evanston_dad The 1950s were a fascinating decade in film for their schizophrenia if for nothing else. Exhibit A: the same year, 1955, produced both "Kiss Me Deadly" and this dull musical that has no reason for existence.I'm not opposed to musicals by any means. The year before had produced "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" and the same year produced "Oklahoma!", two of the most joyous movies I've ever seen. But there is just nothing going on in "It's Always Fair Weather" to keep a modern day viewer engaged. I suppose to audiences at the time, the theme of buddies who bonded during war but find that they have little in common off the battlefield inspired a certain melancholy nostalgia that gave this film some power. But without that there's not really even a reason to watch this. If you want Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse, go watch "Singin' in the Rain" or "The Band Wagon" instead.Unbelievably, "It's Always Fair Weather" brought Betty Comden and Adolph Green an Oscar nomination for their wisp of a screenplay, and Andre Previn received a nomination for his musical scoring.Grade: D+

Andy Howlett We've been fans of MGM musicals for many years, but somehow we never got around to watching this. I'm afraid we were left wondering what went wrong, as it is a long way from MGM's best. The first half hour contains a far-too-long (and not very good) dance sequence and a lot of poor dialogue. Then the film sinks into a rather sour flavour and the second-rate song and dance routines do little to lift the mood. The stand-out segment (sadly much too short) is Kelly's 'I like Myself' on roller skates, which is a classic warm & happy MGM number with glorious, flowing music and lush orchestration. There is a happy ending, but not before a rather depressing TV show scene. I think this story would have been far better as a non-musical drama, as the bitter taste and social comment does not lend itself to the classic MGM musical style. It pains me to give MGM such a low score, but it's a 4 from me.

mmallon4 Its Always Fair Weather will go down in history as the film musical which "could have been". If It's Always Fair Weather had been made a few years earlier it could have been in the same leagues as Singin' In the Rain and On the Town but some shortcomings prevent it from being so. The movie was originally conceived as sequel to On the Town, reuniting Gene Kelly with co stars Frank Sinatra and Jules Munshin. However by 1955, Munshin no longer had box office and credibility while Sinatra was too big a star that the studio was unwilling to work with him. In their place we get Dan Dailey and Michael Kidd, both of whom get the job done but lack the chemistry Kelly's On the Town co stars possessed. Frank Sinatra in particular I find is sorely missed as I loved his three picture partnership with Kelly in which they made an excellent comedic duo. Although I find It's Always Fair Weather's biggest drawback are the sections of the film which are uneventful. The film could definitely benefit from the trimming or removal of whole scenes; there is a faster paced, snappier film in here.Yet the film does showcase some of the best moments of any MGM musical. The musical numbers themselves are fantastic, all written for the film itself, while majority of MGM musicals took their songs from back catalogues and stage musicals. The five minute opening dance number showcases the then new cinemascope format by having three dancers occupy their own third of the screen. I feel widescreen technology came too late the MGM musicals which could have used it to great advantage but by 1955 musicals had already lost most of their economic viability due to the rise of television. The soundtrack of the movie is great enough that I even bought the soundtrack. 'Once Upon a Time' is one of the most emotional numbers I've heard in any film but the centerpiece of the film is Gene Kelly's number 'I Like Myself', featuring him tap dancing on roller skates, no trickery! This is of my very favourite musical numbers of all time, his title number from 'Singin' In the Rain' may be more iconic but this is friggin' epic and an unbelievable display of talent if I ever saw it. The movie's only crime in the song and dance department is the lack of a dance number between Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse, despite one actually being filmed.The movie's other notable aspect is being one of the earliest movies to satires television and its vacuousness. This may seem hypocritical of Hollywood but unlike other Hollywood musicals, Its Always Fair Weather actually has a dark and not very uplifting story of three war buddies who are reunited ten years later to find out they can't stand each other.Despite its shortcomings I do have a lot of love for' It's Always Fair Weather', largely due to its fantastic soundtrack and simply because of its gorgeous aesthetic as seen in MGM musicals, a world of beautiful, bright colours and welcome artificiality. As a musical enthusiast, I am forgiving of the movie's flaws but others may be less patient with its uneven pace.

Hunt2546 I can just see the story conference where Gene and Stan say to Mr. Mayer, "Gee, L.B., you'll love it. An hour and a half on lacerating male self-hatred, in which three ex GIs, ten years into the rest of their lives, decide they really suck big time and finally come to accept their utter mediocrity!" But that's exactly what this very odd duck of a picture is up to, and it's not helped by gratuitous forays--certainly inconsistent with the overall theme of the work--into parody with TV, advertising, Dinah Shore and Dr. Joyce Brothers among its disparate and incoherent targets. So it doesn't amount to much beyond an interesting failure but it has a few good numbers, notably the famous "trash can dance" by Kelly, Daily and Kidd and a number in a boxing gym where Cyd Charisse throws her 38-22-38 bones around in a tight sweater--and I mean TIGHT!--among a bunch of sweaty pugs. But there are plenty of disappointments. Why on earth is there no climactic Kelly-Charisse number? Who do we get so little of Michael Kidd. In fact, while these guys are quickly sketching in how bad their lives after the war suck- -one's a sellout, one's a small fry, one's a fraud--there's not enough dancing and there's way too much self pity. The ending is an overlong, overchoreographed and underwhelming fist fight sequence which reunites the spirit of the three ex soldiers who thought they'd do so much better and and settled for so much less. After the ebullience of "On the Town," this one is a real bitter pill to swallow.