7.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Julian Marsh, a sucessful Broadway director, produces a new show, despite of his poor health. The money comes from a rich old man, who is in love with the star of the show, Dorothy Brock. But she doesn't return his love, because she is still in love with her old partner. The night before the premiere, Dorothy breaks her ankle, and a chorus girl, Peggy Sawyer tries to take her place.
Starring: Warner Baxter, Bebe Daniels, George Brent, Ruby Keeler, Guy KibbeeRomance | 100% |
Musical | 47% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
The 1933 classic 42nd Street isn't the first movie musical, but it contains the seeds of so many to follow that it feels like it should be. When you consider how many musicals, especially on film, have been built around the backstage drama of putting on a show, from Kiss Me Kate to The Bandwagon to All That Jazz, it's evident that the model built by director Lloyd Bacon, choreographer Busby Berkeley and writers Rian James and James Seymour provided a sturdy foundation. In a taut 89 minutes, 42nd Street juggles numerous characters, tells multiple stories and dazzles the eye without ever feeling stage-bound. At the same time, the film gives viewers the illusion of being let in on a secret world behind the curtains where magic is created out of lust, doubt and neurosis. Nothing is more certain to titillate an audience than unmasking glamorous entertainers as neurotics, harpies and the basest of scum. Warner Bros. released 42nd Street at a time when the movie musical had been pronounced dead, but reports of its death were grossly exaggerated. The film was a surprise hit and was credited with saving the studio from financial disaster. In an unusually long case of delay, no one tried to adapt it for a live Broadway version until 1980, when the show won the Tony Award for Best Musical. A subsequent 2001 production won the award for Best Revival.
42nd Street was shot by Sol Polito (Sergeant York), one of Warner's go-to cinematographers during the studio's classic years. The film has been impressively restored under the auspices of the Warner Archive Collection ("WAC") for this 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray presentation. The Blu-ray image is sharp and detailed, with a fine and natural grain pattern and just a light degree of flickering to betray the age of the elements, which are otherwise in fine condition. The deep blacks, excellent contrast and well-delineated shades of gray provide a sense of depth and dimensionality that is essential for the film's many scenes involving large crowds, whether it's the mass audition (a clear inspiration for All That Jazz) or the elaborately choreographed numbers from the show-within-a-show. Consistent with their usual practice, WAC has mastered 42nd Street with an average bitrate of 35.00. The generous bandwidth ensures that none of the precious detail in the inventive set design or the ornate costumes is lost, blurred or distorted, and that no artifacts interfere with anyone's viewing enjoyment.
The film's original mono track has been encoded in lossless DTS-HD MA 2.0, with identical left and right channels. It sounds very good for a track of this vintage, with no interference or distortion. Only the compressed dynamic range betrays the age of the recording. The dialogue is clear, and the musical accompaniment has the nostalgic tonal quality of old phonograph records. The songs are by Al Dubin and Harry Warren, who would later win an Oscar for "Lullaby of Broadway" in the Busby Berkeley-directed Gold Diggers of 1935 .
Warner released 42nd Street on DVD in March 2006 both separately and in a box set with four films choreographed or directed by Berkeley in The Busby Berkeley Collection. The Blu-ray extras have been assembled from the various discs in that collection.
Even though Busby Berkeley's dance numbers occupy a relatively small portion of the film's running time, they so dominate 42nd Street that many viewers mistakenly believe Berkeley directed the entire production. But there's a lot more to the film, including the rapid-fire exchange of snappy insults among the chorus members, Dick Powell's gentle underplaying as the shy Billy Lawler and the wistful dialogue between Bebe Daniels and George Brent as former partners who can't figure out how to reconcile their careers with true love. That kind of densely layered plotting and concise exposition requires a firm directorial hand, which is why Lloyd Bacon deserves at least as much credit as Berkeley for the film's enduring charm. WAC has done their usual fine work on the Blu-ray. Highly recommended.
1936
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Warner Archive Collection
1933
1953
Limited Edition to 3000
1943
Warner Archive Collection
1971
1937
1941
Limited Edition
1943
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1941
Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
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70th Anniversary Edition
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Warner Archive Collection
1951