thrilling film, that features an unrelenting tension throughout the last hour that never relents. It’s about class and the American dream, desires and dark impulses. And sex of course. I guess an early 1950’s Academy might be more drawn to the safe choice than this more edgy pick. And if Bogart beat Brando, I also can’t believe he beat Clift who brings such an intensity to this role that I was holding my breath.
I have to agree with the theory that in this year, these two dramas may have split the vote, letting An American in Paris slip by for the win. I can’t vouch for Quo Vadis or Decision Before Dawn because I didn’t get to them quite yet, but based on significance over time, they don’t seem to be as relevant as any of the three I did watch (not to pre-judge, but hopefully I’m not overstating how much the other two deserved it). The only big credit I can give to An American in Paris, is that it gave me the momentum to see two other stunning and daring films.
Academy Award nominations and wins:
Won:
Best Picture
Best Writing, Scoring, & Screenplay – Alan Jay Lerner
Best Cinematography, Color – John Alton and Alfred Gilks
Best Art – Set Decoration, Color
Best Costume Design, Color
Best Musical Score
Nominated:
Best Director – Vincente Minnelli
Best Film Editing – Adrienne Fazan
The Other Guys:
- Decision Before Dawn – War drama about American soldiers gathering intel from German prisoners during WWII and having to judge its truth – Nominated in 2 categories
- A Place in the Sun – When a man is caught between two loves and the lives they would promise, he reveals a darkness in himself – Won Best Director (George Stevens), Best Cinematography, Black-and-White, Best Costume Design, Black-and-White, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Writing, Screenplay & nominated in 3 other categories
- Quo Vadis – A Mervyn Leroy epic about a Roman commander questions his leadership’s corruption – Nominated in 8 categories
- A Streetcar Named Desire – Elia Kazan directed this Tennessee Williams play about an aging Southern belle who is unhinged by her loss of status and brother-in-law – Won Best Actress (Vivien Leigh), Supporting Actor (Karl Malden), Supporting Actress (Kim Hunter), and Art Direction, Black & White & nominated in 8 other category