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Special Features
- Commentary by Ava Astaire McKenzie (Fred Astaire’s daughter) and film historian Ken Barnes with archival commentary by songwriter Johnny Mercer
- Fox Movietone News footage of the Hollywood, New York and London premieres
- Still photo gallery
- Trailers
- Collectible lobby cards
Editorial Reviews
Customer Reviews
DADDY LONG LEGS is the story of third-generation multi-millionaire Jervis Pendleton (Astaire) who, while on a good-will ambassadorial trip to France, observes and is charmed by young Julie Andre (Leslie Caron), who lost her parents during World War II and has been raised in a countryside orphanage. Jervis lavishes material support on Julie, bringing her to the U.S. and sending her to a women's college. Yet he doesn't reveal himself to Julie, who knows her benefactor only as "Daddy Long Legs." Then the two meet at a college dance, and romance--and complications--follow.
DADDY LONG LEGS was Astaire's only film for 20th Century-Fox, and the studio gave him a superb supporting cast, including Terry Moore, Fred Clark, and the peerless Thelma Ritter. The film's script is by Henry and Phoebe Ephron, parents of today's famous writer/director Nora Ephron (SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, YOU'VE GOT MAIL). The script is witty and tender and features two wonderfully developed central characters, who are brought to life beautifully by Astaire and Caron. This was (sadly) the last musical in which Caron showed her dancing talents, but she also shows here the abundant acting talent that has sustained her career to the present day. And Astaire, too, displays the outstanding acting abilities that were unfortunately always overshadowed by his status as the screen's leading male dancer.
Good as the rest of the movie is, it's the musical portions that really lift DADDY LONG LEGS to the heights. First, there are two lavish ballet sequences choreographed by Caron's dance mentor, Roland Petit. The second features a distraught Caron searching for Astaire in settings representing Paris, Hong Kong and Rio. Caron's abilities are on excllent display here (although I leave to dance critics the question of the sequence's actual artistic merit). The other dance sequence is an amusing and colorful daydream showing Caron's musings about who her benefactor might be: a Texas millionaire, an international playboy, or her guardian angel. The "angel" segment is particularly outstanding, featuring excellent dancing, a lavish setting, and the bravura orchestral accompaniment of Alfred Newman and the 20th Century-Fox orchestra.
Even more satisfying than the ballets, though, are Astaire and Caron's "popular" dance duets, the romantic "Something's Gotta Give" and the college dance ensemble, "The Sluefoot." The two dancers make a marvelous pair, and their work together conveys much of the same exhiliration and joy that Astaire helped create during those legendary 1930s dances with Rogers. And adding to the magic of both numbers are Johnny Mercer's excellent songs--"Something's Gotta Give" has, of course, become a "standard," while "The Sluefoot" features an amusing lyric full of Mercer's distinctive vernacular wordplay. In addition, the film also makes excellent use of Mercer's beautiful ballad "Dream," which had actually been written as a pop tune ten years earlier.
As other reviewers have noted, DADDY LONG LEGS has a long running time, over two hours. But I enjoy every magical moment of a film that is certainly one of Astaire's best.
Jervis Pendleton III (Fred Astaire) is a rich playboy with little care for the outside world. On a business trip to Paris, he encounters Julie Andre (Leslie Caron) an enchanting 18-year-old orphan. Determined to see her succeed, he sends her to a college in America.
Leslie Caron looks beautiful and Fred Astaire is suave and charming. The score features the hit song "Something's Gotta Give" as well as the infectious dance number "Slue-Foot". Roland Petit and his ballet company staged the several striking dream sequences (they also contributed the ballet sequences in the Leslie Caron vehicle THE GLASS SLIPPER, and Caron was a pupil of Petit's).
Also featuring Fred Clark, Thelma Ritter, Terry Moore, Kathleen Giveny and Ray Anthony's orchestra.
The new DVD from the Fox 'Marquee Musicals' series includes a few great extras, including an informative (if rather dry) audio commentary from historian Ken Barnes and Ava Astaire McKenzie (Fred's daughter); MovieTone news segments, rare footage from the London premiere, galleries, and trailers.
Jervis Pendleton III (Fred Astaire), a rich, charming, middle-aged American businessman from a mainline family of inherited wealth, comes across an orphanage in France while on a high-level government-sponsored trip to Paris. By chance he sees a young woman taking care of the orphans and is charmed by her vitality and simplicity. The girl, he learns, is 18 years old and is called Julie Andre (Leslie Caron). She is an orphan, too. When he realizes her future is probably to age into eventually running the orphanage herself or to marry a chubby French farmer, he takes steps to whisk her to America, enroll her in exclusive Walston College and see to it that she has every advantage. All this he does anonymously. Then he forgets about her. His assistant, Griggs (Fred Clark) and Griggs' assistant, Alicia Pritchard (Thelma Ritter), keep track of Julie, monitor her progress and file the letters she writes to her anonymous benefactor, whom she has come to call Daddy Long Legs. Eventually, the two meet. Jervis realizes he loves Julie. Julie realizes she loves Jervis and that he had been her benefactor. After a few misunderstandings are cleared up, they dance away together to the strains of Johnny Mercer's "Dream."
Why is this movie, for me, so unsatisfying? First, the age difference is noticeable. Astaire was 56 when he made the movie; Caron was 24. Well, Astaire was 58 when he made Funny Face with Audrey Hepburn. She was 28, but the disparity there wasn't so apparent. With Daddy Long Legs, I think it's because Caron, at this point in her career, wasn't a very good actress. She seems unformed, both as an actress and as a person. To show excitement, she simply shakes her hands and cries, "Ooo la la!." Playing against a man 32 years older than she, she just seems too malleable for comfort. Second, Astaire was a great dance stylist, but ballet-influenced routines never showed him at his best. Caron was a competent ballet dancer and there are two long ballet sequences for her, one involving Astaire, to show her off. They were choreographed by Roland Petit to suit her strengths. In my opinion, they're journeyman works. When paired with Astaire for two dances, Caron seems stiff and sometimes looks like she's concentrating on what she's doing. They just don't make a good match. Third, the movie is long, over two hours. Much of the time is spent with Julie Andre. Once Andre's character and situation are established, however, there's not much to keep us involved with her.
And why is this movie worth looking at? Well, first, Astaire is a joy to watch even if he's just walking down the street. He has three good dance routines. "History of the Beat" is a fast tap number that also shows his skill at the drums, not to mention with drum sticks. He can make drumsticks do things in a dance that most dancers can't do with their feet. Then there's "Sluefoot," a jitterbug number at the college dance. It's satisfying to see the old smoothie show the youngsters how things are really done. And there's "Something's Gotta Give," a romantic, graceful dance number, sung by Astaire and then performed with Caron. If it's not at the level of "I'm Old Fashioned," which he did with Rita Hayworth more than a decade earlier, it'll do. Second, there are the songs written by Johnny Mercer. They're smart, hip and easy to listen to. One, "Something's Gotta Give," hit the charts and became a classic. A great song Mercer wrote earlier, "Dream," drifts in and out of the movie like a wisp of sleepy romance. Third, Astaire is backed by two great Hollywood character actors, Fred Clark as his exasperated right-hand man and Thelma Ritter as the tough talking secretary who finally takes things in hand.
All in all, Daddy Long Legs has a number of good things. After watching the movie once, however, I think you're going to want to use the fast-forward button to get to them. The DVD features an excellent picture and audio. The most significant extra is a film commentary which includes Astaire's daughter and archival commentary by Mercer.
The story based on Jean Webster's novel is lovely. Read more
