atlasmb June Allyson, Judy Garland, Kathryn Grayson, Van Heflin, Lena Horne, Van Johnson, Tony Martin, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, Robert Walker, Gower Champion, Cyd Charisse, Angela Lansbury. Some film fans would never miss a movie by one of these stars. How could they pass a chance to see this entire corps in "Till the Clouds Roll By"?Shot in beautiful Technicolor, this film is a romanticized, dramatized and fabricated biopic of Jerome Kern. Robert Walker plays the talented writer of songs for musicals. It's not a demanding role. But it's the music and dance that are really the stars of this film.The opening scene is a staged compilation of some hits from "Showboat". It's a wonderful start that perhaps demonstrates what this film could have been if more of its running time were spent on performances, but there are plenty. In most cases, the songs and the performers are very well matched. In fact, there is only one performer who feels mismatched--the singer/dancer Ray McDonald, who is ill-used as a romantic lead in a couple of duets. I recommend this film for anyone who enjoys the music of Kern or the musical stars of MGM.

Cristi_Ciopron A musical biopic with an all-star cast, and if Johnson looked a bit goofy, there are scenes with Cyd Charisse and Esther Williams; Heflin plays the 2nd lead, doing what he can with his role as the arranger and repentant procrastinator. He has been well chosen to make scenes watchable, as his style had brio, and the script also allowed for some depth, if the word isn't too grand, or at least plausibility, to his character. The movie signifies also the dawn or the spring of a few careers, of players who were then in their blessed prime. People like A. Lansbury and Sinatra went on to great careers. The Sally Hessler's selfishness subplot stank of hypocrisy and paternalist judgmental meanness (also, Kern's submissiveness when depriving Sally of her tune, and acknowledging the absolute authority of the producer to cut as he likes). The storyline has the cautiousness of such biopics, with few anecdotes (the Hessler family, Frohman's demise, Herbert the dean, the courtship in the British countryside, Sally's subplot). If the sentiment was phony, it also defines this genre of tributes to Broadway, with their MGM insipidity. There is though a moment, when Jerry, after he had just visited the prodigal Sally, feels the grandeur of the river …. The tunes that I liked very much were those not sugary: 'Life Upon the Wicked Stage', 'Till the Clouds Roll By', 'She Didn't Say Yes' (Lyn and Lee Wilde), 'Ol' Man River' sung by Sinatra; 'Show Boat' seemed indeed the nicest of Kern's works.Mainly, enjoy the music. That's why this movie has been made for. 'Ol' Man River', from the legendary 'Show Boat', thrilled Whale, 10 yrs before this movie has been made. A musical movie isn't always an ambitious experiment in narration, often it's a musical show, which may require a narrative convention, and this, in its turn, however conventional, asks for craft, in order to be achieved. I find it puzzling how many reviewers, when dismissing the musicals for their pretended lack of a plot, seemed to ignore that these were mainly musical shows and that it was as unfair to complain about story as in the situation of an operetta, a revue or a variety. In our age, objecting seems a sign of cleverness.Who would care much if an operetta hasn't a plot, and who would care about the contemporary reviews, other than for historical research? Perhaps some deplored that the songs haven't been matched by plot, etc., that a better movie could of been made, yet this thought remains sour and unfair. Quibbles, indeed. As for Crowther, he used to dismiss many things, and I don't find him a dependable reviewer. Many of his disparaging takes are too whimsical.

David Allen Til Clouds Roll By (1946 MGM) starring Robert Walker about the life of Jerome Kern and his stage show music is wonderful.MGM was the biggest movie studio during the still on-going "Golden Age Of Hollywood," still was supported by not-yet illegal movie houses owned by MGM's parent company, Loews, Inc.The studio had stars and talent of all kinds and flavors still under contract, and 1946 was the year when Americans attended movies in movie houses in greater numbers than any time in history, before or since.It was a big musical at a time when musicals were still mainstream movies, demanded and expected by movie audiences. It was from an era when singable, easy to hum, remember, and share songs were central to American culture, and when everyone still knew tunes and lyrics from pop songs from two decades before they were born.Til Clouds Roll By (1946) starring Robert Walker was a nostalgia movie about hit songs Jerome Kern wrote from the years before World War I into hit songs he wrote for Fred Astaire/ Ginger Rogers Hollywood black and white musical movie hits of the 1930's.In those days, 10 years ago was recent, and hit songs 20 years old were still sung widely and performed often. The culture didn't change, and beautiful songs like the ones in Til Clouds Roll By (1946) starring Robert Walker were preserved and revered.No more, sadly.Many good musicals appeared in the movies in the 1940's, and these often showcased great songs from earlier times. The musical movies lost currency and prestige, and are not honored by today's cultural archivists and nostalgia mongers. But they were good and should not be forgotten or overlooked.Til Clouds Roll By (1946 MGM) starring Robert Walker is an example of a big time MGM musical filled with movie stars, wonderful set decoration, costumes, and talent teaming up with other talent.It was and is a crowd pleasing movie, big, bright, wonderful, and common is a good way....not pretentious or arty, not troubled or burdensome in any way.It was designed to keep people attending movies in 1946 happy, and it's easy to see why it was a big success back then.Movies like Til Clouds Roll By (1946 MGM) starring Robert Walker don't make "Best Movies Of All TImes" lists like the ones the Library Of Congress or the American Film Institute publish and publicize.That's a shame because this is an important movie, and certainly was back in 1946, well thought of for good reason.It's corny in some spots, but the good parts are so good, any and all flaws and shortcomings can and should be forgiven.Other pop (show) music "bio pix" profiling other then famous stage music composers were also made during this period, none famous or honored on "Greatest Movies" lists, but all worth seeing, flaws or no flaws. These included movies about Cole Porter (Night and Day [1946]), George Gershwin (Rhapsody In Blue [1945]), Lorenz Hart (Words And Music [1947]). ------------- Written by Tex Allen, SAG Actor. Visit WWW.IMDb.Com and choose "Tex Allen" "resume" for contact information, movie credits, and biographical information about Tex Allen. Tex Allen has reviewed more than 35 movies posted on the website WWW.IMDb.Com (the world's largest movie information database, owned by Amazon.Com) as of January 2011. These include: 1. Alfie (1966) 29 July 2009 2. Alien (1979) 24 July 2009 3. All the President's Men (1976) 16 November 2010 4. American Graffiti (1973) 22 November 2010 5. Animal House (1978) 16 August 2009 6. Bullitt (1968) 23 July 2009 7. Captain Kidd (1945) 28 July 2009 8. Child Bride (1938) 24 September 2009 9. Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) 22 September 2010 10. Detour (1945) 19 November 2010 11. Die Hard 2 (1990) 23 December 2010 12. The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl (1993) 19 November 2010 13. Jack and the Beanstalk (1952) 26 July 2009 14. King Solomon's Mines (1950) 1 December 2010 15. Knute Rockne All American (1940) 2 November 2010 16. Claire's Knee (1970) 15 August 2009 17. Melody Ranch (1940) 10 November 2010 18. Morning Glory (1933) 19 November 2010 19. New Moon (1940) 3 November 2010 20. Pinocchio (1940) 6 November 2010 21. R2PC: Road to Park City (2000) 19 November 2010 22. Salt (2010) 24 August 2010 23. Sunset Blvd. (1950) 1 December 2010 24. The Great Dictator (1940) 1 November 2010 25. The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962) 9 January 2011 26. The Man in the White Suit (1951) 5 August 2009 27. The Philadelphia Story (1940) 5 November 2010 28. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) 1 August 2009 29. The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) 14 August 2009 30. The Witchmaker (1969) 21 July 2009 31. Thousands Cheer (1943) 3 December 2010 32. Till the Clouds Roll By (1946) 24 November 2010 33. Wake Up and Live (1937) 27 July 2009 34. Witness for the Prosecution (1957) 1 August 2009 A full list of Tex Allen's movie reviews appearing on WWW.IMDb.Com with links to full texts of reviews is accessible via: http://imdb.com/user/ur15279309/comments Written by Tex Allen, SAG-AFTRA movie actor. Visit WWW.IMDb.Me/TexAllen for more information about Tex Allen. Tex Allen's email address is TexAllen@Rocketmail.Com.See Tex Allen Movie Credits, Biography, and 2012 photos at WWW.IMDb.Me/TexAllen. See other Tex Allen written movie reviews....almost 100 titles.... at: "http://imdb.com/user/ur15279309/comments" (paste this address into your URL Browser)

dsewizzrd-1 Rated 'G' for gagworthy this tortuously long (over two hours) musical–come–medley–come-extended video clip purportedly follows the life of musical musician Jerome Kern.With only one even half decent song ("Old Man River"), and only one even half decent show ("Sunny"), the rest is dreary wailing of interminable length.The clips from the musicals is interspersed with a dull and reactionary story about Kern's life, marrying an 'English' woman with an American accent as thick as ketchup.The not very attractive daughter of an associate learns her place after being turned down for a part in the show. It ends with a medley and finally with Frank Sinatra singing his (bad) version of "Old Man River".