Review of Top Hat (1935) by Antonius B — 25 Aug 2018

Fred Astaire is a fantastic dancer, sure, so light on his feet and making difficult moves look easy, but he's also an engaging as an actor. With his slicked back hair and those sly eyes, his interest and wooing of Ginger Rogers is charming. He's also smooth as he breaks out into several songs from the fantastic score by Irving Berlin, including 'Cheek to Cheek' ("Heaven...I'm in heaven...") and 'Top Hat, White Tie and Tails' ("I'm...puttin' on my top hat...tyin' up my white tie..."). It's such an iconic moment when the men's chorus momentarily disappears in the latter number, and the lights dim while Astaire dances solo; it's as if we're seeing a genius creating something out of nothing. I think my favorite performance was Ginger echoing Fred's moves in 'Isn't This a Lovely Day (To Be Caught in the Rain)?' She is something special as well, with as great a timing in the delivery of her lines as the timing in her dance moves, which she often performed in heels, a cumbersome dress, and needing to go backwards more often.

While the film revolves around the music and Fred and Ginger's dancing, the supporting cast is quite entertaining as well, particularly Edward Everett Horton (Astaire's producer), Eric Blore (Horton's manservant), and Helen Broderick (Horton's wife). The premise is that Rogers thinks Astaire is the one married to Broderick, which, while silly, creates a number of humorous moments between the various characters. Blore is delightful in his cheeky role, and sometimes seems to be at the center of it all.

There is little to find fault in the film; maybe the fact that 'Venice' looks like it's straight out of Las Vegas? Maybe that under the production code, some of the edge is sanded down? I don't know. For the musical genre, this is a landmark film, and I almost feel guilty not giving it an even higher score. There were certainly transcendent moments for me in the dancing; it was as if I was watching perfection, two people so supremely skilled and alive that it was if they never could have possibly aged, or been broken down by time. Perhaps with this film, we can imagine that they never really were.