'Swing Time (1936)' is typically held as one of the finest Fred Astaire and Gingers Rogers musicals, of which nine were made between 1933 and 1939 {' The Barkleys of Broadway (1949)' would follow a decade later}. Directed by George Stevens, the film abandons the often-silly mistaken identity subplots of previous films, and presents a more credible love story, supplemented by some of the most remarkable dance numbers I've yet had of enjoyment of seeing. Replete with the usual stock of enjoyable comedic actors, 'Swing Time' is a professionally-produced film, and Astaire and Rogers, as always, bounce off one another exceedingly well. Though the storyline isn't quite as entertaining as in 'Top Hat (1935)' or 'Shall We Dance (1937),' the picture relies purely on its terrific dance routines to elevate it to such a high status. Jerome Kern provided the film's music, and Dorothy Fields wrote the lyrics, including the Oscar-winning song, "The Way You Look Tonight."
John "Lucky" Garnett (Astaire) loves home-town sweetheart, Margaret (Betty Furness), and wants to marry her
or, at least, he thought he did. After the master-gambler moves to New York City to acquire a $25,000 dowry for the wedding, he comes upon beautiful dance instructor Penny Carroll (Rogers), immediately recognising that she is the woman for him. Wasting no time to consider the logic of his actions, Lucky signs up for dancing lessons, and his incredible "progress" leads the pair towards considerable success. A promising romance begins to bloom, but Lucky cannot bear to tell Penny that he's already engaged to marry another woman; at the same time, he deliberately resists achieving success in his gambling activities, lest he win enough money to return home to Margaret. Pop Cardetti (Victor Moore) and Mabel Anderson (Helen Broderick), knowing members of an older generation, stand around to witness the pair's irregular romance, and form a close friendship of their own, though everything is thrown into turmoil when sleazy musician Ricky Romero (Georges Metaxa) attempts to coax Penny from Lucky's grasp.
The absence of Edward Everett Horton unfortunately detracts from the effectiveness of the film's comedy, though Victor Moore provides an amusing substitute; his tone and mannerisms are so ridiculously adorable that he could accurately be described as a real-life Elmer Fudd. Jerome Kern's musical numbers vary from lighthearted tap dance numbers ("Pick Yourself Up") to sarcastic quicksteps ("A Fine Romance") to a virtuoso, emotion-filled ballroom routine ("Never Gonna Dance"), perhaps the most stirring performance that Astaire and Rogers ever did. There's a certain indescribable desperation to the way in which the two dancers leap and twirl across the dance floor, their movements escalating almost imperceptibly from an idle walk, and Rogers' long dress twists and turns in the air behind her. In Astaire's continual search for creative perfection, his routines were filmed, wherever possible, in a single take, and this particular number was attempted no less than forty-seven times. Also notable is Astaire's frenetic tribute to Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, performing in black-face against three tall synchronised shadows on the wall behind him.
