Lovely to Look At (1952)

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Although one can certainly argue that any Technicolor musical featuring Red Skelton and Ann Miller in the cast can't be all bad, this remake of 1935's "Roberta" would surely stand as proof they can't be all good, either. Three bachelor showmen on Broadway--struggling to get funding for their latest musical comedy--instead fly to Paris when one of the men inherits part-ownership in a haute couture fashion salon. The thin plot, derived from Dorothy Fields' and Otto Harbuch's play via Alice Duer Miller's book "Gowns by Roberta", is a wheeze that eventually turns its own characters into fools. Kathryn Grayson keeps rejecting the sweetly-dreamy romantic overtures by Red Skelton to save herself for Howard Keel (she only seems to love Keel because he's strict with her--that old routine that all women love a good chase). Skelton, the comic of the bunch who longs for a white cottage with green shutters and six kids, is turned down so many times that he begins to seem a bit soft in the head (and Grayson comes off as a hard little number, without a trace of a jovial nature). It takes no-nonsense showgirl Ann Miller to cool green-eyed Grayson's jets (in the film's best scene), but there's no conviction in this plot. The men and women pair up romantically by design, not by cleverness (Skelton and Miller, both dejected, predictably turn to each other). The notion of three heterosexual men infiltrating a business run by women isn't given much attention, mainly because the filmmakers are only too eager to transform the whole picture into a fashion show by the film's final third. The Jerome Kern songs are retained, and there's a funny bit involving a faulty elevator, but otherwise this costume-vehicle isn't 'Lovely' so much as it is lacking. ** from ****

'Roberta' with Irene Dunne, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers wasn't immune to flaws (Randolph Scott, lacking story execution), but on the whole it is a much better film, especially for the songs and their timeless renditions, production values, the choreography and the rest of the cast being used to great advantage.'Lovely to Look At' certainly is lovely to look at, being filmed in absolutely glorious Technicolor and boasting opulent costume and set design. Jerome Kern's songs are as timeless as ever, "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is one of his classics though "I Won't Dance" and "I'll Be Hard to Handle" are the standout renditions of the film. They are accompanied by choreography that's witty and poised, again the delightfully charming "I Won't Dance" and Ann Miller's knockout performance of "I'll Be Hard to Handle".Despite garnering a reasonably mixed reaction, the fashion show is sheer visual beauty and is where the energy and interest is most apparent. Some of the cast disappoint, but Marge and Gower Champion have a field day and triumph in "I Won't Dance". Ann Miller was a scene stealer in many of her films and anybody who loves her will in no way be disappointed by her enviously energetic and poised dancing in "I'll Be Hard to Handle". It has to be admitted too, that Howard Keel does sing sublimely, he is a tender singing partner in the title song and fares even better in "You're Devastating".On the other hand, this cannot be said for the rest of the cast. Kathryn Grayson is not at her best, pouting her way through her role and she has been in better voice, sometimes very nice but at other times shrill and fatigued. As wonderful as Keel sounds, he is unusually stiff here and he and Grayson don't seem to share much chemistry together so some of their longer scenes border on the tedious.Then there is Red Skelton (who always was a take or leave performer), who mugs embarrassingly and comes over as irritating, and Zsa Zsa Gabor whose performance generally lacks charisma and sass in a role that gives her little to do.Much of the story is contrived and tedious, with flashes of greatness in two or three song renditions and the fashion show but falling flat especially in the scenes between Keel and Grayson. The script lacks the light-hearted touch that worked so well in 'Roberta', as well as its warm heart and wit, disadvantaged by the comedy falling so flat particularly with Skelton and the performances of the cast varying so wildly. Mervyn LeRoy directs quite sluggishly on the whole.In conclusion, lovely to look at but to see this talented crew on better form look elsewhere. 5/10 Bethany Cox

While I have to agree with many of the points made in the preceding reviews (and I'm surprised there are so many) no one has pointed out one of the main attractions of LOVELY TO LOOK AT; it is simply one of the most beautiful Technicolor films ever made.Once upon a pre-home-video time this was one of the legendary vanished films of my youth. So (some years ago) I jumped at the chance to see a rare revival of it at the late, much lamented Regency in New York when it was screened as part of a Jerome Kern film retrospective.The Regency must have unearthed an original Technicolor print because the film was even more stunning visually than I remembered. The deep blues in the Champions' "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" number, the infernal reds in their "Yesterdays" sequence in the fashion show, the misty pastels in Keel and Grayson's dawn ride in the Bois de Bologna, the gilded primitif look of Miller's "Hard To Handle" nightclub act…..These are among the most stunning Technicolor sequences ever shot.MGM Technicolor seemed to peak in the late 40s and early 50s (prior, I might add to the industry-wide conversion to inferior but cheaper Eastman color). MGM films such as HOLIDAY IN Mexico (1946) and THE PIRATE (1948) through LOVELY and SCARAMOUCHE (both 1952) brought the art of color cinematography to a peak it was never to equal again.Musically LOVELY is stunning too, with it vintage Jerome Kern score, beautifully arranged (mostly) by Leo Arnaud. The modernistic, sometimes jazz-tinged orchestrations are brilliant, especially in the fashion show instrumentals. (Listen again to the "Yesterdays" arrangement here, if the smoldering reds behind the Champions do not blow you away).And Kathryn Grayson's rendition of the classic "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is one of the highlights of her career.Rhino recently released the full soundtrack in stereo, a CD worth pursuing for those with an interest in vintage musicals and arrangements.Both musically and visually LOVELY TO LOOK AT defines'50s Populuxe. It will take a super DVD release to reveal both the visual and aural riches of this flawed under-rated classic.Grayson and Keel allegedly both loathed this film, but everyone in it is also at their peak of '50s attractiveness. The plot is secondary, and there are emphatic lapses such as Red Skelton's routine about mid-film when director Mervyn Leroy, in a rather shocking sequence for MGM, apparently just let the camera roll because Skelton was on one.The Tuesday matinée series at the Los Angeles Museum of Art has LOVELY TO LOOK AT scheduled for screening in Dec. By fortuitous coincidence one of the most gorgeous Technicolor musicals is followed (the next week) by one of the most beautiful BxW musicals ever made, Lubitch's 193 THE MERRY WIDOW.I only hope LACMA gets a print comparable to the one I saw at the Regency in New York so many moons ago! (Did anyone mention Vincente Minnelli guest-directed the fashion show finale?)

This could have been much better. Terrific cast, however Red Skelton (one of my favorites, usually) isn't in good form (but Ann Miller's form is terrific), Howard Keel is lackluster, and Zsa-Zsa is YOUNG! However blah the plot and acting are, I can highly recommend this picture on the basis of 3 dance routines by Marge & Gower Champion, two of which are unique. The first takes place among clothes racks, utilizing a wheeled dress-sizer. Take a long look at the dance... there are no cuts! IT IS ALL ONE TAKE! The last dance is near the end of the film, where jewel-thief Gower tries to take a diamond bracelet from mannekin Marge. Superb choreography in both routines! I gave it an 8 out of 10.