Give a Girl a Break

source: Give a Girl a Break

Don Adams (as Maxwell Smart) used the line "missed by that much" a lot and that is the way this film hit me. It had great actors, fantastic dancers, good direction and yet, for me, it was second rate. I know most of the other reviewers will disagree with me but I just couldn't get into it. Some musicals (Singin' In The Rain, Showboat, Kiss Me, Kate and a lot more) grab you from the first frame but this one just didn't do it for me. It was wonderful as always to see the Champions (I always had a crush on Marge) and Debbie Reynolds and Bob Fosse were good as always, but the film just didn't click with me, It is well worth watching at least once (you'll find it often on TCM) but I will never be able to rate it as a favorite.

"Give a Girl a Break" isn't a big-name and elaborate production that characterized most MGM musicals. But this smaller scale musical has a nice story that features some of the best dancing talent of Hollywood and Broadway in the mid-20th century. The story is set on Broadway. The director and producer of a new musical about to open need a new leading lady when their snooty star quits. With only three weeks until opening, they come up with the idea of promoting an amateur competition to select the new lead. It's a dream made in heaven for girls from the Big Apple to some distance away. Our story centers around three who will vie for the sole spot. The way the story plays out is nice, with three of the leading men each having his eye on one particular of the three girls. Marge and Gower Champion have top billing. This is just one of three films in which they have that spot or share the leads. Gower made only 20 films in his career, most with Marge when they were married, and she made only 26 films. But the rest of the time, they spent on the stage. Marge eventually began teaching dance, and Gower was the leading choreographer and a leading musical director for two decades on Broadway. He won eight Tony awards and received 15 nominations in his career - some as director and some as choreographer. Had he lived beyond age 59, he doubtless would have won more awards. But, beside the Champions, another legendary stage dancer, choreographer and director has near top billing in this film. Bob Fosse plays Bob Dowdy, assistant to the director, Ted Sturgis (Gower Champion). Fosse has won an academy award, a BAFTA award and an Emmy for his film and TV work. And he has nine Tony awards for directing and choreography of Broadway musicals. The rest of the cast in this film are top drawer, the women all with dancing and singing. Debbie Reynolds does modern dance and traditional dance with singing, and Dolly Sharp does classical and jazz dancing. This film is a tremendous show of dance. The earliest peeks of the Champions with short dance scenes are in "Mr. Music" of 1950, "Show Boat" of 1951, and "Lovely to Look At" of 1952. That year they also starred in their first film, "Everything I Have Is Yours." It's too bad that the Champions didn't make more films. These MGM films were successful at the box office, and both of the players are competent actors. Gower Champion has a likeable persona. But, as with many people who have natural dancing talent, the stage has more allure than film. One can understand that five to seven performances a week for many months would be more attractive to an active dancer than the schedule of filmmaking that might require a few days of repetitive rehearsals to get single scenes down. As opposed to frequent rehearsals and interruptible scene shoots, the live stage affords dancers the opportunity to perform their talents on a regular schedule before live audiences. This film makes a nice addition to a movie musical or dance library. It's nice to have some other master performers to view on film once in a while, besides the incomparable Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly with their several fantastic female partners.

The centerpiece of this movie is a spectacular number by the unequaled dancing duo of Marge and Gower Champion. Dancing to the tune of "It Happens Every Time," this number has never been surpassed on screen, even in more successful movie musicals like "Singin' in the Rain," from which Debbie Reynolds was freshly minted and given this star vehicle to propel her career. Directed by the same director, Stanley Donen, Reynolds holds her own against the Champions, while Bob Fosse demonstrates that he has a great deal to offer musicals in the years ahead. This is an interesting look at the make-believe world of Broadway in the 1950s.

Acrobatic musical from 1953 that spreads screen time between three couples instead of the usual romantic pair. Apparently the movie flopped at the box office (IMDB) despite MGM pedigree. For a musical the screenplay is more plot heavy than usual as three dancers compete for the lead in a Broadway musical. Not only does this divide screen time between the three, but generates unusual suspense for this kind of film. After all, which of the trio of talents will be selected. Also unusual is the general absence of romantic dance numbers. Instead it's flying feet, acrobatic tumbles, and super wide leg-splits-- no Astaire-Rogers here. That's surprising since the Champions would be expected to cuddle up in a few routines, but instead they're separated by plot wrinkles. So, all in all, I suspect normal audience expectations were let down. Nonetheless, Reynolds projects her usual charm and sparkle. But will she win. In my view, screen time should have featured her, with Marge and Gower, who are better dancers than actors, in support. At the same time, the incredibly nimble Fosse makes a compact visual match for Debbie. Anyway, MGM injects its usual color splash along with a load of extras. And fans of acrobatic fast shoe should find much to marvel at. Meanwhile, that opening marathon of the splits still has me crossing my legs. Amazing what they can do.

Give a Girl a Break (1953) ** 1/2 (out of 4) A Broadway show is about to open but the main star walks out over a disagreement. The producers go into a panic but decide to hold an open audition. Ted Sturgis (Gower Champion) wants his ex-wife (Marge Champion) to get the part. Leo Belney (Kurt Kasznar) wants his discovery Joanna Moss (Helen Ross) to get the role while Bob Dowdy (Bob Fosse) wants his amateur (Debbie Reynolds) to get the part. GIVE A GIRL A BREAK isn't going to be mistaken for a masterpiece but if you're a fan of the Musical genre then it's certainly worth watching and especially since you've got some famous faces before they were well-known. This here was meant to be a showcase for the Champion team but the film ended up bombing and the two of them were pretty much done with the movies. Of course, when viewing this today the main focus will be on the Reynolds-Fosse connection. In my opinion those two legends are the main reason to watch this as they actually make for a pretty cute couple and both of them turn in fine performances. This is especially true for Fosse who really delivers a believable performance and I thought he was extremely entertaining int he role of the producer who is often pushed around. Reynolds is as beautiful and charming as ever and there's no question that very few couple pull off that small town girl better. The rest of the cast members were okay in their parts but there's no question that they take a back seat. The biggest problem with this film is that there's really not that much of a story. We basically have the competition thrown in so that we can get various dream sequences, which usually lead to a variety of dance numbers. In all honesty, I thought the dance numbers were decent but there's certainly nothing great here. I'd also argue that there weren't any great musical numbers either. It seems MGM was wanting to show off what talent they had on hand without giving away any great moments or musical numbers.

I would have given this a higher rating, but there is so much filler in this pleasant but generic musical. The basic story (of three candidates for the leading role in a Broadway musical) doesn't take a brain matter, but there is still a lot of imagination in that filler that it's hard not to like it. In fact, I smiled vividly in watching this again (for the fifth time, last time about six years ago), especially in the opening title song, the balloon/confetti dance, and the elaborate finale, which uses the title of a future Broadway musical based upon "All About Eve". This is also a very historical movie and must for dance students because it features dancing together for the only time on screen future legendary Broadway directors/choreographers Gower Champion and Bob Fosse. As Gower's wife Marge Champion is one of the three girls, it is sort of sad that Fosse's dancer wife Gwen Verdon wasn't. But Fosse doesn't skimp on his dance partner-he gets the wonderful Debbie Reynolds who you can't help but adore. Comedy relief comes in the form of chunky Kurt Kasznar whose character could be compared to Zero Mostel's lecherous Max Bielestock in "The Producers"; In fact, if you don't look close enough, you might think it is Mostel! Larry Keating is the kindly producer who must make the decision (with the helpful advice of the other three), while Helen Wood is the third girl. I didn't think she had as much charisma as the other two; That is probably why you never heard of her. In a sense, this is a re-do of "42nd Street", which Champion would direct to great acclaim and an opening night he never got to see because of his sudden tragic death. But to see the two future Broadway legends together is as dreamy as seeing Mary Martin and Ethel Merman together in their famous TV special.

This movie that originally was going to include Fred Astaire, Gene Kelley, Judy Garland and Ann Miller was left with some great dancers such as Gower/Marge Champion and Bob Fosse. Some people insist that this is a gem - this fanatic of great musicals (flicks that include great dancing, singing and acting), this is just an innocuous adventure of entertainment performed by talented dancers. The Gower/Marge Champion numbers seemed to be the recipient of more time and money with more well-thought out production values. The Bob Fosse numbers seem surprisingly off-kilter that only suggests the great work that he will be doing in the future. One could attribute this to Gower's good fortune of dancing with a great dance partner that he can personally bond with. It was fun seeing a dance partnership providing some of the best highlights of the film. The Bob Fosse/Debbie Reynolds seem to suffer because Debbie couldn't fully realize the moves that Fosse was giving her - especially since she was much younger than him. (Note: Interesting seeing a "perky" choreographed dance numbers, especially considering the sharp/edgy/sexily-tinged/jazzy moves that Fosse give to the world). In addition, Stanley Donen didn't do Fosse any favors with the "backward" footage that looks "out-of-placed" and/or awkward - good ideas that didn't quite produce the desired effects. Note: Bob Fosse is not a singer - though he tries hard. His best works can be found in much of his latter work and/or in films where he's dancing with Dan Dailey, Gene Kelley and many others. It's too bad that Bob Fosse and Gower Champion couldn't get along - hence denied the general public of what would be created with these immensely talented dancer/choreographers. A dance showdown between Fred Astaire/Gene Kelley (seen in "The Great Ziegfield") and the team of Fosse/Champion would have been great to experience!! Wouldn't it be fascinating discovering why there were serious fractions that eventually had Bob Fosse/Stanley Donen vs. Gower Champion/Marge Champion/Debbie Reynolds. fyi: George Chakiris (of "West Side Story" fame) can also be seen in the movie btw: MGM didn't even release this film in New York, that demonstrated their "faith" in this flick. One can only imagine what would have resulted if this $2M film (a big amount for that time) had the originally intended cast of Gene Kelly, Fed Astaire, Judy Garland and Ann Miller - what can only have dream the magic from the Burton Lane/Ira Gershwin songs?!?!

Interesting what another reviewer said here about this movie originally being written for Kelly, Garland, etc. I suspected it was intended for Kelly or Astaire, with Kazner part written for Oscar Levant, and Fosse part intended for Donald O'Connor. The screen writers were some of MGM's best, who usually wrote big budget films. I wonder if the entire film, or most obviously, the dance number the Champions do with all the vertical poles were shot in 3D. That dance seems smartly designed for 3D, and the film was made in 1953, the year Hollywood made something like 80 3D films. OK now my very brief review. This film is mostly a delight, as were several other early 50's, small scale MGM musicals. All that talent, in front of and behind the screen, make the slim and tired story, and modest production values irrelevant.

Give a Girl a Break is a 1953 musical that uses the show-within-a-show convention to present some wonderful dancing. A Broadway revue is being cast and three women are up for the female lead. The three actresses are Debbie Reynolds, Helen Wood and Marge Champion. All three acquit themselves as actresses, but their dance talents are fantastic. The actors who play the lead roles in this film are adequate, but sometimes stiff, in their acting. Perhaps because Bob Fosse and Gower Champion were picked more for their dancing. In any event, I say watch this movie for its dancing. There is enough of it to be interesting. The film is directed by Stanley Donen and has numerous similarities to Singin' in the Rain, released the year before. A good pedigree. Gower Champion, Stanley Donen and Bob Fosse choreographed. Although Fosse's idol was Astaire, you can definitely see similarities to Gene Kelly's dance style. The rooftop dance is jazzy (highlighting the great music in this film), and might be seen to predate West Side Story. For me, the best part is the trio of dream sequences, each featuring one of the three actresses and her admirer. I could write paragraphs about them. The dance that features reverse motion might be gimmicky, but it's clever. The movie's end is anticlimactic, there are some awkward choices in staging, and other production aspects might have been sacrificed for quality dance numbers, but if you watch it just for the dance, it delivers. The plot is really about the sacrifices that dancers make for their craft. To paraphrase one character: You can always get another husband, but this is a once in a lifetime (dance) part. How can you go wrong with the cute-but-sometimes-sexy Reynolds, the classy Marge Champion, Helen Wood (yowza!), smooth Gower Champion, and the dynamic Bob Fosse?