HIGH SOCIETY
A Film Review by James Berardinelli
RATING: ***1/2 OUT OF ****
United States, 1956 Running Length: 1:47 MPAA Classification: Not Rated (Nothing offensive) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 2:1
Cast: Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Celeste Holm, John Lund, Louis Calhern, Sidney Blackmer, Louis Armstrong Director: Charles Walters Producer: Sol C. Siegel Screenplay: John Patrick, based on the play "The Philadelphia Story" by Philip Barry Cinematography: Paul C. Vogel Music: Cole Porter U.S. Distributor: MGM
With all of the hoopla surrounding the re-release of GREASE, I decided this was a good opportunity to review one of my all-time favorite musicals. After debating between HIGH SOCIETY and SINGING IN THE RAIN, I chose the former -- not necessarily because it's better, but because it isn't as well-known (that should not in any way be confused with "obscure," which this movie certainly isn't).
HIGH SOCIETY is a remake of the popular 1940 romantic comedy THE PHILADELPHIA STORY, which starred Cary Grant as C.K. Dexter-Haven, Katharine Hepburn as Tracy Lord (a name later subtly changed and adopted by an infamous porn star), and James Stewart as Mike Connor. The plot details and character names are the same for both versions, as are some of the lines of dialogue, but there is one critical difference: HIGH SOCIETY supplants THE PHILADELPHIA STORY's excessive talkiness with nine top-notch musical numbers from Cole Porter. I'm probably one of the few critics who prefers the remake to the original, but HIGH SOCIETY is better-paced, more energetic, and generally more enjoyable. While it's true that some of the character interaction in this film isn't as pointed or witty, the musical component more than makes up for this deficiency.
HIGH SOCIETY shifts the setting from Philadephia's Main Line to Newport, Rhode Island. There, amidst the mansions of the filthy rich, we meet Tracy Lord (Grace Kelly), the quintessential ice goddess. Beautiful, haughty, and condescending, she ruthlessly discards men who don't live up to her expectations, including her philandering father (Sidney Blackmer) and her composer ex-husband, C.K. Dexter-Haven (Bing Crosby). Now, she's about to embark upon a second marriage. This time, her intended is the irreproachable and dull George Kittredge (John Lund). On hand to cover the wedding are an ace gossip reporter, Mike Connor (Frank Sinatra), and his faithful sidekick, photographer Liz Imbrie (Celeste Holm). But the pre-wedding preparations do not go smoothly. Dexter still loves Tracy, and is determined to stop the ceremony. To that end, he enlists the help of his friend, jazz great Louis Armstrong. And things get further muddled when Mike and Tracy have a brief romantic fling.
There's a lot to like about HIGH SOCIETY. The romantic elements, while heartfelt, aren't overplayed. The film's dialogue, although lacking the full punch of that in THE PHILADELPHIA STORY, is still delightful. (The best exchange is without a doubt the one between Tracy and Mike as they zip around Newport in her car, bantering about wealth, idleness, and class differences.) However, the two chief pleasures of HIGH SOCIETY are the performances, which bring life and vitality to the characters, and the music, which makes this the kind of movie that never loses its appeal.
Crosby, Sinatra, Kelly, and Armstrong are all given opportunities to sing, and they make the most out of them. Sinatra and Crosby have a fine, lively duet called "Well, Did You Evah?" while Crosby and Kelly share the spotlight for the lightly romantic "True Love." Armstrong gets the film off to a fine start with "High Society," a calypso song whose lyrics lay out the background of the story that is about to unfold. The musical highlight is without a doubt the Armstrong/Crosby duet "Now You Has Jazz," a lively tune guaranteed to get the feet tapping. Unlike many musicals of the '50s, HIGH SOCIETY does not rely on grand production numbers or carefully-choreographed song-and-dance numbers. Director Charles Walters keeps everything intentionally low- key. But, because the tunes are so well-written and the singers are so adept, there's no sense that anything is lacking.
While Bing Crosby isn't as good a Dexter as Cary Grant, the actor/singer still manages to develop a likable and sympathetic character who the audience instinctively roots for. We want him to tame the shrew, to knock the goddess off her pedestal. As Mike, Frank Sinatra brings a little more ruggedness to the role than Jimmy Stewart, who took home a Best Supporting Actor statuette for his efforts. Not surprisingly, the real scene-stealer is the luminous Grace Kelly, in her last film role (the engagement ring Tracy wears in HIGH SOCIETY is actually the engagement ring given to the actress by Prince Ranier). Kelly, whose Hollywood career was short-but-spectacular, shows here why she so dazzled and captivated the world. Kelly's interpretation of Tracy doesn't eclipse Hepburn's (for whom the role was originally written), but she nonetheless stakes her claim on the part.
HIGH SOCIETY is truly one of the great MGM musicals, and, watching it again reminded me how gimmicky and one-dimensional something like GREASE is. Sure, the Travolta/Newton-John tribute to the '50s has pizzazz and enjoyable music, but the characters and situations are much less interesting that those found in SINGING IN THE RAIN or HIGH SOCIETY. The 1950s musicals are full entertainment packages, not shallow attempts to sell soundtracks. HIGH SOCIETY doesn't just have a voice -- it has a heart and a soul as well.
Copyright 1998 James Berardinelli
- James Berardinelli e-mail: berardin@mail.cybernex.net
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