Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fun. Right Here in River City, 3 Feb 2004
Professor Harold Hill makes his living conning small town residence by telling them he's going to start a boys' band then leaving with their money before the promised direction begins. Taking an unintended challenge, he gets off in River City, Iowa. While the locals at first appear cold, his charm soon changes their minds. Or almost all of them. Marion, the local librarian and piano teacher, is convenienced that the professor isn't all he claims to be. Meanwhile, Harold has set his sites on wooing the spinster librarian. Will he win her heart or hurt her? Will the townspeople find out the truth, or will this encounter change everyone for the better?As much as I love musicals, I had missed this one until the recent ABC movie version. I fell immediately under its charming spell. The story is fun and the music is fantastic. After enjoying the remake so much, I was looking forward to watching the original, and it didn't disappointment. The cast, lead by Robert Preston and Shirley Jones, is strong. The chorography makes me want to join in the fun (always a must for a musical), and the story fleshes out a couple minor points I had missed in the remake. And I simply must praise the work of the Buffalo Bills as the school board. They've inspired me in my search for good barbershop quartet music. This Region 1 DVD preserves the movie well. The widescreen picture is sharp and clear and the sound is just fine. Watching the trailer for the reissue shows just how much work has gone into the restoration. Shirley Jones provides an interesting intro and serves as host for the behind the scenes special. This is a classic musical that everyone will enjoy. It tells a fun story with wonderful music and evokes a simpler time and place. If you haven't watched yet, pick up a copy and enjoy tonight.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Marian, madame librarian, 16 Oct 2004
This good old-fashioned, stand-up-and-cheer musical stars Shirley Jones as Marian, an Iowa spinster librarian and piano teacher in the early 1900s. Her whole town is turned upside down with the arrival of the flashy "Music Man" - salesman Harold Hill (Robert Preston,) who sells band instruments and uniforms; tiny Ronny Howard, as Marian's brother, overcomes his shyness with his new coronet. Despite her best intentions, stiff Miss Marian falls in love with the slick, fast talking hustler. He's smitten, too, and the whole town celebrates in song. Shirley Jones was never lovelier and has a beautiful voice in songs like Til There Was You and Goodnight, My Someone. Robert Preston makes a memorable flim-flam man with a heart of gold, and his big song, "Trouble in River City," is a show-stopper. Paul Ford and Hermione Gingold almost steal the show as the very funny mayor and his wife. The film is a beautifully filmed celebration of Americana, and you just have to love a musical that can find a rhyme for "librarian"! This is splashy, feel-good, wholesome entertainment you'll enjoy over and over again.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is my favorite musical, 29 Sep 2001
By A Customer
I saw the original when I was a child and have bought the video twice and am about to buy it again. This is a movie about salesmanship and dreaming; Professor Harold hill changes the atmosphere of an entire town by promising them a dream.This is the best musical ever made. The songs are great; I have heard that "Till there was you" was Paul McCartneys favorite song. He didn't write it; it comes from here. Shirley Jones is beautiful as Marion, the librarian. Robert Preston is brilliant as the travelling salesman who "got his foot caught in the door". I think Frankie Darron is the young punk who wants to date the Mayors daughter "yee gads". Buddy Hackett as an old chum, Hermione Gringold (not sure of the spelling), condemns the library because it sells dirty books, "Balzac". And Ronnie Howard as a shy little kid that stutters until he is taught a song by professor Harold Hill, Gary conservatory of Music, class of ought six. There is a special appearance by the Buffalo Bills, an old barbershop quartet who begin the movie hating each other. Buy this video before you can not. It is becoming scarce.
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