The Benny Goodman Story
by Valentine Davies
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Barry Truex, Berta Gersten, Donna Reed, Herbert Anderson, Steve AllenDirector: Valentine Davies
Brand: UNI DIST CORP. (MCA)
Cinematographer: William H. Daniels
Writer: Valentine Davies
Editor: Russell F. Schoengarth
Producer: Aaron Rosenberg
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 116 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-03-04
Audience Rating: G (General Audience)
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of The Benny Goodman Story
Movie Review: Great Big Band BioPic
Summary: 4 Stars
One of the best BioPics of a legendary musician/bandleader. Features all the real musicians that played with Goodman including Gene Krupa on drums, Lionel Hampton on vibraphone and Teddy Wilson on piano, plus many more (and Steve Allen has an uncanny physical resemblance to Benny himself!) . Uses all the genuine recordings and the screenplay provides an accurate, though romaticized, timeline of his rise to success. Chock full of performances of all the famous songs. Add a star if you are a big fan of Goodman and his music.
Summary of The Benny Goodman Story
THE JAZZ CLARINETIST AND BANDLEADER'S STORY INCLUDES HISBOYHOOD, HIS SWEETHEART AND HIS SWING-ERA FRAME.It lacks the tragic ending of The Glenn Miller Story, a smash hit released a year earlier, but this enjoyable musical biopic does a nice job of blending Benny Goodman's sweet swinging clarinet with a healthy dose of Hollywood hokum. The emphasis is on Goodman's struggle to get "hot music" into the mainstream, and his shy wooing of a socialite (Donna Reed). With Steve Allen cast as the bespectacled Goodman, there's a comic undertone to the bandleader's somewhat geeky demeanor, and Allen (a musician himself) is believable fronting the orchestra. Real-life swing figures, including Goodman Quartet players Gene Krupa, Teddy Wilson, and Lionel Hampton, lend verisimilitude. The climax comes with Goodman's legendary 1938 jazz concert at Carnegie Hall, a turning point in American popular music--and the sight of a mild-mannered man in a tuxedo leading his band through the glorious frenzy of "Sing, Sing, Sing" remains a delight. --Robert Horton
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