Product Details

• Actors: Phil Arnold, Paul Bryar, David Burns, Cyd Charisse, Dan Dailey
• Directors: Gene Kelly
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: MGM (Warner)
• VHS Release Date: February 24, 1995
• Run Time: 101 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6301969111
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #241,569 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential video

The third collaboration between Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly, It's Always Fair Weather falls short of the classics On the Town and Singin' in the Rain, mostly due to a slow plot and middling songs by Andre Previn, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green. In a story reminiscent of On the Town, Kelly, Dan Dailey, and Michael Kidd play three GIs who return from the war vowing to stay buddies forever. When they reunite 10 years later, however, they find they have little in common, other than having given up on their dreams. Best known as the choreographer of such MGM evergreens as Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, the diminutive Kidd proves adept at kicking up his heels in front of the camera. Cyd Charisse plays a scheming television producer (an unusually down-home character) and Delores Gray is the toothy TV show host. (Gray gets to sing and Charisse dances a little, though not with Kelly.) The best moments, of course, are the dance numbers Kelly choreographed, including the three GIs' trash-can-lid dance, Charisse's solo supported by a crew of boxers, and Kelly's number on roller skates, "I Like Myself," which combines some of the free spirit of "Singin' in the Rain" with the stunt footwear made famous by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in 1937's Shall We Dance. Enjoyable, but not quite a classic. --David Horiuchi

Amazon.com

The third collaboration between Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly, It's Always Fair Weather falls short of the classics On the Town and Singin' in the Rain, mostly due to a slow plot and middling songs by Andre Previn, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green. In a story reminiscent of On the Town, Kelly, Dan Dailey, and Michael Kidd play three GIs who return from the war vowing to stay buddies forever. When they reunite 10 years later, however, they find they have little in common, other than having given up on their dreams. Best known as the choreographer of such MGM evergreens as Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, the diminutive Kidd proves adept at kicking up his heels in front of the camera. Cyd Charisse plays a scheming television producer (an unusually down-home character) and Delores Gray is the toothy TV show host. (Gray gets to sing and Charisse dances a little, though not with Kelly.) The best moments, of course, are the dance numbers Kelly choreographed, including the three GIs' trash-can-lid dance, Charisse's solo supported by a crew of boxers, and Kelly's number on roller skates, "I Like Myself," which combines some of the free spirit of "Singin' in the Rain" with the stunt footwear made famous by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in 1937's Shall We Dance. Unfortunately, the pan-and-scan format spoils the film's wide CinemaScope presentation, often fitting only two of the three characters on the screen. Enjoyable, but not quite a classic. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gene Kelly Is Love On Two Feet!, April 4, 2003

By 

Edward M. Erdelac (Valley Village, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: It's Always Fair Weather [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Standout production about three inseperable Army buddies with big plans who on their last drunken night together after World War II vow to reunite ten years later...and can't stand each other when they do.

This really is an overlooked diamond which deserves among all others the DVD treatment for its wonderful use of 2:35:1. There is one scene which particularly suffers from the pan and scan - the musical number in which the three pals sing and dance on a tri-split screen (each thinking the same thing about the others - `Once Upon A Time I Had Two Friends...' is the song). Compositions are great all around, though. Jazzy, upbeat musical numbers and some of the greatest dance steps Gene Kelly ever pulled off (the stellar one on the roller skates `I Like Myself' which is seen briefly by Jean Reno in THE PROFESSIONAL, and a great set in the beginning where the GI's tap dance with trash can lids on their feet are particularly amazing). Cyd Charrise kicks it up with a gym full of pugs in `Baby, You Knock Me Out' and Dolores Grey for my money gives the best performance in the awesome `Thanks A Lot But No Thanks,' alternately dynamiting and gunning down her suitors...it cracks me up every time.

And the story is smart and sweet too, touching on the endurance of real friendship, the benefit of hindsight, and the healing effects of true love. Granted, like a good horse it tends to sag a little in the middle, but it comes back kicking in the end. This one is a real classic. I love it too much to give it less than four stars, but it loses one for the pan and scan.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the best musicals of the 1950's, September 23, 2001

By 

Elizabeth A. Navarro (Long Beach, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: It's Always Fair Weather [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Besides Singin' in the Rain and 7 Brides for 7 Brothers (which always get good reviews), this is a forgotten gem. I like the movie because there is some cynicism in the characters that make their transformations that much more memorable. If you don't know the basic story line, it's about 3 guys who were the BEST of friends as war buddies, decide to meet years later, and have realized that through the passage of time...now they HATE each other. Of course, it's an MGM musical, so you should know how the ending turns out.
Gene Kelly proves again that he's not only a great dancer, but a great actor, although I do believe like the other reviews that Dan Dailey does the best acting job. Michael Kidd does a good job being the simplest of the three. And don't forget the ladies, especially Cyd Charisse--I don't think she ever does anything wrong.
2 musical sequences stand out-- one is when the 3 main characters are in 3 different locations and start singing a song and the dance choreography is the same for all of them--you see 3 different screens (so they are obviously in 3 different settings) which I think was unique in the 1950's. Just an amazing sequence that makes you realize why movies are great. And the 2nd is the Gene Kelly roller skating sequence, which I feel has a bigger emotional lift considering the circumstances in the movie than his "singin' in the rain" bit of the movie of the same title. The movie's not as good as "singin' in the rain" , but if you're looking for some great musicals that they don't make anymore, I think you'll enjoy the flick.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Phenomenal...., June 6, 2002

By 

Kaji - See all my reviews

This review is from: It's Always Fair Weather [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Absolutely phenomenal! Gene Kelly proves once again that he was THE master at what he did. In his song and dance number "I Like Myself", it's a wonder he didn't break a bone! The story is fun, the songs are great, dances are awesome... what more could you ask for? Dolores Gray's character (Madeline Bradville) made me laugh at how high maintenance she is. And yet she can hit someone over the head just as good as Michael Kidd (Angie Valentine). "Baby You Knock Me Out" is also a great song to listen for. It's one of those fun, girls could know a lot about guy stuff too. I strongly recommend everyone who is or isn't a Gene Kelly fan to watch this. If you don't know who he is, this movie and "Singin' in the Rain" are a good introduction to his phenomenal dance and vocal talents. It's a shame there aren't more people like him around...