Customer Reviews

The Busby Berkeley Collection (Footlight Parade / Gold Diggers of 1933 / Dames / Gold Diggers of 1935 / 42nd Street)

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I am sure that I am one of many who are incredibly excited about the upcoming release of these brilliant Busby Berkeley musicals! Each of these films contain many of the big screen's most unforgettable moments, and all five merit inclusion in this fine DVD package.

For fans of musicals and for those who simply enjoy excellent cinema, these movies have it all! First and foremost, the artistry of Berkeley's musical sequences make these films a must-see! It doesn't matter if you are a musical maven or not. The inimitable Busby Berkeley production numbers will dazzle you, even with the sound turned down! In addition to being renowned musicals, these films are also some of the wittiest comedies from the 30's era. I don't think anybody can resist the well-written snappy dialogue and sly innuendo, particularly from the pre-code releases included here.

My mini-reviews:

FOOTLIGHT PARADE -- Great pre-code dialogue, and a fantastic showcase for the comedic talents of both Joan Blondell and James Cagney, the latter demonstrating his incredible footwork that helped him score his Oscar winning role in Yankee Doodle Dandy!

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 -- My personal favorite of this collection. it features the famous Ginger Rogers number "We're In The Money", and the unforgettable "Forgotten Man" performed by Joan Blondell! Great production numbers and more entertaining pre-code comedy.

DAMES -- In addition to the great production number of the title song, it features an hilarious performance by Hugh Herbert, probably (though debatably) his best!

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1935 -- This one introduces the great production number, "The Lullaby Of Broadway" and also features a great comedic performance from Gloria Stuart (of "Titanic" fame).

42nd STREET -- This is the film that reinvented the movie musical! Nuff said, except that Ginger Rogers' chaffing is a wonderful highlight.

The extras look nice, though I'm sorry no commentaries seem to be included. I'm looking forward to seeing the new featurettes. All in all, this is a very reasonably priced package that is worth every penny. Enjoy!

BUSBY BERKELEY COLLECTION
By Brendan G Carroll

While I was delighted that Warners & Turner have issued these great films on DVD at last in terrific quality (for the most part) and with wonderful extras, there were some opportunities missed here and one glaring omission which I hope I can set right.

The opportunities lost concern the archive material that might have been included and which would have been so worth the effort to acquire. As most Berkeley buffs know, he gave a very interesting and rare interview for a 1966 TV documentary called "The Movie Crazy Years" (about Warners) which also included a nice interview with Joan Blondell. It would have been good to see the relevant excerpts from this superb programme (which I think was made by David Wolper) included in the various featurettes on these DVDs, rather than the endless gushy on-camera posturings of the likes of John Landis. Do I really need to be told over and over in hyper-gushy language, that Buzz was a genius, by so-called celebrity fans? I really wish Turner would at least include either contemporary witnesses or film historians (like Bob Thomas or Rudy Behlmer) to add pertinent commentary to projects like this. WHAT has John Waters got to do with Busby Berkeley I ask you?

The second "missed opportunity" is the rarely (and barely) seen 96 minute documentary "Busby Berkeley" made by Russ Jones in 1974 to co-incide with the publication of Tony Thomas' superb biography of Buzz, which included rare interviews with Winifred Shaw (about the Lullaby of Broadway number) and Ruth Donnelly (about Footlight Parade) among other treasures.

Surely Turner could have acquired both of these archive resources (at little cost!) for this definitive DVD set? It would have added such tremendous historic value to the collection and genuine insight. I really felt we never got to know much about Berkeley as a man from any of the short documentaries or how he achieved his amazing effects. In fact, I realised that I knew more about him and his techniques, than I learned from any of the featurettes.

Much worse though, is the total absence of any comment about Ray Heindorf, the genius arranger and orchestrator at Warners, from 1931 on, who was responsible for the entire musical style of these films and especially the superb job he turned in for the big numbers - creating seamless 10-15 minute arrangements of Harry Warren's great songs (and those of Kahal & Fain - they wrote `By A Waterfall' by the way, not that you would know it from watching the short documentary on Footlight Parade!!).

Heindorf was also responsible for the marvellous, brassy orchestrations throughout - yet he never even gets a mention. He was a genius - in fact, according to Erich Wolfgang Korngold, (as told me by Eleanor Aller & Harry Warren himself) he was the best and fastest orchestrator Korngold had ever encountered, high praise indeed from maybe the one man in Hollywod who would know - and it was Heindorf's ability to provide an endlessly varied treatment of each song that allowed Berkeley to get away with making a number lasting a quarter of an hour without we, the viewer (and listener) ever getting bored with the tune!

Well, in spite of these shortcomings, it is wonderful to have these at last in better than average prints (and in the case of 42nd Street, amazing prints!) and of course, the historic trailers & shorts are all marvellous to have at last, rescued from the vaults.

However, I hope next time Turner puts out a major collection, somebody will take the trouble to produce a tribute to Ray Heindorf. It's long overdue.

Hooray for Warner Home Video! Just before the turn of last year - about a week before I learned of the release of this mouth watering set - I said to my wife "wouldn't it be great if Warners did a Berkeley collection?" and I went on to tick off the names of the exact titles included in this set.
I first saw FOOTLIGHT PARADE when I was in college in the late 60s; saw it on a big screen in a real movie palace in Minneapolis. It was a revelatory moment and I have been a committed "Berkeleyite" ever since.
There is no one during the 30s or after who did such audacious and astounding things with movie musicals.
I look forward to having the DVD set which I know will be a vast improvement over the VHS copies I have mouldering in our attic. Anyone who has a yen for musicals will want to own this set. Not only did Berkeley have the full support (for a while) of Jack Warner in the making of these extravagant films he also had the pick of the Warner stock company of actors. Think of it:Cagney, Blondell, Kibbee, Powell, and lastly but foremeost the Beautiful Ruby Keeler (for who I still harbor a schoolboy crush!). I can only hope that the bonus disc will have numbers from the(lesser)films not included in the set; numbers such as DREAM A LITTLE DREAM from FASHIONS and the numbers from WONDER BAR (even the jaw-dropping GOIN' TO HEAVEN ON A MULE number).
Now if someone (Warners or whoever owns the rights) will release Eddie Cantor's films for Goldwyn - which contain some prime Berkeley work - and also issue a set of Jolson films (which would have to include GO INTO YOUR DANCE - no Berkeley work but great music and (hubba-hubba)Ruby Keeler - everything would truly be right with the world!

I just read in the paper about this collection and immediately hopped up to the computer and pre-ordered my copy! Here are Brad's top ten reasons that I want to own it and you should too:

10) You know there are some things - works of art, foods, smells, people - that leave such an indelible image on you that every time you come across them you seem to be immersed in a nostalgic haze. Watching these Berkeley films does it to me. I can't always explain it. When I show my VHS copies to friends or students of mine, invariably somebody goes "what the heck is that?!?" Berkeley's over-the-top quality has to be experienced to be believed.

9) I don't have "Dames" or Golddiggers of 1935" although I've seen them. I consider them lesser works, but each contains some incredible numbers: "Dames" has a catchy title song that was included in the stage production of 42ND STREET and "1935" has "Lullaby of Broadway" which is a complete musical tragedy in 15 minutes.

8) I don't even know what the extras are, but I can't wait. Extra numbers?

7) Another reviewer hinted at this: it's that Warner Brothers stamp on the musical genre that makes these films so amazing. It's a toughness, a rawness, a gangster film-like quality. It's performances by actors like Jimmy Cagney, Joan Blondell, Aline McMahon and Ginger Rogers that give these films....oh, I'll call it 'moxie!" And then couple them with the sweetness of Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell, and the combination can't be beat.

6) The three "Prologues" that close FOOTLIGHT PARADE should be seen by everyone. From the soft-porn leering of "Honeymoon Hotel" to the aquatic excess of "By a Waterfall" to the brilliance of Cagney and Keeler in "Shanghai Lil".....I never lose the thrill down my back when I watch them.

5) The chance to see some of the greatest character actors in the Warner Bros. stable strut their stuff, even in tiny parts (i.e. Sterling Holloway as the delivery boy in GOLDDIGGERS OF 1933). Watching Guy Kibbee or Hugh Herbert or Una Merkel or Aline MacMahon or any of the others on screen is a treat.

4) Speaking of G. of 1933, "Petting in the Park" reminds you of what films could show before the Hays Code messed everything up. Another prurient delight from Busby Berkeley's dirty mind. And then "Shadow Waltz" shows you how romantic and stirring he could be. Best of all "My Forgotten Man" is a must-see at the end of that picture. Berkeley could play with mood as well as anybody. As hilarious as this film is, you never forget that these people are in the middle of a Depression and are always on the verge of starving. Happy ending or not, Berkeley can't let you forget it either. The number is magnificent. The amazing Joan Blondell can sing about as well as Ruby Keeler could tap, and it doesn't matter!!!!!!

3) Did I mention Ruby Keeler's tap-dancing? I work with a lot of tappers in my profession, and nobody ever stepped like her. It's thunderous and awkward and absolutely beautiful. And her voice, which approaches near-bass qualities.....I know it sounds like I'm putting her down, but I love this woman. She makes you smile and breaks your heart, all at the same time.

2) If you absolutely hate musicals (and that means you probably aren't even in this spot on Amazon, reading this, but just on the off chance that you are) then skip over the musical numbers and watch the snappy patter of the dialogue scenes. Cagney in FOOTLIGHT PARADE is Cagney at his best! Watching Ginger Rogers, Una Merkel and the rest of the showgirls engage in witty, bitchy banter in 42ND STREET of G. of 1933 will have you howling.

1) If you love musicals, then I highly recommend these films because they are the works of a true original. Nobody approached musical theatre like Busby Berkeley. It's hard not to feel strongly about him; you could end up hating the guy for his craziness. But I'm betting you won't!

The rave reviews are flowing in...from THE NEW YORKER...to PLAYBOY MAGAZINE...to DVD websites by the score, everyone's saying this is already a contender for Best DVD of 2006.

Two kinds of films defined Warner Bros. in the 1930s...their fast-paced gangster films, and their Busby Berkeley musical spetaculars. Others tried to imitate the Warner gangster formula and failed. Others tried to imitate the Berkeley formula, but they were missing the essential ingredients: The Warner stock company, great songs by Harry Warren and Al Dubin, and most important, the incomparable imagination of Busby Berkeley.

A few years ago, Warner Bros. released a great disc of 42nd STREET, the film that made Berkeley a household name. The film had been lovingly restored, and had never looked so good. However, the rest of his great classics awaited the same kind of painstaking restoration, and the day has finally arrived when we can rejoice in owning these sensational, delightful, and mind-boggling fantasy-fests of delight.

Best of all, there are HOURS of extra features, including a bonus disc of more than 20 of Berkeley's musical spectaculars. If all you want is music and dance, without plot, this is like a 1930s, three-hour music video beyond compare!

There are engaging mini-documentaries that illuminate various aspects of these films, which help put each film in historical context. While die-hard buffs would lament the fact that certain ancient documentaries they recall aren't included, it's obvious that such items probably have legal or ownership barriers which could preclude WB's access to those pieces. However, this is not really a concern, for what has been provided here beyond comprehensive, with great quality, and with the same kind of smarts that sets Warner Home Video's product heads and tails above all the other studios when it comes to classics.

So, here's to Busby! To Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell! To an amazing song-and-dance Jimmy Cagney and the always wonderful Joan Blondell....not to mention folks like Guy Kibbee, Ned Sparks and so many Warner regulars. You can't pass this up and call yourself a movie lover!

Getting this box set was like opening a package on Christmas morning. I was like a little kid.

The best example of how good these transfers look: when Wini Shaw's face is isolated on the black screen during "Lullaby of Broadway" in GOLD DIGGERS OF 1935, she's not surrounded by dirt, speckles, and fuzziness...but instead by inky, spooky blackness. I've seen this movie maybe 10 times--in theaters as well as on video, and have never seen it look like this.

For those who love these movies, but have been suffering through the old VHS tapes (or even the laserdiscs--the FOOTLIGHT PARADE laserdisc had terrible audio, all of which has been cleaned up nicely here), these DVDs are simply an essential purchase. Dont call yourself a film buff and tell me you haven't seen GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933...you're not a film buff.

OK, so, some nitpicky things: The featurettes mean well, but except for John Landis and the hilarious John Waters, it's all historians and fans talking in draining purple prose ("...this was the most amazing thing anybody anywhere had ever seen in the universe..." etc etc). No commentaries? These films CRY OUT for them. I would have done it for free.

If you really want to learn about Berkeley, you'll still need to read the definitive "Busby Berkeley Book" (easy to find used copies). You should also look for the documentary "Busby Berkeley: Goin Through the Roof," which interviews Esther Williams and lots of the old chorus girls--an utterly fascinating film.

Has anyone ever really interviewed Gloria Stuart about Berkeley? I spoke with Ms. Stuart at a book signing once, and she had nice memories of him (she worked with him twice--on GD of 1935, plus ROMAN SCANDALS). I know Warners probably didnt have the budget to track down every living person who worked with Berkeley, but it would have been nice to at least have included some old archived interviews with his contemporaries.

Also--there exists an audio outtake of Ginger Rogers singing "I've Got To Sing A Torch Song" in GD of 1933. That would have been a cool extra. (Hmmm..I think I finally found where that number was cut out. Right at the beginning of the nightclub sequence, in long shot between two giant letters, you can clearly see Rogers performing a song at a piano. Close-up stills of that very scene were used on the front of that song's sheet music. The transfer is so good you can SEE this kind of detail now!).

One other TINY nitpick: Removing "Goin To Heaven on A Mule" from the bonus compilation disc. I know why they cut it, but it's still a shame because it has some gorgeous shots amidst the offensive subject matter.

Thanks, Warners, for this package. I'm excited to learn there is an audience out there as crazy about these 5 movies as I am.

Excellent set of classic Busby Berkeley musicals. Only thing missing is some good commentary tracks. A full length in depth documentary (rather than those short, mostly useless, "featurettes")would have also been welcomed. Another note, Warner HV removed the Al Jolson GOIN' TO HEAVEN ON A MULE production number from the bonus compliation disk. This was previously included on the former laser disc version. I am sure that Warner HV was afraid of possible "policically incorrect" criticism. A troubling trend. Still excellent as is. Recommended!

This is a great value package of a set of timeless films. The prints are by far the best which have ever been available. All superlatives apply but here a some individual comments:

- Ruby Keeler's ingenue roles are hardly demanding of superior acting abilities. However, it must be noted how quickly she improved. By "Footlight Parade", the third in the series, she plays with tongue firmly in cheek and with a humour rarely acknowledged. She is charming and competent. Her dancing has improved too. Note that when she has a chance, however small, to dance other than the heavy tap in which she specialised, she is much lighter of foot than given credit. Watch her skip along the train in "Shuffle off to Buffalo" or sway at the beginning of "Shadow Waltz".
- "Footlight Parade" probably has the best overall script. Joan Blondell was always outstanding and her rapport with Cagney is superb. They made many films together and they are a beautifully balanced team, he all bluster and energy, she more subdued, sarcastic but loving.
- All the supporting casts are brilliant but Aline MacMahon in "Golddiggers of 33", Guy Kibbee in both "42nd Street" and "Golddiggers of 33" and Ruth Donnelly in "Footlight Parade" are particularly worth noting.
- In "Forty Second Street", both Warner Baxter and Bebe Daniels, two of the most experienced star film actors in the whole series, give powerful and moving performances. This film has a tough urgent mood which has not dated.
- The effect of the Production Code is noticeable. While the scripts of the first 3 films would survive on their own, the later films have all the ideas but none of the bite. Note, how funny Hugh Herbert is in "Footlight Parade", pre-code, and how irritating he is in "Dames", post-code. Also, in "Dames", Joan Blondell's golddigger has lost her sense of humour. She is venal but lacks the warmth and humour of the earlier films.
- "The Lady in Red" number from "In Caliente" shows the influence of the Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers films, even to the inclusion of the irritating presence of Edward Everett Horton. The ballroom dancing is excellent but Judy Canova is awful.
- Wini Shaw has a marvellous torchy voice and a sexy presence. Her renditions of "Lullaby of Broadway" and "The Lady in Red" are memorable.
- Most of the songs benefit from superb orchestrations and it is extraordinary that with so many choruses, none of the songs become repetitive and tedious. The output of Warren and Dubin produced so many hits, one after the other - personal favourite "I only have eyes for You".
- The Warner Brothers cartoons attached to individual songs are marvellous examples of 30s animation. It would be interesting to see the reaction of young children today to these delightful creations.
- The commentaries, while split between the individual films, provide a suitable context for the films, particularly with the rise of Roosevelt and the New Deal. They are interesting enough but most are rather "wet" and one reviewer is very camp in the worst sense - completely over the top. If you listen, you will realise he actually doesn't tell you anything!

Do yourself a favour and purchase this set as soon as possible.

On hearing that Warner Bros was to issue a set of Busby berkeley films, I ensured my DVD player was rendered region-free and then I waited. It was a dream finally come true. Having been entranced by Berkeley's films since childhood I could hardly wait for the box to arrive. Oh joy! The quality of the DVDs is wonderful and the added extras are very generous indeed, if some of these extras are not to one's taste, then fair enough, but the vintage material is absolutely fascinating and cleaned up to match the quality of the main feature.

It is a shame that the Al Jolson number was removed from the compilation disc because it was not intended to be racially offensive when it was produced, but today's political correctness lobby inevitably takes its toll. That said, we are left with a plethora of magnificence from Busby Berkeley which gladdens the heart and which left me euphoric because the quality of the release exceeded my expectations. Thank you Warner Bros for the TLC you have lavished on this set, and you, dear reader, if you have not experienced the work of this great director before, I urge you please, please consider buying it - I can guarantee you will not be disappointed. This was Hollywood's Golden Age, so now you have the chance to experience it, PLEASE don't miss out!

To paraphrase one of the commentators in this fabulous DVD box set, Busby Berkeley did not just free the camera, he gave it legs, he gave it wings and in so doing, Berkeley changed movies forever.
The proof is in the five films that comprise this set (actually only one was directed by Berkeley, but he coreographed them all). The dance productions are amazing. Over 70 years later with all the technological advances that have come to movies, Berkeley's feats are still jaw dropping. Many required the type of geo metric precision and planning that seemingly only a mathematical genius could conceive. Most had to have been inspired by one of the most imaginative and bizarre minds to conjure a movie scene. All took patience, time and a fervent desire to dazzle film audience. All were wildly successful.
Dancing pianos, precision swimming to music by a bevy of dancing beauties, dancers in the dark playing light violins...oh why bother trying to explain. Berkeley productions were meant to be seen, not read about.
If Berkeley was the king of the production number (and he was ) then Warner Brothers is the king of the classic film box set (and they are). Each DVD comes with an originally made 15 minute featurette with film historians, critics and directors lovingly discussing the movie and Berkeley's work. There are also vintage cartoons and shorts with each movie. A sixth DVD is added with some of Berkeley's best numbers, a few from films not included in this set.
And speaking of the films in this set, there are some beauties here.
"Gold Diggers of 1933" is the highlight. A pre code classic, the original Gold Diggers holds up as everything from great entertainment to social commentary. Dick Powell (who shows up in all five movies), the wonderful Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler and Guy Kibbee are in the cast. Also included are comic actress Aline MacMahaon, Warren William and Ginger Rogers, pre Fred. From "We're in the Money" at the start of the film (with Ginger even singing the lyrics in pig latin) through the dramatic closing number "Remember My Forgotten Man" this is a fast-paced, hilarious, socially aware dancing extravaganza (how many movies can boast that trifecta?).
"Footlight Parade" is another great film, starring as it does James Cagney, a hoofer from way back whose dance prowess was too seldom committed to the big screen. The usual suspects, Keeler, Kibbee, Powell, return. The risqué pre code number, "Honeymoon Hotel" is a delight (if you can put up with the repetition of lyrics) and "Shanghai Lil" is a terrific climactic number starring Cagney and Keeler. But it is Cagney and Blondell who steal the show, the latter being one of the most under appreciated stars of her time.
"Gold Diggers of 1935" is the only picture here directed by Berkeley. The lovely Gloria Stuart (better known by modern audiences for her turn in "Titanic") replaces Keeler and although not quite Keeler's equal as a dancer, she is much the more interesting actress. But the scene stealer here is Winifred Shaw in my favorite dance production on the whole set, "Lullaby of Broadway" which is an entirely separate mini story within the story of the movie.
(Plot synopsis for these movies seem somewhat superfluous, suffice to say the show must go one, love must triumph and a good time must be had by all.)
"Dames" is the weakest of the five films, as the plot contrivances are too strained and the usually enjoyable Hugh Herbert is miscast in too-large a role. But a weaker movie among these five can still be a lot of fun and "Dames" (thanks mostly to Berkeley and Blondell) is a gas.
"42nd Street" is the first of the movies chronologically and thus deserves recognition for being the first of its kind. It's a strong movie in its own right with a cast that includes, George Brent, Warner Baxter, Bebe Daniels and Una Merkel.
The title song and Daniels' rendition of "You're Getting to Be a Habit With Me," highlight the movie.
If you want terrific dancing, get the Fred and Ginger box set, but if you want dancing within lavish production numbers, this is all you need.
Busby Berkeley was an innovator, a genius, a man who made movies that were great fun to watch -- over and over again.