An American in Paris

Dir: Vincente Minnelli, 1951 (8.5*)
Best Picture (AA, GG)

One of the best of the technicolor era musicals, making gorgeous and artistic use of the richness of color, finally available in a range allowing more artistic use of art direction, which works very well with Gene Kelly’s choreography in this film. Kelly plays an artist in Paris (not a dancer for once), but one who can obviously dance, or we might have seen Kirk Douglas (Van Gogh, get it?). Leslie Caron makes a very impressive screen debut as a terrific dancer at just age nineteen, it’s hard to believe she didn’t receive an Oscar nomination. Cyd (short for "sister") Charisse makes another star-making dance appearance in the title musical number, danced to the tone poem "American in Paris" by George Gershwin. This is the height of Minnelli’s creative direction, though he lost the directing Oscar. Six Oscars