Show Boat

Amazon.com

The show that first defined the Broadway musical has never come to the screen intact, despite three tries. But take this splashy 1951 MGM extravaganza on its own terms, and it boggles the eyes. Not to mention the ears: The Kern-Hammerstein score includes some staples of the American songbook, such as "Make Believe," "After the Ball," and "Can't Help Lovin' That Man." Perhaps a riverboat gambler is almost too-easy casting for Howard Keel, and Kathryn Grayson is overly twittery, which may be why the film's middle sags when they take center stage. But any time the uncannily beautiful Ava Gardner smolders, a lush tragic undertone takes over (even if the most interesting parts of her story seem to take place offscreen). The physical production is extraordinary: the busy riverside setting, the outrageous color design, and best of all an "Old Man River" (sung by William Warfield) staged in the mists of morning. -- Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Showboat.......2007-08-23

It was very difficult to find this DVD and I am very pleased with the picture and sound quality.

Oldie but goodie.......2007-06-15

The acting left a little to be desired but the music is delightful. Overall I give it a thumbs up.

beautiful music with mixed results from a (relatively) strong cast............2007-05-19

SHOW BOAT has some of the most beautiful music I have heard, written by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein. Some of the most memorable songs from their score include "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man of Mine," "Old Man River," and "Bill." The music is greatly important in the musical, because it helps tell the story so well. The problem is I could never warm up the story, nor the melodrama.

Gaylord Ravenalle (Howard Keel) is a compulsive gambler who has a chance encounter with beautiful Magnolia "Noley" (Kathryn Grayson), the daughter of the purveyors of a show boat, docked in the water, bringing singing, dancing and joy to all who get on board. This includes many African-American workers, toiling under the hot sun, searching for some respite to their relentlessly difficult lives, in the post-slavery South. What's more, Julie (Ava Gardner), a beautiful stage performer, married to her singing partner, is one of the starring attractions there....Okay, no more summary. I don't want to ruin the plot for you.

I will say this. The story takes a look at racism, emotionally unavailable parenting and plenty of desperation. Sometimes these themes only make a story more compelling. For me, a little went a long way. I believe that racism is a very important subject that needs to be addressed more, but I almost sensed that it was painted more as an over-the-top farce than a legitimately unfortunate epidemic of society. The cast in this production does the best it can, with the material it is given. However, I found Kathryn Grayson's high soprano shrill and excessive, Howard Keel's macho preening and Joe E. Brown's drunken shenanigans to be ridiculous. Nevertheless, this is worth a viewing, for historical and cultural reasons (if not for the beautiful score, alone).

Restored and digitally remastered classic musical.......2007-03-09

Wonderful restoration and the music is wonderful; a classic musical--a must have in a video library! I loved it!

An excellent escape, however..........2007-02-11

While I fully expect the majority of those contemplating buying this movie to have in all probability already seen it, if you're nonetheless reading these reviews, you're obviously doing so for a purpose. My purpose for submitting this review has nothing to do with the movie which is arguably one of the finest examples of the classic musical genre, but rather with the quality of the delivered physical product. I received the DVD in nothing more than a plastic frame covered in cardboard...suitable for trashing. My next purchase was a 10 pack of DVD cases for about $4.00 and change. After surgically cutting and resizing the cardboard cover from the original product and inserting it into a real DVD case, I had something I could add to the DVD cabinet. If you want a DVD you can add to your library, plan on buying additional cases and have a sharp razor blade.

Average customer rating:

The DVD is now the complete movie - it's been corrected
Misleading--this is only the second half of the series.
Only 1/2 the Mini-Series!
Only Half The Story
Hmmmm. I wonder if this will be like another Patrick Dempsey...

JFK - Reckless Youth
Starring: Patrick Dempsey , Terry Kinney , Loren Dean , Yolanda Jilot , and Robin Tunney
Director: Harry Winer
Manufacturer: Mpi Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000EXZFSK
Release Date: 2006-06-27

Customer Reviews:

The DVD is now the complete movie - it's been corrected.......2007-03-23

I bought the DVD when it first came out and just got around to watching it (it IS 3 hours, and I'd seen it when it originally aired), and discovered I had a defective DVD. Thanks to reading the below comments, I knew it was a manufacturer's error and contacted the manufacturer's customer service, asking if the problem had been corrected and, if so, would they exchange it. Within the hour, they sent me an email requesting an address to replace the disc. I've just watched the new and improved DVD, so buy with confidence! (And the movie is really well done.)

Misleading--this is only the second half of the series........2005-12-24

This series was originally on public television, and the original story encompassed JFK's life from childhood through his election to Congress. This DVD was a disappointment as it begins at the period just prior to WW2, leaving out some fascinating material dealing with Old Joe's ambassadorship to Great Britain, which was a fiasco, and other interesting components of JFK's early life.

Setting that aside, this one is worth owning and viewing. It gives a balanced view of the famous "PT109" incident, as well as of JFK's first run for Congress. Just know that this DVD is not the complete "JFK: Reckless Youth" series.

Only 1/2 the Mini-Series!.......2005-10-07

Previous reviewer is correct, this release contains only the second half of the mini-series. The box clearly states 183 minutes, yet the one disc contains only 91. It should have been a two disc set. Someone at MPI really blew it on this one. The film film itself is not bad...

Only Half The Story.......2005-09-17

This much delayed release of the 1992 mini-series is one that I hade long awaited. However, my expectations have turned to dismay as the disc appears only to contain the second half of the show.
Despite the packaging and disc listing a running time of 180 minutes, my copy, purchased in Cambridge, Mass, runs for merely 91 minutes.
Inquiries to the manufacturer have proven to be less than helpful, and I am therefore unable to recommend a purchase of what should have been a welcome addition to the DVD market for this title.
I look forward to the rectification of this over-sight by the disc manufacturer, but fear that it may be a long time coming.

Hmmmm. I wonder if this will be like another Patrick Dempsey..........2005-09-15

Campus flick where he teaches everybody the 'cool, new dance' he got from a National Geographic type show? Okay, I'm just saying Patrick Dempsey? Uber-nerd from the 80s? As JFK? Well, I'm quite sure he's buried his past in film to be the right man to play JFK. Okay, just as long as JFK doesn't give money to the most popular girl in school so she'll look like she's dating him. Who knows - maybe Kirstie Alley will appear as Marilyn Monroe, so Patrick and her can have a 'comic-reteaming' after another movie they did in the 80s (Loverboy). Okay, okay, just as long as JFK doesn't hit it off with one older woman, and through the grapevine, become a gigolo of sorts who just talks to and dances with the older women - you know, what gigolos did in the 80s. It was all so watered down. Just like this. You've been warned!

Edna Ferber's Show Boat - 1936 - Irene Dunne High Quality Import

Average customer rating:

A special edition dvd of this classic ...PLEAAAAAAASE!!!!
Too good for this printing

Edna Ferber's Show Boat - 1936 - Irene Dunne High Quality Import
Director: James Whale
Manufacturer: Classicline
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Classics | Genres | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000K2XOJ2

Customer Reviews:

A special edition dvd of this classic ...PLEAAAAAAASE!!!!.......2007-08-19

What on earth is Universal or Warner or whoever owns the rights to this classic waiting for ???? Is there some dispute with the estate of Edna Ferber ? Or some quarrel with MGM or whatever ...??? I cannot believe that the only release out there is an overpriced average print from Brazil (of all places!!!). This classic deserves a full blown digital clean-up, lots of special features and at least a 3 disc edition with all the bells and feathers!!!! So if you agree with me that this beautiful film has now been neglected long enough, please second my request ....the marketing guys for classic dvd's DO read the Amazon reviews!

Too good for this printing.......2007-04-06

the 1936 movie edition of show boat was outstanding and featured much more of the play than the later 1954 MGM version. however, this was an international copy (DVD) and the last scenes of the movie do not play. I do not know why; the seller even sent me another copy and it still does not play (it is pixalated (sp?) and cuts out). I assume it's because it comes from Brazil (I believe). there are no extas, which is fine, but at the conclusion of the movie, with the highlight of (spoiler alert!) gay and magnolia singing "you are love" together, all i can get is bits and pieces, which broke my heart. at any rate, it is far superior to the MGM version and truer to the play. the movie, and the play, however, do not really resemble the ferber novel, except for the first part of the play/movie. the situations concerning julie and the endings concerning gay and magnolia and kim and captain andy and parthy are very different. however, this is worthwhile for the glorious music and some great performances. helen morgan is a terrific julie and the parts of magnolia and gay are very touchingly performed. i recommend it as the only way to see, even partially, what show boat was meant to be.

Average customer rating:

Showboat
Oldie but goodie
beautiful music with mixed results from a (relatively) strong cast.....
Restored and digitally remastered classic musical
An excellent escape, however...

Show Boat
Starring: Kathryn Grayson , Ava Gardner , Howard Keel , Joe E. Brown , and Marge Champion
Director: George Sidney (II)
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 0792835964
Release Date: 1997-08-20

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Showboat.......2007-08-23

It was very difficult to find this DVD and I am very pleased with the picture and sound quality.

Oldie but goodie.......2007-06-15

The acting left a little to be desired but the music is delightful. Overall I give it a thumbs up.

beautiful music with mixed results from a (relatively) strong cast............2007-05-19

Restored and digitally remastered classic musical.......2007-03-09

Wonderful restoration and the music is wonderful; a classic musical--a must have in a video library! I loved it!

An excellent escape, however..........2007-02-11

Charlie Rose with Gerald Lefcourt, Ted Wells, Stephen Gillers & Sonya Hamlin; Peter Falk; Elaine Stritch (March 3, 1995)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Gerald Lefcourt, Ted Wells, Stephen Gillers & Sonya Hamlin; Peter Falk; Elaine Stritch (March 3, 1995)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Description

First, Gerald Lefcourt, consultant to CBS News; Ted Wells, a criminal defense attorney and consultant to CBS News; Professor Stephen Gillers of New York University's school of law; and jury consultant Sonya Hamlin discuss Rosa Lopez' testimony in the OJ Simpson trial. Then, actor Peter Falk talks about his movieRoommates. Finally, actress Elaine Stritch discusses her new show, Show Boat.

JFK: Reckless Youth (True Stories Collection)

Average customer rating:

The DVD is now the complete movie - it's been corrected
Misleading--this is only the second half of the series.
Only 1/2 the Mini-Series!
Only Half The Story
Hmmmm. I wonder if this will be like another Patrick Dempsey...

JFK: Reckless Youth (True Stories Collection)
Starring: Patrick Dempsey , Terry Kinney , Loren Dean , Yolanda Jilot , and Robin Tunney
Director: Harry Winer
Manufacturer: Mpi Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Drama | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B0009OUBFQ
Release Date: 2005-09-27

Description

Based on Nigel Hamilton's best-selling biography, JFK: Reckless Youth will astonish, entertain and inform everyone interested in John F. Kennedy, 36th President of the United States. Superbly portrayed by Patrick Dempsey, the film traces the first 30 years of Kennedy's life with illuminating depictions of many little-known events, particularly his mischievous days as a college student and ladies' man, his continuing competition with his brother Joe Jr., and his love affair with Dutch journalist Inga Arvad. The mini-series also recounts JFK's conflict with his father, the tour of Europe that led to his novel, Why England Slept, how he dealt with increased pressure to end his relationship with Inga (the FBI believed her to be a Nazi spy) the PT 109 story, and his first political campaign.

Customer Reviews:

The DVD is now the complete movie - it's been corrected.......2007-03-23

Misleading--this is only the second half of the series........2005-12-24

Only 1/2 the Mini-Series!.......2005-10-07

Only Half The Story.......2005-09-17

Hmmmm. I wonder if this will be like another Patrick Dempsey..........2005-09-15

Average customer rating:

The Only Version Worth Seeing
Showboat (1936)
Seminal Musical Classic Well Worth Seeing Seventy Years Later
THE COMPLETE SHOW BOAT ON DVD
Hollywood's First True Musical

Show Boat
Starring: Irene Dunne , Allan Jones , Charles Winninger , Paul Robeson , and Helen Morgan
Director: James Whale
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Musicals & Performing Arts | Genres | DVD | Video

( S ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B00005JNFX

Amazon.com

Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II's Showboat, based on Edna Ferber's 1926 novel, is a seminal American musical, the first to explore serious themes (most notably racism) and to truly integrate song with story and character. The plot follows three generations of a theatrical Mississippi riverboat family from the 1880s to the 1920s. The 1936 film version, directed by Englishman James Whale (Frankenstein), is probably the one that best captures the spirit its creators intended. First and foremost, it features Paul Robeson as Joe. His indelible rendition of "Ol' Man River," delivered strong, straight, and without bathos, is a stunningly powerful anthem about the plight of African Americans in the United States. (The song is set against a fascinating expressionist montage in 1930s social realist style.) Other standout performances include torch singer Helen Morgan as Julie, the actress banished from the showboat for her "mixed race" ancestry. Her "Bill" and "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" are simply sublime. Hattie McDaniel (Gone With the Wind) is her usual outrageous self. Irene Dunne (The Awful Truth) is spunky and delightful as Magnolia Ravenal. Her most endearing moment occurs early in the film when she leads the company in a funky cakewalk, swinging her hips with joyful abandon. (She also does a number in blackface!) When Dunne and the narrative leave the riverboat for the big bad city, fame, and heartbreak, the movie loses much of its snap and substance and descends into rather conventional melodrama. Still, this film represents an essential moment in the American musical theater, one not to be missed. --Laura Mirsky

Customer Reviews:

The Only Version Worth Seeing.......2007-08-11

I've seen some spectacular performances of Show Boat, but no one can match Paul Robeson. Even if you don't like musicals this one is worth it to see Robeson sing and act. Once you've seen this version every other is a disappointment (except for them removing the black face, that needed doing). Robeson as Joe will give you chills. I only wish I could have seen and heard him live. Hattie McDaniel is always great to watch as well. The rest of the cast is good, although other versions are roughly comparable. This version does have a more authentic feel. This one is more like a musical on stage than the 50s version, which has a movie feel to it. The black face is a representation of a historical reality, but not defensible. However, this inclusion I hope does not keep people from seeing the quality of the music and the message of the play or missing the spectacular performance of Paul Robeson.

Showboat (1936).......2006-11-15

Can't live without (the 1936 version) it! It is the Holy Grail of Hollywood musicals!

Seminal Musical Classic Well Worth Seeing Seventy Years Later.......2006-10-04

Sadly not available yet on DVD, the classic black-and-white 1936 version of the seminal 1927 Oscar Hammerstein-Jerome Kern musical is rarely seen these days since it's been overshadowed by the far more elaborate 1951 MGM color remake (which is on DVD). That's a shame since this one is like a piece of cameo jewelry from a bygone era, a sublimely entertaining piece of Americana so naïve in its approach that its pervasive use of racial stereotypes comes across more as quaint than demoralizing.

Directed by James Whale (the protagonist of 1998's "Gods and Monsters" and most famous for his 1931 classic, "Frankenstein"), it's a multi-generational story that starts with the Hawks family who runs a variety entertainment showboat in the 1880's. The jovial Captain Andy is the boat's impresario who is constantly goaded by his mean-spirited wife Parthy. They have a musically inclined daughter Magnolia who is best friends with the show's star, mulatto chanteuse Julie LaVerne. The local sheriff forces Julie out of the show for being half-black. Andy has Magnolia take her place just as gambler Gaylord Ravenal comes to town and becomes recruited as the show's leading man. Gaylord and Magnolia fall immediately in love, marry, move to Chicago and have a girl they named Kim. There, he gains and loses a fortune and then leaves Magnolia and Kim. Over the years, Magnolia becomes a big stage star and passes the torch to Kim.

The music, of course, is unbeatable with standards, chief among them "Make Believe", "Can't Help Lovin' That Man" and "You Are Love". Even though Irene Dunne was in her late thirties when she made this film, she amazingly gets away with the first half where she plays Magnolia as an ingénue. What's more, she was the rare actress who could act and sing (quite beautifully) at the same time, even when she is required to perform in blackface in "Gallivantin' Around". Allan Jones is a fine singer as Gaylord, though not as interesting an actor especially in the second half when misfortune takes over. When they sing "You Are Love" together, it's still quite magical.

What a treat to be able to see the redoubtable Paul Robeson as Joe singing "Ol' Man River" so powerfully (and filmed with an intriguing montage of woeful images), as well as legendary torch singer Helen Morgan play Julie and perform her signature song, "Bill", so touchingly. Familiar character actor Charles Winninger probably has his best role as Captain Andy, while Hattie McDaniel plays Joe's forceful wife Queenie in a performance as good as her Mammy in "Gone With the Wind". The film is really an intriguing mix of melodrama and great music with socially relevant observations regarding racism, alcoholism and gambling addiction.

THE COMPLETE SHOW BOAT ON DVD.......2006-09-27

Someone needs to petition Warner Bros to release a DVD version of MGM's COMPLETE SHOW BOAT Laser Disc set, with the 1929, 1936 and 1951 versions, and the SHOW BOAT segment from TILL THE CLOUDS ROLL BY. If it ever happens, I hope they will be able to include all the LD audio bonuses from the 1951 recording sessions and still photo galleries of the three films as contained in the Laser Disc set. If George Feltenstein is lurking about reading these posts, it would be really nice to get some of the Criterion content from their release, if they're willing. Could we also please have as much of the 1929 Ziegfeld Prologue as possible? And while I don't usually recommend this type of thing, the alternate stereo mix of the last LD issue of the 1951 film (with the Ava Gardner vocal tracks in place) would be a dream come true!
In fact, after BEN-HUR and GWTW, an entire fourth disc of bonuses would not be out of the question.

Hollywood's First True Musical.......2006-09-20

I have had the pleasure of seeing this film twice. James Whales' "Show
Boat" is a wonderfully crafted film filled with great performances, lovely
songs and outstanding black and white cinematography. This film is one
of the first effort by a hollywood studio to bring a broadway musical
intact to the screen. Whoever owns the rights to this unjustly forgotten
film should bring it out on DVD so that future generations may learn
what real film making is about.

DVD:

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