Review of Brigadoon (1954) by Rosco B — 20 Jan 2009

It's not just cos I'm Scottish, honest; isn't this just a really difficult movie to dislike? Of course it's hard to hate anything with Gene Kelly (and his mile-wide grin) in it, except maybe "Viva Knievel".

Even so, this Minnelli treat falls a little short of Kelly's cast-iron classics, such as Minnelli's own masterpiece; "An American in Paris", or the eternally charming ode to early-Hollywood; "Singin' In The Rain". However, there is still much to enjoy. Two amazing-looking and preposterously talented leads (Kelly and Cyd Charisse- who's world-reknowned pins are sadly under wraps for the majority), classy numbers: "It's Almost Like Being in Love", "Bonnie Jean", possibly the best musical/chase scene ever filmed, and an alky sidekick who has some ace one-liners and looks like an hilariously uncanny but family-sized version of one of the guys I work with. I'd wager Brigadoon could even bring a smile to Monty Burns' cheeks. Though considered a flop at the time, posessing a supremely far-fetched story and supposedly hindered by budgetry constraints (Kelly was keen to film on location in Scotland- but the painted backdrops add an otherworldliness to the proceedings), "Brigadoon" is an enjoyable experience. Kelly and Charisse's "Heather on The Hill" scene is up there with the best of MGM.

"Brigadoon" is so bloody uplifting, me and my girlfriend watched it to cheer ourselves up after going to see the absolute balderdash that was "The Killing of John Lennon". Our cinematic blues vanished in the mist! Alas, it's a shame that two of the stars; Van Johnson and Charisse, passed away recently.