Words and Music *** (1948, Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Tom Drake, June Allyson, Janet Leigh, Betty Garrett, Ann Sothern, Perry Como) – Classic Movie Review 3622

Director Norman Taurog’s 1948 movie is a fictionalised musical bioipc, very loosely based on the creative partnership of the composer Richard Rodgers (Tom Drake) and lyricist Lorenz Hart (Mickey Rooney). A lavish showcasing of the Rodgers and Hart catalogue of songs, it also stars Janet Leigh, Betty Garrett and Ann Sothern. It is the final screen pairing of Rooney and Judy Garland.

Drake and Rooney star appealingly as the renowned popular musicals songsmiths Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in this fairly smart MGM biography that is more of an entertainment than an exposé. It is a case of silly words and wonderful music, highlighted by Gene Kelly’s dancing in the George Ballanchine ballet ‘Slaughter on Tenth Avenue’ from the all-time great show On Your Toes. Many of the all-time great musical performers are seen at around their best here.

The script sanitizes Hart’s psychological problems and self-destructive behaviour, which led to the break-up of the writing partnership and avoids mention of Hart’s homosexuality. Instead, the story details Hart’s failed love for Peggy McNeil (Betty Garrett) and his unhappiness, and by contrast Rodgers’s successful wooing of Dorothy Feiner (Janet Leigh).

Also in the cast are Perry Como, Mel Tormé, June Allyson, Lena Horne, Ann Sothern, Allyn Ann McLerie, Vera-Ellen, Cyd Charisse, Marshall Thompson, Jeanette Nolan, Richard Quine, Clinton Sundberg, Dee Turnell, Edward Earle, Harry Antrim, Ilke Gruning, Emory Parnell, Irving Bacon and Helen Spring.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3622
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