Young Man with a Horn (1950)

Excellent but underrated film

An Exercise In Nonsense

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

With such blazing source material, a great director like Michael Curtiz (whose 'Casablanca' and 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' are two of my favourite films) and talent like Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall and Doris Day, as well as being based on an interesting man and life, 'Young Man with a Horn' had so much going for it.On the most part too, 'Young Man with a Horn' lives up to its vast potential. The only glaring fault is the ending, which felt rushed, far too syrupy and tacked on, considering the sordid and sleazy nature of the rest of the film it really jarred and quite badly. Some may be disappointed at the biographical sections being fictional (then again biopics are rarely accurate) and that the tone of the source material is softened.'Young Man with a Horn' does more right than it does wrong. It looks wonderful, with a stylish visual look with inspired film noir-ish touches. Curtiz allows atmosphere and emotional power to come through, and come through they do. The music is one of 'Young Man with a Horn's' best assets, being a singer and cellist this component has always been important to me and is always mentioned in my reviews. Not just the superb playing of Harry James, but some great songs sung by Doris Day that are also beautifully staged. "The Very Thought of You", "Too Marvellous for Words", "I May be Wrong" and "With a Song in my Heart", all terrific, as are the arrangements of "The Man I Love" and "Get Happy".The film is intelligently scripted without getting over-heated and never feels bland. The story is absorbing and enough of the sordid and sleazy nature comes through as well as the emotional power.Kirk Douglas is outstanding in the lead role, particularly in the tormented scenes. Lauren Bacall also excels as does a cast against type Doris Day. Hoagy Carmichael is smooth and warm-hearted and Juano Hernandez gives his role great dignity.All in all, very powerful even when softened in comparison to what it's based on. 8/10 Bethany Cox

There is so much one can write about when a movie is bad, or flawed, or poorly acted, or has a contrived story, lack of continuity, no feeling, or shallow, superficial, or without any artistic value. In this case, there is little to say, so excellent is this movie. This movie warrants only superlatives, in all aspects of its production: from the production, to the direction, to the story, to the cinematography and to the acting. All those elements combined to produce a masterpiece. The movie is about life, and about people living that life. People who are vulnerable, flawed but caring. Nothing in the story is corny or contrived. It's about working class people in a working class society who want to achieve, to do something, be something, and above all to live and make a difference. This movie features Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall, Doris Day, and Hoagy Carmichael. All delivery outstanding performances. The music is great and figures directly in the story. But most significant is the horn. To find out why, watch the movie.

On the whole, an excellent film. Kirk Douglas is a great leading man - he can read the phone book for an hour and go through a range of emotions. Doris Day played her role very well - a flawless performance. Lauren Bacall was perfect as the screwed up man eater. Hoagy Charmichael served as the narrator, bridging the stages of the story while playing Rick's best friend. The direction, the sets - Bacall's lavish apartment, the hotel bar, the African American church, the nightclubs.....all were unforgettable. The movie moved steadily along and got you involved. Douglas looked like he was actually playing he trumpet.It was so refreshing to see a black actor in a major role - as Rick's mentor. Also, the many black actors in the band and in the church - there were absolutely no stereotypes, as blacks were often depicted in a negative light at this time. The scene where it is revealed that Bacall's character is bisexual was very daring in 1950.The film could have been much better, however. The ending was rushed - more time should have been spent showing Rick's descent into alcoholism - instead, it was like he woke up one day and was a washed up alcoholic wandering the streets. Douglas should have been given the opportunity to depict all the heartache of gradually slipping into the hell he was in. He did a very good job, however, with what time he had - like I said, it was rushed. The ending was resolved as if by magic - it actually tarnished the entire film.

Kirk Douglas is a "Young Man with a Horn" in this 1950 film that supposedly is based on the life of Bix Biederbeck. It is highly fictionalized, and while very good for what it is, it doesn't really tell us much about Bix or jazz, though Harry James on the trumpet dubbing for Douglas is fantastic. The film also stars Hoagy Carmichael (who narrates as well), Doris Day as a band singer, and Lauren Bacall as the woman that Douglas falls for.Douglas is Rick Martin. As a child, he is sent to live with his sister, who ignores him, so that Rick is off on his own most of the time. He discovers music and becomes interested in the trumpet. He turns out to be supremely gifted and ends up connected to the great jazz trumpet player of the day, Art Hazzard (Juano Hernandez) who teaches and mentors him. Rick becomes famous and respected, and all goes well until he falls madly in love with a psychiatric student Amy North (Bacall) though a better choice for him might be the understanding band singer (Doris Day). Once in love with Amy, Rick loses his focus.I really enjoyed this film but I had a few problems with it. First of all, what year was this supposed to be set in? Before jazz, there was dixieland and the predominant black influence, yet we don't really see Rick listening to dixieland or becoming involved with it. The jazz in the film is the big band jazz that my dad listened to.Secondly, and here is the real problem, is the script. This purports to be the story of a man who is so emotionally damaged and so isolated and torn up inside that he can only express himself through the trumpet. Anyone get the impression that Kirk Douglas could only express himself through the trumpet? He seemed pretty chatty, charming, in touch with his anger, and passionate to me. I'm not blaming Douglas. He gives a terrific, honest performance of the script he was given. But the situations and dialogue have nothing to do with how the character is actually described in the film. Had the script been more reflective of the character, an actor who was more in his own head could have been cast - actually, someone like Montgomery Clift. Or don't describe him that way in the narration and in everyone's lines.A final word on probably the best performance in the film, that of Juano Hernandez as Art Hazzard. Hernandez is underrated and a footnote in Hollywood history, but a darned important one - his work paved the way for actors like Sidney Poitier. Here he gives a dignified, strong performance. A wonderful actor well worth seeking out in other roles.Doris Day is lovely and sings like an angel; Lauren Bacall, in an unusual role for her, does a good job as a cold woman who, in modern sensibility anyway, seems like she may have been gay. She doesn't like her husband touching her and she's ready to go to Europe with some woman she just met, so you tell me. The easygoing Hoagy Carmichael adds his smooth style to the proceedings.The music is heavenly in this film, and the story is interesting with excellent performances. In spite of some of my misgivings, this is well worth seeing.