The Music Man (1962/Warner Blu-ray)

 

Picture: B-     Sound: C+     Extras: C+     Film: B-

 

 

One of the least talked about and unusual hit Musicals, Morton DaCosta’s film of Meredith Wilson’s The Music Man (1962) is a slow, uneven film, but has enough unusual moments, unique music and challenging approaches to telling a narrative within the construct of the Hollywood Musical that one can understand the following it has and why it remains a favorite for diehard fans of the genre. DaCosta directed the stage version too.

 

Originally a Broadway hit in 1957, a time when the Hollywood studios were winding down such productions and the genre was running out of steam, Jack Warner (a fan of the genre, whose studio was a major contributor to thereof) and his studio licensed the work and made a major roadshow film production of it.  One coup was to get Robert Preston to reprise his role of con artist Harold Hill, who goes to River City, Iowa circa 1912 to pull of his latest series of scams only to fall for repressed librarian Marian (Shirley Jones, smartly underplaying her role).

 

Running 151 minutes, the film has more hits than misses in what we could call a Folk Musical, though brooms and doors do not start dancing either.  However, as an evolution of the Musical into a more complex art form, the songs here versus so many previous hits are more layered, vocally challenging and have trickier time signatures in more than a few instances.  You also get some traditional hybrids (Dixieland Gospel) from the genre and the music finds new ways to bring across humor in the lyrics and the ways they are phrased.  The group participation in the singing is also higher than usual; a way for Wilson and co-writer Franklin Lacey to communicate a way the music is infectious and will even eventually overtake Hill’s original plans.

 

As a sort of deconstruction/reconstruction piece to help suspend disbelief, the lead is an expert on sound and music like Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady (Warner would make that into a hit three years later) in a way that has the concept wear its intents on its sleeve.  The rest of the cast is very good and includes a play-it-clean Buddy Hackett, Hermione Gingold (Gigi), Paul Ford, Mary Wickes, Pert Kelton, Vern Reed and very young Ron (As Ronny) Howard giving the film additional chemistry.  The money is also on the screen, even though some process shots and costume designs date the film.

 

There are many songs, but most are so integrated into the narrative that there are not many known outside of the full production, but the original Broadway Cast Recording album was #1 for three months and the soundtrack for this film was #2 for half that time, so both hits extended off stage.  The few songs you might know if you have not seen the film or stage versions include 76 Trombones (get the patriotism?), Ya Got Trouble, Gary, Indiana, Till There Was You and Wells Fargo Wagon.  Though flawed, the film was added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2005.  Looking back at the rise and quick fall of the movie musical’s brief return in the 1960s, The Music Man’s commercial and critical success made that possible and for that reason, it is worth seeing or revisiting.

 

The 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image was shot in the widescreen Technirama process by Robert Burks, A.S.C., best known for his work with Alfred Hitchcock and made between films with the Master of Suspense.  Already an expert in large-frame format shooting with the VistaVision films he made with Hitchcock, this would be the last large-frame feature he would lens and it is impressive throughout with its use of compositions and color.  However, this transfer is a little softer than it should be for such a big production and the color is not always what it could be.  The 35mm prints were issued in no less than three-strip, dye-transfer Technicolor and 70mm blow-up prints were made.

 

As compared to the few other Technirama films to come to Blu-ray, it is better than the 1964 Pink Panther, but not as good as Disney’s Sleeping Beauty (1959), though comparing it to an animated feature may not seem fair to some.  Still, it could look better, but this is easily the best it has looked outside of better film prints in decades.

 

The DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) lossless 5.1 mix shows the age of the film, but does not sound like it came from the best sound elements.  At its best, 70mm prints had six-track magnetic stereo with five speakers behind the screen and even some 35mm prints had four-channel magnetic stereo.  The problems here include compression, sound at least a generation down more than it should be, possible over-cleaning of sound elements and what would be traveling dialogue and sound effects narrowed down into the center channel.  That is also where too much of the singing comes from, meaning stereo singing becomes monophonic.  That is wrong.  You can hear how good some orchestra placement is, but the sound needs redone down the line.

 

Extras are two standard definition documentaries (Right Here In River City making of featurette and Introduction by Shirley Jones) and the original theatrical trailer.  No doubt fans will want more and down the line, should get more.  In the meantime, this more-than-basic-Blu-ray will do.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo