Friday, June 27, 2014

Musicals

You're walking down a rainy street and all of a sudden, you use your umbrella as a prop and begin singin' in the rain.
You're crucified; your family and friends are singing what a superstar you are.
You're on a march for segregation in Baltimore. Queen Latifah leads the way and you're perfectly choreographed in your song and dance.
You're a nun. You dance on the hills in Austria singing sounds that make music.
You're in a gang in New York. You meet your rival gang and have a dancin' and singin' battle.
And these are some of my favorite musicals.
So when I saw Distant Voices, Still Lives this week, I had to redefine what I mean by favorite musical, because this was a realistic musical.
One of the few times I had this same feeling was watching Truly, Madly Deeply when Alan Rickman and Juliette Stephenson started singing in their joyous reunion around their apartment, playing whatever instrument they could find.
But this film featured dozens of songs sung in pub or at home or at a wedding, naturally. These are not trained Broadway musicians, they're just Brits who love to sing a cappella when the spirit moves, whether drunk with joy or drunk with sorrow.
Angela Walsh's version of "I Wanna Be Around" sung by a wife who realized that her husband was not so far from her abusive father, is heart-wrenching. That was a weeper, but most of the songs are pub friendly and raucous, like Beer Barrel Polka.
I have begun to appreciate the classic musical, realizing that camp and un-realistic staging is just part of the genre. But this film tops them all for its realistic take on growing up in post-war Britain. Outstanding.

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