'Les Girls' sure does seem to have a lot going for it. It has style coming out the ears. It has Gene Kelly being Gene Kelly. Its female stars, especially Kay Kendall and Taina Elg, are captivating, and I don't mean to denigrate Mitzi Gaynor by omission. It has songs by Cole Porter. This should be a "can't-miss" film for those who like movies such as 'Gigi,' 'Funny Face' and 'An American in Paris.'
But 'LG' barely gets the nod of approval from me. That's because its 'Rashoman'-like story plays out rather long and dull. There is surprisingly little singing and dancing in the film compared to the seemingly endless retelling of the story three times. This just-under two hour movie felt like 'Cleopatra' by the end! And I thought the director could have pruned a bit of Kay Kendall's drunken singing in one scene. It was funny for a minute, yes, but it got awful annoying carried on at such length.
But 'LG' barely gets the nod of approval from me. That's because its 'Rashoman'-like story plays out rather long and dull. There is surprisingly little singing and dancing in the film compared to the seemingly endless retelling of the story three times. This just-under two hour movie felt like 'Cleopatra' by the end! And I thought the director could have pruned a bit of Kay Kendall's drunken singing in one scene. It was funny for a minute, yes, but it got awful annoying carried on at such length.