Swing Time (The Criterion Collection) [DVD]

Praised by most critics and fans alike as probably the best of the ten RKO studio Astaire-Rogers musical comedies "Swing Time" has some of the most sublime dancing in any American film past or present.Because Astaire was such an extreme perfectionist, he and Rogers danced full frame with no cuts. You actually saw the entire dance number with them centered in the frame from head to toe, across stages, up and down stairs, in and out of each other's arms or side by side going on for several minutes all in one take. They make it look so easy, smooth, with smiles on their faces but it was known that many times dozens of takes were done just to achieve this flawless look. Ginger Rogers had to nurse bruised and bloodied feet after some of these marathon filming sessions. Amazing. The plot, what little there is and what little makes sense moves along to set up the music and dance numbers. There is some rom com elements and witty dialog but it's these two artists flying and floating across the stage creating an "other" worldly experience that are these movie's reason for existence. These films were so popular in their day that the best songwriters and lyricists of the time practically stood in line to add their parts of the Great American Songbook to be included in these fantastic creations. For struggling working-class audiences during the Great Depression watching them in the cinema was pure escapism and joy.There is some controversy to the film today for modern audiences due to the inclusion of black face and minstrel imagery in Astaire's solo tap dance number "Bojangles of Harlem". This has caused some debate among critics, historians and fans. This sequence can be quite jarring to some as it does not quite "fit" with the rest of the movie's overall tone. However, there is a strong argument that this was Astaire's tribute to Bill "Bojangles" Robinson who was one of the if not THE greatest tap artist of his day ( think "The Little Colonel" with Shirley Temple or go ahead and google "stair dance") as well as an acknowledgement to Astaire's early years as a pupil of tap dance great John Bubbles as Astaire's costume closely copies Bubbles' costuming in his role as "Sportin Life" in Gershwin's "Porgy and Bess". There's no denying the minstrel imagery at the beginning which I think sadly reflects the time of Jim Crow and segregation. White audiences of the day wouldn't have given much thought other than to be entertained. But for us modern audiences there is a definite "cringe" moment at the start. Still, if you watch Astaire closely as the sequence moves along, he is clearly doing this with total respect of these tap artists that also shows off his own unique style and yes, it is a sublime dance sequence, nonetheless.The Criterion Blu-ray is again typical of this series. The remastering used several secondary sources to composite a 2K scan with good results as the original camera negative is long gone. Grain is present with reasonable detail, solid blacks and good greyscale. There is very little noise or damage present other than some rare instances of light vertical streaking but that's few and far between. The remastered mono soundtrack is clear with nice fidelity. There's no distortion and the syncopated clicks of the dancers' feet are very well heard. This is a must buy for those that love the classic American Songbook and want to fly in the clouds with dance numbers that will keep almost any viewer spellbound.

I saw several negative reviews but I found this Criterion version greatly improved upon the Warner home DVD I had of the film. For starters the film is larger on Bluray, there's less black bars on the side than with the DVD making more details noticeable. Another big difference is in the contrast levels, the black and white color correction, it's just not all montone gray. Plus, they didn't overly smooth/blur out the film grain causing a loss in detail. And the audio is so much better, making the music and the dialog even more enjoyable. The special features do lack a little for Criterion I thought, but it does include the same great commentary track which is on the DVD, a must listen for anyone a fan of this film. I understand there's a limit to what restoration can be done without an original to work from, but after seeing this I'd like to see Criterion do more Fred and Ginger movies. Additionally, I adjusted the contrast levels on my TV a bit higher and that really made it even better. If you've only seen the DVD I definitely recommend this version. The one thing I would have liked was if it been redone to a widescreen format with no black bars on the sides.

I would have preferred film grain for more sharpness than the softness in this version, but it's not real bad. The contrast is good. For a criterion edition (UPC 715515231015), I was disappointed in hair-lines that would randomly show up (see picture). There was also a scene that was a bit spotty. Commentary was nice. Roger's and Astaire's dance sequences are impressive. Storyline is simple. Extras features were great. There is also an odd blackface sequence I hadn't noticed (see other included picture). I'm guessing because I'd only seen it on a 12" b&w and it wasn't anything that I'd have thought to notice when I was younger because it didn't really stand out. If this is the best that they were able to do with the film print, I don't think any higher resolution is going to help this film.

This Criterion Blu-ray re-mastering added a great deal to this almost noir-ish Rogers - Astaire movie, in which Rogers seemed to me to outshine Astaire, even if by a slim margin. The improvement of both video and audio over the DVD version(s) by this Criterion Blu-ray release more than merits purchase of this version, even by owners of any DVD version.Criterion should re-master and re-release the rest of the Fred Astaire - Ginger Rogers films, preferably on Blu-ray, or 4K, if Criterion ever gets around to 4K technology.Criterion should begin with 'Flying Down to Rio.'

Acting, dancing and music come together so beautifully. No wonder many critics find this the best Fred & Ginger movie. Their dance routines may not be a recognized art form, but they should. Couldn’t believe the quality of the songs. The Way You Look Tonight was not the movies’ only winner.Found Astaire’s blackface routine strange. Anyone know the real story behind it?