I saw the original Broadway production of "Kismet" when I was 8 years old and, despite that fact that it was a smash-hit, found it excruciating to sit through with the exception of three ravishing ballads that became instant classics. The inevitable MGM film version came out three years later and was more of the same. Don't blame Vincente Minnelli for not wanting to direct it. The Arabian Nights plotline is unplayable and unwatchable (try the Colman-Dietrich 1944 version WITHOUT music--pure torture though a Technicolored eyeful). All that said, the 1955 version is still a must for movie-musical-lovers for the splendidly sung and staged renditions of "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" (Ann Blyth's finest four minutes--she is visually and vocally dazzling), Ms. Blyth and Vic Damone gorgeously dueting on "Stranger in Paradise", and the haunting "And This is My Beloved" (unfortunately given short shrift but still a vocal knockout thanks to Ms. Blyth (again!), Howard Keel and Vic Damone. A pity the rest of the film couldn't match these three outstanding highlights! Fate has never smiled upon any of the stage or film versions of "Kismet"!
