"A tour de force performance. I take my hat off.. and bow .. "
He should have danced with a guitar.
What a man....
Love the grand orchestral opening, silhouetted figures in evening dress and statuesque poses... all set for another classic, but by now somewhat dated, high-toned display. Then wham!
A mischievous piece of misdirection by Hermes Pan and Fred to close the Master's incomparably rich career at MGM- and a catchy but biting take on current pop to finish Cole Porter's.
One of the things about Fred Astaire which contributes to his uniqueness: he formulates routines that are at the same time iconic. He knows just what movements (routines) will resonate and become classic. So not just a great dancer, but someone with self-knowledge and marketing skills.
спасибо за показ получаю удовольствие и отвлекаюсь на время чтобы не тронутся от тарифов на газ
so fluid.. I love hi much more than Gene Kelly
I Love Peter Lorre.
MARAVILHA
Sorry, Fred, I don't want to see you writhing around on the floor even if it is a gag.
There is an air of 'Old Dad' as he called himself, mocking the youth: it is faintly ill-natured and distasteful. Fred had been on the crest of new trends in dance and music, from jazz syncopation in the early 1920s to Jack Cole-like cabaret in 'The Band Wagon'. Now all of a sudden he and Cole are ridiculing the music which was revitalizing the moribund tunefulness of the Fifties the way jazz had eclipsed operetta 30 years earlier.
However remarkable Fred's pizzazz and control remain (that cane and hat work!), it cannot quite hide his disquiet that Time is at last leaving him behind. For someone who said he hated evening dress, he let himself be put into it an awful lot. Smashing the top hat at the end is like a renunciation of his best days, but surely he is not going full Elvis aged 58?
That sense of being conflicted and at an artistic crossroads comes out more explicitly in the David Rose-penned 'Man with the Blues' routine in 'An Evening with Fred Astaire' the following year. A group of West Side Story type hoods push Fred around when he tries to get in with their women, leaving him looking lonely and beat-up. Fred's long career was punctuated by incidents of self-doubt. 'The Ritz Roll and Rock' looks like one more.
Update (2022) I have let this comment stand to be honest, but I think now it is too patronizing and mean. Fred knew what he was doing. He may have had some qualms about his durability, but they do not shade the splendor of this sequence.
Hadn't seen this in awhile, and forgot how much fun it was. While Fred is always thought of nostalgically, he always found the current trends so much fun to play with. I remember hearing how Fred demanded a rock number to dance to, and composer Cole Porter detested the idea. He finally locked himself away for a weekend and painfully listened to endless rock records, and came up with this one, not a bad 50s style rock song. Also Fred told of how his hat falling off at the end was a mistake (Oh, my God, he made mistakes!), and they debated forever if it should be left in or redone. But they felt it added a nice touch of rebellion and left it in. Make no mistake, if Fred lasted forever, he'd have been there breakdancing in the 80s, and doing hiphop today, and amazing everyone with it. Remember, he broke his arm at 76 years old...skateboarding in his driveway!
The master at work
Nomore on TV, since Nomore can compared him
Not a tip tap dancer, but an elegant modern, genial talented perfect dancer
Какое великолепие ! Браво !
thats f music too dayum
basically ashamed i avent seen this before
had to see what he's saying......dude got flow
not a bad thing these dudes f swag......i feellike alot of "aged" ppl barely dance anymore......