Review of Royal Wedding (1951) by Mark F — 05 Dec 2007

For some reason, this film is never named on lists of great movie musicals. For the life of me, I can't figure out why not. Almost every song is top-notch, Fred has some of his most ingenious dance numbers, including the famous dance on the ceiling, and Jane Powell has rarely been better than here, playing an innocent sophisticate.

Alan Lerner's screenplay bristles with wit, Burton Lane wrote his best, most vibrant, and most beautiful score for any Hollywood movie here, and Stanley Donen, in his second movie right before he made it big with Singin' in the Rain, keeps the whole film humming with energy.

I can't think of a more joyful way to spend 90 minutes.