Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate "production numbers".
177-817: Stephen Keith Kloves (born March 18, 1960) is an American screenwriter, director and producer. He wrote and directed the film The Fabulous Baker Boys and is mainly known for his screenplay adaptations of novels, especially for all but one of the Harry Potter films (the exception being The Order of the Phoenix ) and for Wonder Boys , for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay . Kloves, born in Austin , Texas, grew up in Sunnyvale , California, where he graduated from Fremont High School . He attended
354-405: A Golden Globe and an Academy Award after the film's release in 2000. Warner Bros. sent Kloves a list of novels that the company was considering to adapt as films. The listing included the first Harry Potter novel , which intrigued him despite his usual indifference to these catalogs. He went on to write the screenplays for the first four films in the series. However, he turned down writing
531-403: A Holiday Inn playing 'Feelings'." Since Kloves typically writes his films around its characters, he spent six months writing notes about the main characters' relationships with each other before finalizing the story. He also used index cards to indicate specific scenes and moments which he organized on a board, but found this approach was not always successful. A first draft of the screenplay
708-433: A grand piano as a standout. The scene is considered to be one of the sexiest in film history, according to several media publications. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards at the 62nd Academy Awards : Best Actress (for Pfeiffer), Best Cinematography , Best Film Editing , and Best Original Score . Pfeiffer won nearly every acting award for which she was nominated during the 1989–1990 awards season , including
885-405: A spec script to then- Warner Bros . worldwide production president Mark Rosenberg , after originally selling it to producers Paula Weinstein and Gareth Wigan of WW Productions. Weinstein and Wigan eventually negotiated a deal to share the film rights with Rosenberg. Kloves attempted to work on the film with director George Roy Hill , but they experienced creative differences. Following
1062-772: A 2006 article, the Irish Examiner ranked it the eighth sexiest film scene. According to HBO contributor Nick Nadel, the scene has "exploded into the pop culture landscape" in the decades following the film's release. Writing for Den of Geek , novelist Aliya Whiteley believes the scene "immediately entered into filmic language", observing its influence on subsequent films such as Pretty Woman (1990). The sequence has been parodied and parodied in various media, including Saturday Night Live , Hot Shots! (1991), Shrek 2 (2004), and episodes of Animaniacs . A 1992 episode of The Golden Girls features actress Rue McClanahan singing " I Wanna Be Loved By You " on top of
1239-462: A 97% rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes based on 29 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Its story is nothing special, but The Fabulous Baker Boys glows beneath luminous performances from its perfectly cast stars." Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 85 out of 100 based on 25 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave
1416-611: A Bollywood-style song-and-dance number during the film's end credits, Tallika (2022) was the first movie with Maximum Genres of Music Composed by Maharaja and registered as a World Record Holder in Music, Spain has a history and tradition of musical films that were made independent of Hollywood influence. The first films arise during the Second Spanish Republic of the 1930s and the advent of sound films . A few zarzuelas (Spanish operetta ) were even adapted as screenplays during
1593-467: A Sixpence , The Happiest Millionaire , Star! , Darling Lili , Goodbye, Mr. Chips , Paint Your Wagon , Song of Norway , On a Clear Day You Can See Forever , 1776 , Man of La Mancha , Lost Horizon , and Mame . Collectively and individually these failures affected the financial viability of several major studios. In the 1970s, film culture and the changing demographics of filmgoers placed greater emphasis on gritty realism, while
1770-474: A few dramas) included their own musical numbers. The Marx Brothers ' films included a musical number in nearly every film, allowing the Brothers to highlight their musical talents. Their final film, entitled Love Happy (1949), featured Vera-Ellen , considered to be the best dancer among her colleagues and professionals in the half century. Similarly, the vaudevillian comedian W. C. Fields joined forces with
1947-408: A few well-received films, but even their popularity waned by 1932. The public had quickly come to associate color with musicals and thus the decline in their popularity also resulted in a decline in color productions. The taste in musicals revived again in 1933 when director Busby Berkeley began to enhance the traditional dance number with ideas drawn from the drill precision he had experienced as
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#17328758438462124-435: A future project. During a 2014 reunion interview, Pfeiffer said she "would love to see where these three people are... I don't know that it'll ever happen, but yeah, that would be fun". In 2021, Pfeiffer revealed she and Jeff had been persistently asking Kloves about making a sequel. Musical film The musical film was a natural development of the stage musical after the emergence of sound film technology. Typically,
2301-614: A grand piano in a performance based on Pfeffer's. McClanahan has called the episode her favorite from the sitcom. In a 2012 commercial for Topshop , actress Kate Bosworth based her rendition of " Winter Wonderland " on Pfeiffer's performance of "Makin' Whoopee". According to Turner Classic Movies , Tilly's brief appearance bolstered her career by "alert[ing] critics and viewers to her comic gifts" for future films. Following The Fabulous Baker Boys ' success, Kloves would direct only one more film before returning to screenwriting full-time. He became best known for writing seven films in
2478-526: A musical and India producing the most movies in the world (formed in 1913), the first Bollywood film to be a complete musical, Dev D (directed by Anurag Kashyap ), came in 2009. The second musical film to follow was Jagga Jasoos (directed by Anurag Basu ), in 2017. Bollywood musicals have their roots in the traditional musical theatre of India , such as classical Indian musical theatre , Sanskrit drama , and Parsi theatre . Early Bombay filmmakers combined these Indian musical theatre traditions with
2655-420: A physical altercation, Jack quits the band. He takes his frustrations out on Nina upon returning home but apologizes soon afterward, learning she will rely on him less once her mother marries her newest boyfriend. Now prepared to venture out on his own, Jack visits Frank to make amends. Having opted to offer piano lessons from his home, Frank accepts Jack's decision to pursue a solo career and explains he thought he
2832-460: A poll conducted by Billboard , The Fabulous Baker Boys was the second most rented home video in July 1990. AllMovie contributor Aubry Anne D'Arminio attributes the film's home video achievements to positive word-of-mouth following its four Academy Award nominations. The film was released to DVD on August 21, 1998. The Fabulous Baker Boys received widespread acclaim upon release. The film holds
3009-523: A relationship between the two would compromise the group's stability and newfound success. Frank returns to Seattle prematurely when one of his children suffers a minor injury. Taking advantage of his absence to contemporize their setlist, Susie and Jack deliver a sultry performance of " Makin' Whoopee " during the hotel's New Year's Eve festivities, after which they finally succumb to their feelings and sleep together. Susie opens up to Jack about her past as an escort, but Jack remains emotionally distant. When
3186-644: A renaissance of the genre. The Guru and The 40-Year-Old Virgin also feature Indian-style song-and-dance sequences; the Bollywood musical Lagaan (2001) was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film ; two other Bollywood films Devdas (2002) and Rang De Basanti (2006) were nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language ; and Danny Boyle 's Academy Award winning Slumdog Millionaire (2008) also features
3363-519: A show-biz plot about two sisters competing for a charming song-and-dance man. Advertised by MGM as the first "All-Talking, All-Singing, All-Dancing" feature film, it was a hit and won the Academy Award for Best Picture for 1929. There was a rush by the studios to hire talent from the stage to star in lavishly filmed versions of Broadway hits. The Love Parade (Paramount 1929) starred Maurice Chevalier and newcomer Jeanette MacDonald , written by Broadway veteran Guy Bolton . Warner Brothers produced
3540-418: A soldier during World War I . In films such as 42nd Street and Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933), Berkeley choreographed a number of films in his unique style. Berkeley's numbers typically begin on a stage but gradually transcend the limitations of theatrical space: his ingenious routines, involving human bodies forming patterns like a kaleidoscope, could never fit onto a real stage and the intended perspective
3717-458: A story about piano-playing brothers, citing familial dysfunction as a common theme among his work. Although he felt a story about a waning piano act would provide strong material for a feature-length film, some of Kloves's peers warned him "it was a completely bizarre, terrible idea for a movie", expressing concerns that its dark subject matter and frequent arguments would not translate well on screen. Kloves conducted little research while penning
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#17328758438463894-525: A string of successes with live action fantasy adaptations of several of their animated features , Disney produced a live action version of Beauty and the Beast , the first of this live action fantasy adaptation pack to be an all-out musical, and features new songs as well as new lyrics to both the Gaston number and the reprise of the title song. Bill Condon , who directed Dreamgirls , directed Beauty and
4071-465: A strong sense of rhythm and phrasing, Stevens worked with Pfeiffer to finesse her pronunciation. The film consists of 27 songs, at least four of which are performed by Pfeiffer, including " More Than You Know ", " Ten Cents A Dance ", " Makin' Whoopee " and " My Funny Valentine ". The actress was mostly unfamiliar with The Fabulous Baker Boys ' selection of Tin Pan Alley standards, thus she studied
4248-448: A sudden decrease in stable gigs and loss of income, Frank decides to hire a female singer to revive interest in their act. After auditioning 37 unsuccessful candidates, they meet Susie Diamond , a former escort who demands an audition despite being several minutes late. Although initially at odds with Frank over her boldness and unprofessionalism, Susie impresses both brothers with her audition, and they hire her. Their debut performance as
4425-414: A trio is flawed but ultimately well-received, and the rebranded act gradually receives better gigs and higher salaries in return. The now in-demand trio is booked for an extended engagement at a luxurious resort. Jack and Susie flirt with each other cautiously in-between gigs, but neither acts upon their feelings. Noticing a growing attraction between them, Frank forbids Jack from pursuing Susie in fear that
4602-489: A way to break away from their typecasting. For instance, the multi-talented James Cagney had originally risen to fame as a stage singer and dancer, but his repeated casting in "tough guy" roles and mob films gave him few chances to display these talents. Cagney's Oscar -winning role in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) allowed him to sing and dance, and he considered it to be one of his finest moments. Many comedies (and
4779-512: Is a 1989 American romantic comedy drama musical film written and directed by Steve Kloves . The film follows a piano act consisting of two brothers, who hire an attractive female singer to help revive their waning career. After a period of success, complications ensue when the younger brother develops romantic feelings for the singer. Brothers Jeff Bridges and Beau Bridges star as the eponymous Baker Boys, while Michelle Pfeiffer plays lounge singer Susie Diamond . The Fabulous Baker Boys
4956-549: Is a character study. In the book Virtue and Vice in Popular Film , author Joseph H. Kupfer identified sibling love , conflict, artistry, and survival among topics the film explores. In a review of the film, Alan Jones of Radio Times described The Fabulous Baker Boys as a "salute to family, romance, friends and disillusionment". According to Pfeiffer, the film is largely about people following their dreams. She identified Susie as an adventurous character who embraces life and
5133-432: Is considered the first African American A-list film star. Celebrated director Howard Hawks also ventured into the genre with Gentlemen Prefer Blondes . In the 1960s, 1970s, and continuing up to today, the musical film became less of a bankable genre that could be relied upon for sure-fire hits. Audiences for them lessened and fewer musical films were produced as the genre became less mainstream and more specialized. In
5310-502: Is nearly out of sight. Screenwriter Steve Kloves was inspired to write The Fabulous Baker Boys based on Ferrante & Teicher , a piano duo he had grown up watching perform on The Ed Sullivan Show during the 1960s. He found himself fascinated by " blue-collar entertainment – people who work in the arts in a kind of working class way." Remembering that during his childhood parents typically enrolled their children in piano lessons simply to "give them culture", he decided to write
5487-405: Is not included on the soundtrack album, which only features two of Pfeiffer's solos: "Makin' Whoopee" and "My Funny Valentine". After the film's release, Pfeiffer was offered a recording contract for her musical efforts but declined. Most of Jeff and Beau's piano playing was dubbed for the final film, despite both actors knowing how to play the piano. They worked with a teacher to learn all of
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5664-432: Is of no concern to him. Susie accepts the job after a final performance with The Fabulous Baker Boys, and the two part ways following a heated argument in which Susie accuses Jack of being a coward in his pursuits of both her and his career. Jack and Frank quarrel about the increasingly humiliating gigs Frank has been booking them due to Susie's departure, which Frank blames Jack for. After nearly breaking Frank's hand during
5841-422: Is pragmatic. Jack and Frank also have opposing views on their lives, careers, and Susie. Moira Macdonald of The Seattle Times wrote that, although Jack and Susie are the film's romantic couple, its true love story is between Jack and Frank. Film Threat said, with Susie, "there's no heart of gold. There's just a heart, one that keeps Jack at highway's length, merely working with him at first, but soon enough
6018-471: Is so sensationally alluring [that it] might blind you to how good the Bridges brothers are", particularly praising Beau's performance. Maslin felt Beau was provided with his own "chance to shine", embodying "the seniority Frank needs to keep the unruly, undependable Jack in line", while Kempley declared Jeff's performance the best of his career. Despite feeling the film is "hardly original", Time Out described
6195-405: Is the key to the film's considerable emotional pull, as you're allowed to give yourself over to the narrative's purplish pathos without feeling as if you're being set up for an elaborate, ironic joke". The critic likened some of Kloves's dialogue to classic Hollywood films Mildred Pierce (1945) and Sweet Smell of Success (1957). Prior to its release, the film received significant press for
6372-423: Is therefore unlikely to "do one thing—including being a singer—for the rest of her life", whereas Jack "thinks when he turns a corner that a bus is going to run over him", serving as his "mirror image". Pfeiffer also identified the character Nina as a clue to Susie's own upbringing. Frank Calvillo of Cinapse wrote that Jack, Susie and Frank "have all been through the [w]ringer of life in one way or another and have
6549-526: Is viewing from straight above. Musical stars such as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were among the most popular and highly respected personalities in Hollywood during the classical era; the Fred and Ginger pairing was particularly successful, resulting in a number of classic films such as Top Hat (1935), Swing Time (1936), and Shall We Dance (1937). Many dramatic actors gladly participated in musicals as
6726-437: The Harry Potter film series, one of the most successful film franchises of all time . J. K. Rowling , author of the Harry Potter books, had little authority over whom would adapt her novels, but admitted to being a fan of The Fabulous Baker Boys . In the book Martini , author David Taylor credited The Fabulous Baker Boys with helping revive the appearances of martinis, cocktails, and cocktail lounges in films during
6903-564: The Academy Award for Best Original Song (1938), the film earned an ASCAP Film and Television Award (1989) for Bob Hope's signature song " Thanks for the Memory ". During the late 1940s and into the early 1950s, a production unit at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer headed by Arthur Freed made the transition from old-fashioned musical films, whose formula had become repetitive, to something new. (However, they also produced technicolor remakes of such musicals as Show Boat , which had previously been filmed in
7080-537: The Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama , but lost the Academy Award to Jessica Tandy . The Fabulous Baker Boys are a piano duo consisting of brothers Jack and Frank Baker. For 15 years, they have been performing show tunes in bars and lounges throughout Seattle, Washington on a pair of matching grand pianos. While Frank dutifully serves as the duo's manager, Jack has grown weary of
7257-594: The Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy in their respective years, while such films as The Phantom of the Opera , Hairspray , Mamma Mia! , Nine , Into the Woods , The Greatest Showman , Mary Poppins Returns , Rocketman , Cyrano , Tick, Tick... Boom! , Elvis , and The Color Purple were only nominated. Chicago was also the first musical since Oliver! to win Best Picture at
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7434-500: The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress . At the time, she was one of only seven actresses to win a Golden Globe and all four major critics' organizations awards for a single performance. Despite being largely favored to win the Academy Award, she ultimately lost to Jessica Tandy for Driving Miss Daisy , becoming the only one of the seven actresses to not win the Academy Award for
7611-634: The National Board of Review cited it among the year's 10 best . The Washington Post declared The Fabulous Baker Boys one of the 10 best films of the 1980s. The Fabulous Baker Boys was nominated for several awards and accolades. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards at the 62nd Academy Awards in 1990: Best Actress for Pfeiffer, Best Cinematography for Ballhaus, Best Original Score for Grusin and Best Film Editing for William Steinnkamp . The film ultimately lost all four awards for which it had been nominated. Pfeiffer dominated
7788-643: The Sherman Brothers . Starting with 1989's The Little Mermaid , the Disney Renaissance gave new life to the musical film. Other successful animated musicals included Aladdin , The Hunchback of Notre Dame , and Pocahontas from Disney proper, The Nightmare Before Christmas from Disney division Touchstone Pictures, The Prince of Egypt from DreamWorks, Anastasia from Fox and Don Bluth, Eight Crazy Nights from Columbia, and South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut from Paramount. Beauty and
7965-515: The University of California, Los Angeles but dropped out when he was not admitted into the film school in his third year. As an unpaid intern for a Hollywood agent, he gained attention for a screenplay he wrote called Swings . This led to a meeting where he successfully pitched Racing with the Moon (1984). His first experience with professional screenwriting left him wanting more interaction with
8142-596: The "Golden Age" of Hindi cinema . Some of the most critically acclaimed Hindi films of all time were produced during this period. Examples include Pyaasa (1957) and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), directed by Guru Dutt and written by Abrar Alvi , Awaara (1951) and Shree 420 (1955), directed by Raj Kapoor and written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas , and Aan (1952), directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Dilip Kumar . These films expressed social themes mainly dealing with working-class life in India , particularly urban life in
8319-408: The "Makin' Whoopee" scene was the only dress Jensen designed herself. Fashion designer Ronaldus Shamask designed the black cocktail dress purchased for Susie's first performance, which Jensen tailored to appear skin-tight on Pfeiffer. Kloves told cinematographer Michael Ballhaus that, aesthetically, he had envisioned the film as an Edward Hopper painting: "I always saw the movie in terms of
8496-474: The 1930s it was clear that if the Soviet cinema was to compete with its Western counterparts, it would have to give audiences what they wanted: the glamour and fantasy they got from Hollywood. The musical film, which emerged at that time, embodied the ideal combination of entertainment and official ideology. A struggle between laughter for laughter's sake and entertainment with a clear ideological message would define
8673-518: The 1930s, the musical films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers became massive cultural fixtures in the eyes of the American public. These films included, Top Hat (1935), Follow the Fleet , Swing Time (both 1936), and Shall We Dance (1937). Victor Fleming's The Wizard of Oz (1939) would become a landmark film for movie musical as it experimented with new technology such as Technicolor . During
8850-645: The 1930s.) In 1939, Freed was hired as associate producer for the film Babes in Arms . Starting in 1944 with Meet Me in St. Louis , the Freed Unit worked somewhat independently of its own studio to produce some of the most popular and well-known examples of the genre. The products of this unit include Easter Parade (1948), On the Town (1949), An American in Paris (1951), Singin' in
9027-690: The 1940s and 1950s, musical films from MGM musicals regularly premiered. These works included: Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), Easter Parade (1948), On the Town (1949), An American in Paris (1951), Singin' in the Rain (1952), The Band Wagon (1953), High Society (1956), and Gigi (1958). During this time, films outside the Arthur Freed unit at MGM included Holiday Inn (1942), White Christmas (1954), and Funny Face (1957) as well as Oklahoma! (1955), The King and I (1956), Carousel , and South Pacific (1958). These films of
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#17328758438469204-639: The 1960s created specifically for film were Mary Poppins and The Jungle Book , two of Disney's biggest hits of all time. The phenomenal box-office performance of The Sound of Music gave the major Hollywood studios more confidence to produce lengthy, large-budget musicals. Despite the resounding success of some of these films, Hollywood also produced a large number of musical flops in the late 1960s and early 1970s which appeared to seriously misjudge public taste. The commercially and/or critically unsuccessful films included Camelot , Finian's Rainbow , Hello Dolly! , Sweet Charity , Doctor Dolittle , Half
9381-653: The 1960s, films based on stage musicals continued to be critical and box-office successes. These films included, West Side Story (1961), Gypsy (1962), The Music Man (1962), Bye Bye Birdie (1963), My Fair Lady , Mary Poppins (both 1964), The Sound of Music (1965), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum , How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying , Thoroughly Modern Millie (all 1967), Oliver! , and Funny Girl (both 1968). In
9558-631: The 1960s, the critical and box-office success of the films West Side Story , Gypsy , The Music Man , Bye Bye Birdie , My Fair Lady , Mary Poppins , The Sound of Music , A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum , The Jungle Book , Thoroughly Modern Millie , Oliver! , and Funny Girl suggested that the traditional musical was in good health, while French filmmaker Jacques Demy 's jazz musicals The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort were popular with international critics. However popular musical tastes were being heavily affected by rock and roll and
9735-738: The 1970s, film culture and the changing demographics of filmgoers placed greater emphasis on gritty realism, while the pure entertainment and theatricality of classical-era Hollywood musicals was seen as old-fashioned. Despite this, Scrooge (1970), Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), Fiddler on the Roof (1971), Cabaret (1972), 1776 (1972), Disney's Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), and Pete's Dragon (1977), as well as Grease and The Wiz (both 1978), were more traditional musicals closely adapted from stage shows and were strong successes with critics and audiences. Throughout
9912-516: The 1980s and 1990s, musicals tended to be mainly coming from the Disney animated films of the period, from composers and lyricists, Howard Ashman , Alan Menken , and Stephen Schwartz . The Disney Renaissance started with 1989's The Little Mermaid , then followed by Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), The Lion King (1994), Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Hercules (1997), and Mulan (1998). In
10089-463: The 1988 London Film Festival where he was being honored due to his commitment to filming The Fabulous Baker Boys . Before production began, Pfeiffer was warned that preparing for Susie would require twice as much effort as a typical acting performance, likening the process to "a musician preparing to do an album." On camera, Pfeiffer lip-synced to the songs she recorded in the recording studio. Principal photography began on December 5, 1988, and
10266-650: The 1989-1990 awards season , winning nearly every award for which she had been nominated. In addition to the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama , Pfeiffer won the National Board of Review Award for Best Actress , the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress , the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress , the Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress and
10443-549: The 1990s, the three biggest Bollywood movie stars have been the " Three Khans ": Aamir Khan , Shah Rukh Khan , and Salman Khan . Combined, they have starred in most of the top ten highest-grossing Bollywood films . The three Khans have had successful careers since the late 1980s, and have dominated the Indian box office since the 1990s, across three decades. Baz Luhrmann stated that his successful musical film Moulin Rouge! (2001)
10620-453: The 1990s. MyNorthwest.com 's Feliks Banel called the film "one of the most critically acclaimed Hollywood movies ever filmed in Seattle". One year after the film's release, Beau said "there will definitely not be any follow-up" to The Fabulous Baker Boys , claiming "There's not much more to say about those characters." However, the actor expressed interest in working with his brother again on
10797-556: The 21st century, the musical genre has been rejuvenated with darker musicals, musical biopics, musical remakes, epic drama musicals and comedy drama musicals such as Moulin Rouge! (2001), Chicago (2002), The Phantom of the Opera (2004), Rent (2005), Dreamgirls (2006), Across the Universe , Enchanted , Hairspray , Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (all 2007), Mamma Mia! (2008), Nine (2009), The Muppets (2011), Les Misérables (2012), Into
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#173287584384610974-557: The Academy Awards. Joshua Oppenheimer 's Academy Award-nominated documentary The Act of Killing may be considered a nonfiction musical. One specific musical trend was the rising number of jukebox musicals based on music from various pop/rock artists on the big screen, some of which based on Broadway shows. Examples of Broadway-based jukebox musical films included Mamma Mia ! ( ABBA ), Rock of Ages , and Sunshine on Leith ( The Proclaimers ). Original ones included Across
11151-521: The Beast , The Lion King , and others were adapted for the stage after their blockbuster success. In the 21st century, movie musicals were reborn with darker musicals, musical biopics, epic drama musicals and comedy drama musicals such as O Brother, Where Art Thou? , Moulin Rouge! , Chicago , Walk the Line , Dreamgirls , Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street , Les Misérables , La La Land , and West Side Story ; all of which won
11328-488: The Beast . The second film of this live action fantasy adaptation pack to be an all-out musical was Aladdin and features new songs. The third film of this live action fantasy adaptation pack to be an all-out musical was The Lion King and features new songs. The fourth film of this live action fantasy adaptation pack to be an all-out musical was The Little Mermaid and features new songs with lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda , replacing Ashman. Pixar also produced Coco ,
11505-412: The Bollywood blockbuster format. Yaadon Ki Baarat (1973), directed by Hussain and written by Salim-Javed, has been identified as the first masala film and the "first" quintessentially "Bollywood" film. Salim-Javed went on to write more successful masala films in the 1970s and 1980s. Masala films launched Amitabh Bachchan into the biggest Bollywood movie star of the 1970s and 1980s. A landmark for
11682-443: The Bridges as "a superb double act", writing Jeff particularly "manages with very sparse dialogue to convey a wealth of information about a less than sympathetic character". Although Variety felt nothing is particularly original about the film, they praised the cast and Kloves's direction, predicting Pfeiffer's performance of "Makin' Whoopee" will be remembered for years to come. Although Hilary Mantel of The Spectator praised
11859-408: The Bridges brothers, old wounds from the 20 years they have both been working in the movies." While Macdonald considered Seattle to be as much of a main character as the film's cast, Calvillo argues that the city "could be any cold metropolis, and with the exception of cars, hairstyles, and fashion, there's really no telling when the movie actually takes place." Observing that much has changed about
12036-825: The Chocolate Factory , Pete's Dragon , and Disney's Bedknobs and Broomsticks were also released in the 1970s, the latter winning the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects . By the 1980s, financiers grew increasingly confident in the musical genre, partly buoyed by the relative health of the musical on Broadway and London's West End . Productions of the 1980s and 1990s included The Apple , Xanadu , The Blues Brothers , Annie , Monty Python's The Meaning of Life , The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas , Victor/Victoria , Footloose , Fast Forward , A Chorus Line , Little Shop of Horrors , Forbidden Zone , Absolute Beginners , Labyrinth , Newsies , Evita , and Everyone Says I Love You . However, Can't Stop
12213-833: The Dog in the Night-Time . Since 2016, Kloves produced the Fantastic Beasts films, a spinoff prequel series to the main Harry Potter series. Kloves co-wrote the third installment with J.K. Rowling . Kloves produced the Andy Serkis -directed movie, Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle . His daughter, Callie, wrote the screenplay. Kloves is now set to write the screenplay for the film adaptation of T. J. Newman 's novel Drowning: The Rescue of Flight 1421 for Warner Bros . Special thanks The Fabulous Baker Boys The Fabulous Baker Boys
12390-650: The Flame (1930), Song of the West (1930), Sweet Kitty Bellairs (1930), Under a Texas Moon (1930), Bride of the Regiment (1930), Whoopee! (1930), King of Jazz (1930), Viennese Nights (1930), and Kiss Me Again (1930). In addition, there were scores of musical features released with color sequences. Hollywood released more than 100 musical films in 1930, but only 14 in 1931. By late 1930, audiences had been oversaturated with musicals and studios were forced to cut
12567-465: The Gershwins, respectively. Warner Bros. produced Calamity Jane and A Star Is Born ; the former film was a vehicle for Doris Day , while the latter provided a big-screen comeback for Judy Garland, who had been out of the spotlight since 1950. Meanwhile, director Otto Preminger , better known for "message pictures", made Carmen Jones and Porgy and Bess , both starring Dorothy Dandridge , who
12744-685: The Music , starring the Village People , was a calamitous attempt to resurrect the old-style musical and was released to audience indifference in 1980. Little Shop of Horrors was based on an off-Broadway musical adaptation of a 1960 Roger Corman film, a precursor of later film-to-stage-to-film adaptations, including The Producers . Many animated films of the period – predominately from Disney – included traditional musical numbers. Howard Ashman , Alan Menken , and Stephen Schwartz had previous musical theater experience and wrote songs for animated films during this time, supplanting Disney workhorses
12921-499: The Musical (all 2022), The Little Mermaid , Wonka , The Color Purple (all 2023), Mean Girls , Wicked , Mufasa: The Lion King , Joker: Folie à Deux , A Complete Unknown (all 2024). The 1930s through the early 1950s are considered to be the golden age of the musical film, when the genre's popularity was at its highest in the Western world . Disney 's Snow White and
13098-496: The Rain (1952), The Band Wagon (1953) and Gigi (1958). Non-Freed musicals from the studio included Seven Brides for Seven Brothers in 1954 and High Society in 1956, and the studio distributed Samuel Goldwyn 's Guys and Dolls in 1955. This era saw musical stars become household names, including Judy Garland , Gene Kelly , Ann Miller , Donald O'Connor , Cyd Charisse , Mickey Rooney , Vera-Ellen , Jane Powell , Howard Keel , and Kathryn Grayson . Fred Astaire
13275-514: The Seven Dwarfs , the earliest Disney animated feature film, was a musical which won an honorary Oscar for Walt Disney at the 11th Academy Awards . Musical short films were made by Lee de Forest in 1923–24. Beginning in 1926, thousands of Vitaphone shorts were made, many featuring bands, vocalists, and dancers. The earliest feature-length films with synchronized sound had only a soundtrack of music and occasional sound effects that played while
13452-487: The Soviet musical was first and foremost a form of propaganda. Vladimir Lenin said that cinema was "the most important of the arts". His successor, Joseph Stalin , also recognized the power of cinema in efficiently spreading Communist Party doctrine. Films were widely popular in the 1920s, but it was foreign cinema that dominated the Soviet filmgoing market. Films from Germany and the U.S. proved more entertaining than Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein 's historical dramas. By
13629-924: The Unicorn , and Spellbound . Biopics about music artists and showmen were also big in the 21st century. Examples include 8 Mile ( Eminem ), Ray ( Ray Charles ), Walk the Line ( Johnny Cash and June Carter ), La Vie en Rose ( Édith Piaf ), Notorious ( Biggie Smalls ), Jersey Boys ( The Four Seasons ) Love & Mercy ( Brian Wilson ), CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story ( TLC ), Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B ( Aaliyah ), Get on Up ( James Brown ), Whitney and I Wanna Dance With Somebody ( Whitney Houston ), Straight Outta Compton ( N.W.A ), The Greatest Showman ( P. T. Barnum ), Bohemian Rhapsody ( Freddie Mercury ), The Dirt ( Mötley Crüe ), Judy ( Judy Garland ), Rocketman ( Elton John ), Respect ( Aretha Franklin ) and Elvis ( Elvis Presley ). Grossing over $ 900 million at
13806-582: The Universe ( The Beatles ), Moulin Rouge! (various pop hits), Idlewild ( Outkast ) and Yesterday ( The Beatles ). Disney also returned to musicals with Enchanted , The Princess and the Frog , Tangled , Winnie the Pooh , The Muppets , Frozen , Muppets Most Wanted , Into the Woods , Moana , Mary Poppins Returns , Frozen II , Encanto , Better Nate Than Ever , Disenchanted , Wish , Moana 2 and Mufasa: The Lion King . Following
13983-537: The Woods (2014), La La Land (2016), Beauty and the Beast , The Greatest Showman (both 2017), Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again! , A Star Is Born , Mary Poppins Returns , Bohemian Rhapsody (all 2018), Aladdin , Rocketman , The Lion King (all 2019), In the Heights , Respect , Dear Evan Hansen , Cyrano , Everybody's Talking About Jamie , Tick, Tick… Boom! , West Side Story (all 2021), Elvis , Spirited , Disenchanted , Matilda
14160-496: The actors portrayed their characters just as they did in silent films: without audible dialogue. The Jazz Singer , released in 1927 by Warner Brothers , was the first to include an audio track including non- diegetic music and diegetic music, but it had only a short sequence of spoken dialogue. This feature-length film was also a musical, featuring Al Jolson singing "Dirty Hands, Dirty Face", "Toot, Toot, Tootsie", " Blue Skies ", and " My Mammy ". Historian Scott Eyman wrote, "As
14337-436: The actors so that the characters would stay true to his vision. Kloves wrote The Fabulous Baker Boys and also intended it to be his directorial debut. After years of trying to sell the project in Hollywood, the film finally got off the ground and was released in 1989. The Fabulous Baker Boys did reasonably well and was critically acclaimed, but his next shot as writer/director for Flesh and Bone in 1993 fared poorly at
14514-464: The actress described her as "one of the most alive characters that I've played ... She's a purely emotional creature ... She's not afraid to take risks, and she doesn't lie to herself ... There's a purity in her honesty that I really respect." Kloves recalled that some of his peers were surprised by his choice in Pfeiffer because they doubted her comedic acting abilities, but the director maintains that "she
14691-518: The album, music critic Scott Yanow wrote that Pfeiffer "does a credible job singing" with both of her solos, while Encyclopedia.com contributor Victoria Price said "Grusin successfully mirrors the feel of the sexy standards performed by Michele Pfeiffer". The soundtrack peaked at 97 on the Billboard 200 . According to a survey conducted by Billboard , The Fabulous Baker Boys was the fifth best-selling jazz album of 1989. The Fabulous Baker Boys
14868-406: The attraction happens, though in an atypical way because these two are atypical. It's not easy and it's not love because this isn't the kind of movie for that." Turner Classic Movie 's biography of Beau reported that several critics perceived his performance as " partly autobiographical ". Film critic Roger Ebert believes "There's probably some autobiographical truth lurking beneath the rivalry of
15045-572: The backlots of the thrillers and studio musicals of the 1930s and 1940s." Similarly, Stefan Milne of the Seattle Metropolitan wrote that the film resembles "1940s Hollywood romance and glamour" despite its 1980s setting. Describing The Fabulous Baker Boys as potentially "the loneliest mainstream American movie since In a Lonely Place ", Bowen credits the director with "fashioning something that's conscious of its artistic heritage without scanning as self-conscious, like most neo-noirs . This
15222-419: The beginning, Pfeiffer proved difficult to contact at the time, therefore he cast Jeff first in the interim. Without an actress secured for the female lead, both the cast and crew were momentarily concerned about the film's progress. Several actresses were considered for the role of lounge singer Susie Diamond , including Jodie Foster , Jennifer Jason Leigh , and Debra Winger . Singer Madonna turned down
15399-1088: The big screen. It set a new template for Bollywood musical romance films that defined Hindi cinema in the 1990s. The period of Hindi cinema from the 1990s onwards is referred to as "New Bollywood" cinema, linked to economic liberalisation in India during the early 1990s. By the early 1990s, the pendulum had swung back toward family-centric romantic musicals. Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak was followed by blockbusters such as Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), Chandni (1989), Hum Aapke Hain Kaun (1994), Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), Raja Hindustani (1996), Dil To Pagal Hai (1997), Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha (1998) and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). A new generation of popular actors emerged, such as Aamir Khan, Aditya Pancholi , Ajay Devgan , Akshay Kumar , Salman Khan ( Salim Khan's son ), and Shahrukh Khan , and actresses such as Madhuri Dixit , Sridevi , Juhi Chawla , Meenakshi Seshadri , Manisha Koirala , Kajol , and Karisma Kapoor . Since
15576-404: The biggest difference between film and stage musicals is the use of lavish background scenery and locations that would be impractical in a theater. Musical films characteristically contain elements reminiscent of theater; performers often treat their song and dance numbers as if a live audience were watching. In a sense, the viewer becomes the diegetic audience, as the performer looks directly into
15753-464: The box office Bohemian Rhapsody is the most commercially successful musical biopic. Director Damien Chazelle created a musical film called La La Land , starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone . It was meant to reintroduce the traditional jazz style of song numbers with influences from the Golden Age of Hollywood and Jacques Demy 's French musicals while incorporating a contemporary/modern take on
15930-404: The box office. Kloves then stopped writing for three years. Realizing that he had to return to writing to support his family, he began adapting Michael Chabon 's novel Wonder Boys into a screenplay. Kloves was offered the chance to direct but he declined, preferring to direct only his own original work. This was his first try at adapting another work to film. His screenplay was nominated for
16107-425: The box-office. Marisol , Joselito , Pili & Mili , and Rocío Dúrcal were the major figures of musical films from the 1960s to 1970s. Due to Spanish transition to democracy and the rise of " Movida culture ", the musical genre fell in production and box-office, only saved by Carlos Saura and his flamenco musical films. Unlike the musical films of Hollywood and Bollywood, popularly identified with escapism,
16284-431: The burnished red of the booths, a kind of dark crimson with amber light and a slightly threadbare quality, like the surroundings are all going to seed a bit." Ballhaus also helped determine the actors' blocking for certain scenes. Ballhaus claims Kloves allowed him " complete freedom " over filming because Kloves does not consider himself to be a visual director. Ballhaus decided to use "deliberately ugly" lighting during
16461-434: The camera and performs to it. With the advent of sound in the late 1920s, musicals gained popularity with the public and are exemplified by the films of Busby Berkeley , a choreographer known for his distinctive and elaborate set pieces featuring multiple showgirls. These lavish production numbers are typified by his choreographic work in 42nd Street , Gold Diggers of 1933 , Footlight Parade (all from 1933). During
16638-537: The city since the film's initial release, Macdonald concluded that The Fabulous Baker Boys serves as "a time capsule , for Seattle and for me ... Seattle and I aren't the same anymore, but 'The Fabulous Baker Boys' — elegantly and forever frozen in time — reminds us of who we were." Film Threat credited Ballhaus's cinematography with "mak[ing] Seattle as alive as the characters, as active as their desires", whereas Jack walking through Seattle represents "the feeling of an entire city, of everyone doing whatever they do, and
16815-667: The comic actress Martha Raye and the young comedian Bob Hope in Paramount Pictures musical anthology The Big Broadcast of 1938 . The film also showcased the talents of several internationally recognized musical artists including: Kirsten Flagstad (Norwegian operatic soprano), Wilfred Pelletier (Canadian conductor of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra ), Tito Guizar (Mexican tenor), Shep Fields conducting his Rippling Rhythm Jazz Orchestra and John Serry Sr. (Italian-American concert accordionist). In addition to
16992-404: The conventions of Hindi cinema for decades. In the 1960s and early 1970s, the industry was dominated by musical romance films with "romantic hero" leads, the most popular being Rajesh Khanna . Other actors during this period include Shammi Kapoor , Jeetendra , Sanjeev Kumar , and Shashi Kapoor , and actresses like Sharmila Tagore , Mumtaz , Saira Banu , Helen and Asha Parekh . By
17169-513: The couple returns to Seattle, Frank quickly deduces that Jack and Susie have slept with each other; tensions arise when both rebel against Frank's creative control and song choices. After spending another night with Jack, Susie tells him she has received a lucrative job offer to record television jingles for cat food, which would require her to leave the group. Jack is quietly heartbroken that Susie would even consider leaving but refuses to admit how he truly feels, instead acting as though her departure
17346-929: The decline of the musical film is Indian cinema , especially the Bollywood film industry based in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), where most of films have been, and still are, musicals. The majority of films produced in the Tamil industry , based in Chennai (formerly Madras), the Sandalwood industry , based in Bangalore , the Telugu industry , based in Hyderabad , and the Malayalam industry are also musicals. Despite this exception of almost every Indian movie being
17523-469: The dissolution of WW Productions, Weinstein became an executive consultant at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) under Alan Ladd, Jr ., while Rosenberg eventually left Warner Bros to found Mirage Productions with filmmaker Sydney Pollack . Partnering with Mirage, Weinstein briefly relocated The Fabulous Baker Boys to MGM, only for the film to move once again to 20th Century Fox following Ladd, Jr.'s departure from MGM. Kloves attributes his struggles with getting
17700-471: The end of the day it wasn't a gimmick – Beau was terrific." Beau recalled that the studio had wanted a more famous actor to play the elder Baker, but Jeff lobbied for him. After sharing the script with him and insisting that he read it, Beau was worried that the studio's resistance to cast him would threaten Jeff's prospects. Jeff encouraged Beau to show the studio a Polaroid of both brothers performing street theatre when they were teenagers. Beau believes
17877-419: The entire shoot." Kloves and the three main actors visited local bars to study lounge performers, while Kloves directed improvisational sessions at the Bridges' homes. Both Jeff and Beau had piano keyboards in their dressing rooms and spent several months learning to play the film's songs during pre-production , specifically studying how their musical performances should appear to onlookers. Jeff did not attend
18054-476: The era typically relied on the star power of such film stars as Fred Astaire , Gene Kelly , Bing Crosby , Frank Sinatra , Judy Garland , Ann Miller , Kathryn Grayson , and Howard Keel . They also relied on film directors such as Stanley Donen and Vincente Minnelli as well as songwriters Comden and Green , Rodgers and Hammerstein , Irving Berlin , Cole Porter , and the Gershwin Brothers . During
18231-492: The familiarity of its characters "does nothing to make them less dazzlingly attractive", despite finding some scenes and plotlines unnecessary. Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three and a half stars out of a possible four, writing that while the romantic-rivals in showbiz premise had been utilized in film for decades, "intriguing casting" and a "sure hand for the material" elevated The Fabulous Baker Boys above cliches. Desson Howe of The Washington Post
18408-464: The fifth film, stating that "The fourth film, Goblet of Fire , was really hard to do. I wrote on it for two years. But it’s not that simple and I don't know that I'll ever fully understand why I didn't do it." After Michael Goldenberg wrote the screenplay for the fifth film, Kloves then returned to write the sixth, seventh and eighth installments. In 2011, Kloves was attached to work on a film adaptation of Mark Haddon 's novel The Curious Incident of
18585-466: The fight was improvised, including the moment Jack threatens to break Frank's hand so he can no longer play the piano. While Jeff believes they had neglected to choose a safe word should either of them become truly injured while fighting, Beau claims his brother ignored their safe word to the point where Beau visited the hospital because he thought he had really broken his hand. Jeff explained that although he had heard Beau screaming in pain, he thought he
18762-430: The film "cemented Michelle Pfeiffer's reputation as a movie star." While naming The Fabulous Baker Boys the 24th best romance film of all time, The Guardian 's Jane Graham said the film "made her the biggest female film star in the world, and catapulted her to the top of every Most Desirable Female survey for most of the 90s." The sequence in which Pfeiffer performs "Makin' Whoopee" atop Jeff's grand piano has become
18939-515: The film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. Pauline Kael of The New Yorker said The Fabulous Baker Boys defines 1980s glamour. Praising its performances, Ballhaus' camera work and Grusin's score, Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader wrote that the film demonstrates "plenty of old-fashioned virtues". Time film critic Richard Schickel called the film "a Hollywood rarity", hailing Susie and Jack's relationship as "one of
19116-474: The film ended and applause grew with the houselights, Sam Goldwyn 's wife Frances looked around at the celebrities in the crowd. She saw 'terror in all their faces', she said, as if they knew that 'the game they had been playing for years was finally over'." Still, only isolated sequences featured "live" sound; most of the film had only a synchronous musical score. In 1928, Warner Brothers followed this up with another Jolson part-talkie, The Singing Fool , which
19293-423: The film found it "funny and moving". Wallis Nicita was the film's casting director. Bill Murray briefly expressed interest in starring while the film was in early development. The studio had also considered casting Murray's Saturday Night Live castmate, comedian Chevy Chase , as either Jack or Frank Baker, despite both actors having little musical experience. Brothers Dennis and Randy Quaid were offered
19470-542: The film himself, he considered his prospects unlikely due to his young age (he was 25 years-old when he first started optioning the script to filmmakers) and lack of filmmaking experience, having only written one film prior. Fearing a different director would struggle to fulfill his vision, his determination ultimately delayed the project by several years. Kloves decided to keep the script to himself until he could secure funding that would also allow him to direct his own project. Kloves finally sold The Fabulous Baker Boys as
19647-437: The film made to Warner Bros.' reluctance to release the film's rights to a different studio "and watch it be a success for someone else", despite Warner Bros. disinterest in producing the film themselves. Pollack was retained as an executive producer. Kloves credits Rosenberg, Pollack, and Weinstein with helping him earn approval to direct the film, having been fans of his previous work. The film's development began in 1986, and
19824-406: The film was cast, during which Kloves observed each main cast member discover how they would approach their respective roles. Kloves was particularly impressed with Beau's process, explaining, "in the first week of rehearsal he went back and forth between being very high and very low ... [by] ... the second week he suddenly found the sweet spot for the character and stayed there with perfect pitch for
20001-456: The film was shot mostly in Los Angeles , California, from December 1988 to March 1989. The Fabulous Baker Boys was released on October 13, 1989 to critical acclaim, but underperformed at the box office . The National Board of Review named it one of the year's 10 best films . Reviewers praised Pfeiffer's performance in particular, often selecting her rendition of " Makin' Whoopee " on top of
20178-444: The film would simply "evaporate" without Pfeiffer, concluding, "make no mistake: It's Michelle Pfeiffer who puts the 'fabulous' into Baker Boys." Both Jeff and Beau's performances were also widely praised. Schickel called the actors "better than fabulous - Jeff not quite falling over the line into unredeemable cynicism, Beau never succumbing to the pull of moral blandness." Writing for The Buffalo News , Jeff Simon said "Pfeiffer
20355-492: The film's early scenes in undesirable venues and gradually improve the lighting by the time the characters arrive at the resort. Kloves and Ballhaus also favored simple camera movements and opted to reserve dramatic camera movements for stand-out scenes that required higher energy, such as "Makin' Whoopee". Having developed a reputation for filming women, Ballhaus incorporated his signature 360-degree camera rotation into Pfeiffer's scene, which he had envisioned upon first reading
20532-551: The film's most famous scene. The Berlin International Film Festival said the scene "has gone down in film history". According to Adam White of The Telegraph , the musical number "is arguably one of the most famous scenes in movie history", while The Independent 's Adam White called it "one of cinema's most memorable moments". The musical sequence has also been named one of the sexiest scenes in film history by several journalists and media publications. In
20709-423: The film's music, performances and dialogue, she felt the film lacked content and plot, concluding, "its inconsequentiality soon begins to grate on the nerves." Film critic Andrew Sarris reported that, at the time of its initial release, some pundits criticized the film's melancholy tone and ambiguous ending. In terms of year-end placements, Ebert ranked The Fabulous Baker Boys the 19th best film of 1989, while
20886-413: The film's songs in order to film close-ups of their hands and faces. Grusin dubbed Jeff, while John F. Hammond dubbed Beau. Hammond also coached and produced some of Pfeiffer's vocals. Jeff said his work on The Fabulous Baker Boys has ultimately increased his standards when it comes pursuing future musical projects. The film's motion picture soundtrack was released on January 1, 1989. Reviewing
21063-414: The film, instead opting to write its first draft based on what he learned from spending time in hotels. Kloves recalled that he would sometimes visit hotel bars "and hear some guy play the piano ... and some of them were pretty good. The way my mind tripped off on it was that this guy's parents gave him piano lessons to improve his life and give him an opening into culture and there he was, 20 years later, at
21240-460: The first computer-animated musical film by the company. Other animated musical films include Rio , Dr. Seuss' The Lorax , Rio 2 , The Book of Life , Trolls , Sing , My Little Pony: The Movie , Smallfoot , UglyDolls , Trolls World Tour , Over the Moon , Vivo , Sing 2 , The Bob's Burgers Movie , Under the Boardwalk , Trolls Band Together , Leo , Thelma
21417-451: The first colour film in Hindi , Kisan Kanya . The next year, he made another colour film, a version of Mother India . However, colour did not become a popular feature until the late 1950s. At this time, lavish romantic musicals and melodramas were the staple fare at the cinema. Following India's independence , the period from the late 1940s to the early 1960s is regarded by film historians as
21594-546: The first screen operetta, The Desert Song in 1929. They spared no expense and photographed a large percentage of the film in Technicolor . This was followed by the first all-color, all-talking musical feature which was entitled On with the Show (1929). The most popular film of 1929 was the second all-color, all-talking feature which was entitled Gold Diggers of Broadway (1929). This film broke all box office records and remained
21771-541: The following Monday that the studio would be removing the film from most of these theatres by the following weekend. The Fabulous Baker Boys would go on to earn $ 18.4 million worldwide against its $ 11.5 million budget. Despite its mediocre box office performance, the film proved to be a major top-seller once released on home video, for a period trailing behind the Back to the Future franchise in terms of popularity. According to
21948-411: The former two examples; Awaara presented the city as both a nightmare and a dream, while Pyaasa critiqued the unreality of city life. Mehboob Khan 's Mother India (1957), a remake of his earlier Aurat (1940), was the first Indian film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film , which it lost by a single vote. Mother India was also an important film that defined
22125-484: The freedom and youth associated with it, and indeed Elvis Presley made a few films that have been equated with the old musicals in terms of form. A Hard Day's Night and Help! , starring the Beatles , were audacious. Most of the musical films of the 1950s and 1960s such as Oklahoma! and The Sound of Music were straightforward adaptations or restagings of successful stage productions. The most successful musicals of
22302-475: The hackneyed material they have come to perform over the years, but his complacency leaves him uninspired to pursue his talents further. Apart from occasionally playing the music he enjoys at a local jazz club, Jack's personal life largely consists of meaningless one-night stands ; caring for his aging Labrador, Eddie; and spending time with Nina, a lonely girl from his apartment building whose single mother neglects her in favor of romantic pursuits. Concerned about
22479-453: The highest-grossing film ever produced until 1939. Suddenly, the market became flooded with musicals, revues, and operettas. The following all-color musicals were produced in 1929 and 1930 alone: The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929), The Show of Shows (1929), Sally (1929), The Vagabond King (1930), Follow Thru (1930), Bright Lights (1930), Golden Dawn (1930), Hold Everything (1930), The Rogue Song (1930), Song of
22656-533: The idea of Pfeiffer playing a former sex worker and the novelty of the Bridges brothers portraying brothers on-screen. The Fabulous Baker Boys was released on October 13, 1989 in 858 theaters, grossing $ 3,313,815 during its opening weekend. Tickets initially sold well in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles due to strong word of mouth . Originally released in over 800 theatres during its opening weekend, 20th Century Fox head of distribution Tom Sherak informed Kloves
22833-635: The late 1980s, Hindi cinema experienced another period of stagnation, with a decline in box office turnout, due to increasing violence, decline in musical melodic quality, and rise in video piracy, leading to middle-class family audiences abandoning theaters. The turning point came with Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988), directed by Mansoor Khan , written and produced by his father Nasir Hussain , and starring his cousin Aamir Khan with Juhi Chawla . Its blend of youthfulness, wholesome entertainment, emotional quotients and strong melodies lured family audiences back to
23010-639: The masala film genre was Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), directed by Manmohan Desai and written by Kader Khan . Manmohan Desai went on to successfully exploit the genre in the 1970s and 1980s. Along with Bachchan, other popular actors of this era included Feroz Khan , Mithun Chakraborty , Naseeruddin Shah , Jackie Shroff , Sanjay Dutt , Anil Kapoor and Sunny Deol . Actresses from this era included Hema Malini , Jaya Bachchan , Raakhee , Shabana Azmi , Zeenat Aman , Parveen Babi , Rekha , Dimple Kapadia , Smita Patil , Jaya Prada and Padmini Kolhapure . In
23187-414: The melancholy of a city like Seattle, the value of the story in the heart of the mainstream." Slant Magazine ' s Chuck Bowen considers the film to be a lesser-known example of the film noir genre due to its depiction of "dream worlds that offer portraits of estrangement and economic frustration", in which Seattle "is rendered ... as a surreal realm that appears to have been ported in nearly unchanged from
23364-504: The music from films that were then being released. For example, Life of the Party (1930) was originally produced as an all-color, all-talking musical comedy. Before it was released, however, the songs were cut out. The same thing happened to Fifty Million Frenchmen (1931) and Manhattan Parade (1932) both of which had been filmed entirely in Technicolor . Marlene Dietrich sang songs successfully in her films, and Rodgers and Hart wrote
23541-522: The musical film format that emerged from early Hollywood sound films. Other early influences on Bombay filmmakers included Urdu literature and the Arabian Nights . The first Indian sound film, Ardeshir Irani 's Alam Ara (1931), was a major commercial success. There was clearly a huge market for talkies and musicals; Bollywood and all the regional film industries quickly switched to sound filming. In 1937, Ardeshir Irani, of Alam Ara fame, made
23718-561: The musical's heyday. They include 1776 , The Wiz , At Long Last Love , Mame , Man of La Mancha , Lost Horizon , Godspell , Phantom of the Paradise , Funny Lady ( Barbra Streisand 's sequel to Funny Girl ), A Little Night Music , and Hair amongst others. The critical wrath against At Long Last Love , in particular, was so strong that it was never released on home video. Fantasy musical films Scrooge , The Blue Bird , The Little Prince , Willy Wonka &
23895-405: The photograph solidified his casting. Jeff believes acting opposite his brother helped make their characters' relationship and chemistry more convincing to audiences. Because Beau's character is balding in the script, Jeff shaved a bald patch onto the back of Beau's head for the film. The Fabulous Baker Boys was the first and only time Jeff and Beau appeared in the same film. While the film
24072-568: The piano onto its keys without looking down at her feet. Wanting Susie's wardrobe to accurately depict clothes she could realistically afford, costume designer Lisa Jensen sourced most of Pfeiffer's costumes from discount and vintage clothing stores throughout California, for less than $ 100 each. Although Pfeiffer's character is intended to appear sexy, Jensen opted not to simply rely on revealing clothing but rather play "hide and seek" with her body, explaining that Susie avoids clothes that are "obviously sexy". Pfeiffer's red evening gown worn during
24249-503: The premiere of the R&;B band Bloodstone 's movie Train Ride to Hollywood , but problems in distribution rendered it barely getting token theatrical release. The year 1976 saw the release of the low-budget comic musical, The First Nudie Musical , released by Paramount. The 1978 film version of Grease was a smash hit; its songs were original compositions done in a 1950s pop style. However,
24426-535: The pure entertainment and theatricality of classical-era Hollywood musicals was seen as old-fashioned. Despite this, Fiddler on the Roof and Cabaret were more traditional musicals closely adapted from stage shows and were strong successes with critics and audiences. Changing cultural mores and the abandonment of the Hays Code in 1968 also contributed to changing tastes in film audiences. The 1973 film of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice 's Jesus Christ Superstar
24603-421: The role because she found the film "too mushy". Despite liking the script, Pfeiffer was hesitant to commit to another film due to having just recently completed several prestigious projects in a row. She had originally planned to go on hiatus after filming Dangerous Liaisons (1988) until Kloves convinced her otherwise over the course of visiting her at her home for a week. Drawn to the character of Susie,
24780-411: The role of Jack's older brother Frank. Initially reluctant to entertain the "gimmick" of casting brothers as on-screen siblings, Kloves relented upon meeting Beau for the first time at a restaurant. According to Kloves, "I saw Beau walk into the restaurant, and it just hit me – he was Frank Baker. By the end of the breakfast I decided to embrace it, and it's one of the better decisions I made, because at
24957-602: The role. Film critic Roger Ebert labeled The Fabulous Baker Boys "one of the movies they will use as a document, years from now, when they begin to trace the steps by which Pfeiffer became a great star ... This is the movie of her flowering - not just as a beautiful woman, but as an actress with the ability to make you care about her, to make you feel what she feels." Ebert also compared Pfeiffer's performance to those by actresses Rita Hayworth and Marilyn Monroe. Writing for The Washington Post , Rita Kempley described Pfeiffer as "slinky and cynical, more Bacall than Bacall. Like
25134-453: The same performance. She is also the only actor to lose the Academy Award despite winning all four major critics' awards. Film critic Emanuel Levy theorized that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences opted to award Tandy due to the actress' age and the fact that her film, Driving Miss Daisy (1989), had been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture , while Pfeiffer's film
25311-554: The scars to prove it. Yet they each retain a mixture of despair and hope throughout in their own quiet ways." The group's dynamic changes once Susie is introduced and The Fabulous Baker Boys become a trio. According to the film's blurb on the Golden Globe Awards website, "Susie becomes the agent that makes them re-evaluate where they are going, and how honest they have been with each other." Calvillo believes that while Jack and Frank are cynical and optimistic, respectively, Susie
25488-461: The scene the day before it was shot, but Kloves persisted. The sequence was choreographed by Peggy Holmes , her first solo choreographing job. Pfeiffer received only one choreography lesson in preparation for the musical number, and wore knee and elbow pads during rehearsals. The scene ultimately required six hours to film; trying to appear graceful atop the slippery piano surface proved challenging for Pfeiffer, particularly when she steps down from
25665-591: The script due to its sexually suggestive nature. Feeling the scene warranted a firmer, stronger appearance from Pfeiffer, the cinematographer also prepared by watching several of her films and consulting with her makeup artist. They rehearsed the scene using a video camera prior to filming the final version. Jeff instructed his makeup artist to paint broken capillaries onto his nose every morning to demonstrate his character's alcoholism . Jeff and Beau choreographed their climactic fight scene themselves, drawing inspiration from their father's childhood lessons. Much of
25842-721: The sequel Grease 2 (released in 1982) bombed at the box-office. Films about performers which incorporated gritty drama and musical numbers interwoven as a diegetic part of the storyline were produced, such as Lady Sings the Blues , All That Jazz , and New York, New York . Some musicals made in Britain experimented with the form, such as Richard Attenborough 's Oh! What a Lovely War (released in 1969), Alan Parker 's Bugsy Malone and Ken Russell 's Tommy and Lisztomania . A number of film musicals were still being made that were financially and/or critically less successful than in
26019-676: The silent era. The beginnings of the Spanish musical were focused on romantic Spanish archetypes: Andalusian villages and landscapes, gypsies, "bandoleros", and copla and other popular folk songs included in story development. These films had even more box-office success than Hollywood premieres in Spain. The first Spanish film stars came from the musical genre: Imperio Argentina , Estrellita Castro , Florián Rey (director) and, later, Lola Flores , Sara Montiel and Carmen Sevilla . The Spanish musical started to expand and grow. Juvenile stars appear and top
26196-540: The sixth-best romance film of all time. The film is credited with establishing Pfeiffer as a bankable actress and leading lady in Hollywood. Ranking it the best performance of her career, GoldDerby deemed The Fabulous Baker Boys as "the movie that really put [Pfeiffer] over the top", describing her character as "some of the best work ever put on screen by an actress". Erin Shelly of the Arizona Daily Sun believes
26373-430: The start of the 1970s, Hindi cinema was experiencing thematic stagnation, dominated by musical romance films . The arrival of screenwriter duo Salim–Javed , consisting of Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar , marked a paradigm shift, revitalizing the industry. They began the genre of gritty, violent, Bombay underworld crime films in the early 1970s, with films such as Zanjeer (1973) and Deewaar (1975). The 1970s
26550-974: The story and characters with balances in fantasy numbers and grounded reality. It received 14 nominations at the 89th Academy Awards , tying the record for most nominations with All About Eve (1950) and Titanic (1997), and won the awards for Best Director , Best Actress , Best Cinematography , Best Original Score , Best Original Song , and Best Production Design . In 2013, NBC produced The Sound of Music Live! as part of their effort for expanded live entertainment events, which became an annual tradition of adaptations of stage musicals, created specifically as live television events. The following years featured Peter Pan Live! , The Wiz Live! , Hairspray Live! , Jesus Christ Superstar Live! , Dr. Seuss' The Grinch Musical Live! , and Annie Live! . ABC and Fox also produced similar events, including Grease Live! , A Christmas Story Live! , Rent: Live , and The Little Mermaid Live! . An exception to
26727-406: The sun rises, and sets, and the cycle continues, the same cycle for others as it is for Jack." Identifying Kloves as an heir to New Hollywood directors Bob Rafelson or Peter Bogdanovich , Paula Vazquez Prieto of La Nación described The Fabulous Baker Boys as the director's attempt to "revitalize the memory of jazz repertoire musicals, the appeal of those characters on the margins of fame,
26904-420: The sun through a magnifying glass, she burns an image on the screen." Awarding Pfeiffer the title ”sexiest woman in the movies”, Steve Simels of Entertainment Weekly credited her performance with salvaging the film, with which he was otherwise unimpressed. Hailing Pfeiffer as "the sexiest presence in movies today and an exceptional comic and dramatic actress," Rolling Stone film critic Peter Travers felt
27081-432: The time of its release as an example of dedicated " small picture " filmmaking which they felt Hollywood had abandoned in favor of blockbuster films with high budgets. In 2007, The Guardian cited The Fabulous Baker Boys among the "1000 films to see before you die". In 2008, Entertainment Weekly named The Fabulous Baker Boys the 12th sexiest film of all time. In 2021, Time Out ranked The Fabulous Baker Boys
27258-613: The titular roles but turned them down. Although both Jeff and Pfeiffer were Kloves's first choices for their respective roles, he was initially reluctant to cast Beau, despite Jeff's suggestion. Kloves, Rosenberg, and Weinstein personally visited Jeff Bridges at his home in Montana to offer him the role of Jack Baker. After spending an afternoon asking Kloves various questions about the film, Jeff accepted because "I've had very good luck with first-time directors." Shortly after being cast, Jeff suggested his own older brother Beau Bridges for
27435-545: The truest representations of modern romance that the modern screen has offered." Praising Kloves's writing and directing, Schickel deemed The Fabulous Baker Boys worth of "the protection only large, enthusiastic audiences can provide." The New York Times ' Janet Maslin described The Fabulous Baker Boys as a "film specializing in smoky, down-at-the-heels glamour, and in the kind of smart, slangy dialogue that sounds right without necessarily having much to say". Praising its cast, musical numbers and cinematography, Maslin felt
27612-619: The works of jazz singers Sarah Vaughan , Dinah Washington , Rickie Lee Jones , Billie Holiday , and Helen Merrill for inspiration. According to Kloves, these songs were selected because he found them accurate to the film's time period, lounge setting, and characters. " More Than You Know " required at least 20 takes until Pfeiffer was satisfied with her performance, for which she specifically drew inspiration from singer Linda Ronstadt 's rendition. Her recording sessions often lasted 10 hours, after which she would study her tapes at home. Despite this, Pfeiffer's rendition of "More Than You Know"
27789-465: Was Kloves's directorial debut and second screenplay. He conceived the story based on Ferrante & Teicher , a piano duo he had grown up watching perform on The Ed Sullivan Show , which inspired him to write a film about working class musicians who are also siblings. Determined to direct the film himself, Kloves sold the script to producers Paula Weinstein and Mark Rosenberg . It was subsequently rotated among several production companies before it
27966-408: Was a blockbuster hit. Theaters scrambled to install the new sound equipment and to hire Broadway composers to write musicals for the screen. The first all-talking feature, Lights of New York , included a musical sequence in a night club. The enthusiasm of audiences was so great that in less than a year all the major studios were making sound pictures exclusively. The Broadway Melody (1929) had
28143-500: Was also coaxed out of retirement for Easter Parade and made a permanent comeback. The other Hollywood studios proved themselves equally adept at tackling the genre at this time, particularly in the 1950s. Four adaptations of Rodgers and Hammerstein shows - Oklahoma! , The King and I , Carousel , and South Pacific - were all successes, while Paramount Pictures released White Christmas and Funny Face , two films which used previously written music by Irving Berlin and
28320-635: Was also nominated for the Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards for Best Original Film Score , while winning the BAFTA Award for Best Sound . Kloves's screenplay was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award . Ballhaus won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Cinematography and the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cinematography . Beau won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor . According to Robert Cettl, author of Sensational Movie Monologues , critics appreciated The Fabulous Baker Boys at
28497-435: Was also when the name "Bollywood" was coined, and when the quintessential conventions of commercial Bollywood films were established. Key to this was the emergence of the masala film genre, which combines elements of multiple genres ( action , comedy , romance , drama , melodrama , musical). The masala film was pioneered in the early 1970s by filmmaker Nasir Hussain , along with screenwriter duo Salim-Javed, pioneering
28674-534: Was always funny and adept at doing character humor." Pfeiffer reminded Rosenberg of Marilyn Monroe 's performance in Some Like it Hot (1959). Pfeiffer was initially worried about working opposite a pair of brothers but admitted her concerns were ultimately unfounded. Kloves wrote the character of Blanche "Monica" Moran, a waitress and aspiring singer, specifically for Jennifer Tilly , which would become her breakthrough role . A two-week rehearsal took place after
28851-456: Was completed as early as April 1985, in which Kloves describes the titular characters as "a poor man's version of Ferrante and Teicher." The Fabulous Baker Boys was Kloves's directorial debut . Kloves's experience writing his previous film, Racing with the Moon (1984), motivated him to direct The Fabulous Baker Boys himself because the final version of the former "wasn't what I saw in my head". Although Kloves had always aspired to direct
29028-441: Was completed over the course of four years, the length of which The New York Times journalist Bernard Weinraub attributed to the film's melancholy nature and Kloves's insistence on directing. Kloves's final draft of his screenplay is dated November 4, 1988. When casting The Fabulous Baker Boys began, Kloves recalled that while studio executives often dismissed his script as "dreary and depressing", most actors considered for
29205-616: Was completed over the course of two months by March 1989. The film had a production budget of $ 11.5 million. Although primarily set in Seattle, Washington, The Fabulous Baker Boys was mostly filmed in Los Angeles, California. Kloves consulted with production designer Jeffery Townsend to retain the melancholy Seattle atmosphere on the Los Angeles set. Some scenes were shot at the Ambassador Hotel , with its Coconut Grove nightclub being used for several nighttime scenes. The hotel itself
29382-684: Was complimentary towards both the leads' performances and Ballhaus' lighting. Praising the performances of Pfeiffer and Jeff, the Los Angeles Times film critic Sheila Benson called The Fabulous Baker Boys "as salty and sexy and unhousebroken a movie as you could hope to find", while film critic Emanuel Levy lauded Kloves's direction, crediting it with bolstering each cast member's performance. Pfeiffer received universal acclaim for her performance, with several reviewers commenting on her physical appearance and sex appeal. Maslin called Pfeiffer an unexpected but "electrifyingly right" choice for
29559-448: Was directly inspired by Bollywood musicals. The film pays homage to India, incorporating an Indian-themed play and a Bollywood-style dance sequence with a song from the film China Gate . The critical and financial success of Moulin Rouge! renewed interest in the then-moribund Western live action musical genre, and subsequently films such as Chicago , The Producers , Rent , Dreamgirls , and Hairspray were produced, fueling
29736-487: Was helping his younger brother live a carefree life, of which he was sometimes jealous. They reminisce about the early days of their act with a final duet. Jack visits Susie, who is not particularly enjoying her new job, and expresses regret about his behavior towards her. Susie is not quite ready to resume their relationship but the two part as friends, with Jack telling her he has a feeling they will see each other again. Jack watches as Susie walks off to her new job until she
29913-448: Was met with some criticism by religious groups but was well received. By the mid-1970s, filmmakers avoided the genre in favor of using music by popular rock or pop bands as background music, partly in hope of selling a soundtrack album to fans. The Rocky Horror Picture Show was originally released in 1975 and was a critical failure until it started midnight screenings in the 1980s where it achieved cult status. That same year also saw
30090-537: Was never a professional singer, and found the songs in The Fabulous Baker Boys challenging because they are "written to showcase the voice ... so [she] had to retrain the way I listen to music" to sound as though she was singing live, accompanied by only two pianos. Pfeiffer had not sung on camera since Grease 2 seven years prior. To strengthen her vocal chords, the actress enrolled in voice lessons for two months under vocal coach Sally Stevens . Stevens
30267-518: Was not. Several critics at the time deemed Pfeiffer's loss a surprising upset. Pfeiffer also lost the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role to Tandy. Grusin's soundtrack won the Grammy Award for Best Album or Original Instrumental Background Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television , while his arrangement of " My Funny Valentine " (sung by Pfeiffer) won the Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals . The film
30444-529: Was permanently closed in 1989, shortly after filming concluded. The Greystone Mansion was used for several exterior shots. The Millennium Biltmore Hotel also served as a location for some of the film's interior scenes and musical sequences, including " Makin' Whoopee ", which was shot in its Crystal Ballroom. Pfeiffer was originally hesitant to film the scene in which her character sings "Makin' Whoopee" on top of Jack's grand piano. Fearing audiences would find her laughable, she attempted to talk her way out of
30621-500: Was personally recruited by Grusin, with whom she had collaborated several times prior. The Fabulous Baker Boys was Stevens's first professional vocal coaching job, therefore much of her coaching was instinctual. Stevens believes Grusin "thought that in my career I had done what the Susie Diamond character had done and that Michelle, consciously or unconsciously, would pick up some things." Observing that Pfeiffer naturally possesses
30798-452: Was recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders in Hollywood, California in Studio 1. Pfeiffer performed all of her own vocals for her character and the film's soundtrack. Kloves described Pfeiffer's singing voice as good but not "professionally great", believing a more professional-sounding singer would have made the film unrealistic. Despite having sung in the musical film Grease 2 (1982), Pfeiffer
30975-542: Was simply acting the scene very well. The actors also suffered discomfort from the barbs of the wire fence they thrashed themselves against, which they had originally thought would be a comfortable material. Musician Dave Grusin composed the film's original score. The score largely consists of jazz music and pop standards , most of which were performed by Grusin on keyboards with tenor saxophonist Ernie Watts , guitarist Lee Ritenour , trumpeter Sal Marquez, bassist Brian Bromberg , and drummer Harvey Mason . The music
31152-466: Was ultimately obtained by 20th Century Fox in 1986. Pfeiffer underwent several months of voice training to perform all of her character's songs, which largely consist of jazz and pop standards . While both Bridges brothers play their instruments on camera, their audio was dubbed by the film's composer, Dave Grusin , and musician John F. Hammond, respectively. Although primarily set in Seattle , Washington,
31329-401: Was under Hill's direction, Kloves suggested singer Whitney Houston for the female lead. Although Jeff believes he was the first actor cast in the film, Michelle Pfeiffer claims Kloves originally approached her five years before the film was made, but the studio was not interested in casting her at the time. Kloves clarified that although he had been interested in both Pfeiffer and Jeff from
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