Bells Are Ringing

If I really loved musicals, I would have probably scored the movie a 9. In fact, that I scored it as high as an 8 is an indication that, for the genre, it was a heck of a film. That's because the story apart from the songs is very sweet and romantic. Plus, the actors are so appealing and good that this certainly improved the film a lot. Judy Holliday was at her best and Dean Martin certainly was able to keep up with her and I really liked him more in this musical than as a comedian. Despite films like MATT HELM, he was a good actor and singer. Now, concerning the songs, it's rare that I have seen a musical with so many songs I have never heard before! But, after hearing them, I liked them a lot more than many of the more famous Rogers and Hammerstein musical scores from other pictures. This is because in addition to having nice music, the words were so often funny and charming. I particularly liked the song all the bookies sang as well as the name-dropping song! They were terrific.

The only thing is that watching the film I felt pretty depressed, as I knew that this was Ms. Holliday's last film--cancer limited her ability to act until she eventually succumbed six years later. It's a shame, as I loved her in so many wonderful films.