Thursday, April 17, 2008

by Ari

Stanley Donen is best known for directing Gene Kelly in Singin’ in the Rain, obviously one of the most famous musicals, if not the most famous musical, ever made. The other day I praised Woody Allen for his enormous range as a storyteller, and the same can be said about Donen as a director. Though he directed many fine musicals, some classics even (see below), and established himself as a major talent in the theater community, his talent reached far beyond a single type of Hollywood film. Like the great Vincente Minnelli, who could switch between a classic Hollywood extravaganza like The Band Wagon and a drama like The Bad and the Beautiful, Donen was one of the best at working within the studio system of the '50s and '60s. His films always have a great sense of humor, even if the material is more intimate and serious.

For me, there's no Donen film as perfect as his 1967 drama Two For the Road, with Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney as a married couple who struggle to remain faithful as the years pass on. As I've gone through his filmography, no film has been as emotionally affecting and entertaining as this one. And that's a huge compliment, because he's made so many enjoyable movies. I love that he maintained an elegance and sophistication through his work, even when it gets playful or even silly. Charade (1963) is a strange little comedy/thriller with Hepburn and Cary Grant, but despite its ridiculous premise involving a stolen fortune from WWII, mysterious killers and forced European romance, the film finds a way to engage and entertain. The characters and performances are terribly unrealistic, but it's still fun for exactly that reason. It knows what it is, and Grant and Hepburn go with the story without losing their classy appeal.

Speaking of Cary Grant, his work with Donen is the stuff of legend. Indiscreet (1958) is a great romance between the supposedly married Philip Adams and successful theater actress Anna Kalman (Ingrid Bergman). Anyone familiar with these actors (or Hitchcock's Notorious) will understand how pleasing it is to see them together, especially once the plot thickens after Anna realizes the truth about her lover. She turns their sweet romance into a wicked game of getting even. And on a note of getting even, there's nothing better than Donen's hilarious comedy The Grass is Greener (1960), with Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons. This time it's Grant who creates an elaborate plan to win back his wife (Kerr) after she falls in love with an American oilman (Mitchum).

And, of course, there's Donen and his musicals again. My favorite is Funny Face, with Hepburn and the great Fred Astaire. Hepburn is as charming and lovely as ever, but it's Astaire's brilliant comedic timing that makes the movie. This number with Kay Thompson is a good example of that.

And there's also the classic number at the club with Hepburn. Maybe it's just me, but the way Astaire puts his hand over his head as he watches her is priceless.