Three sailors, Gabe (Gene Kelly), Chip (Frank Sinatra), and Ozzie (Jules Munshin), have twenty-four hours to see New York before their leave ends. Gabe becomes infatuated by Ivy (Vera-Ellen) based on her picture on a subway poster, thinking that the title “Miss Turnstiles” means that she’s a celebrity. Searching for her, the other two pick up Hilde (Betty Garrett), a very forward cab driver, and Claire (Ann Miller), a man-crazy anthropologist. Eventually finding Ivy, the six are off for a wild night on the town of singing, dancing, and avoiding the police.
About as energetic a musical as you are likely to find, On the Town is exuberant, nonstop fun. Dumb fun with nothing approaching characters, but you can’t have everything. If you are a fan of old-time Broadway-style musicals, where people dance just because they are too joyful to walk and sing because speech fails to express how they feel, then you’ll have a good time.
The cast is strong, though the males are best when singing or dancing. Kelly gets by on his smile and charm. Sinatra plays it one-note (luckily, that’s his acting; singing he manages to hit all the notes), while Munshin is one slap and pratfall away from being the forth member of the Three Stooges. The gals are better both at comedy and sincerity, but the movie rarely pauses long enough for anything to matter but fancy footwork. Kelly and Vera-Ellen are dazzling, as always, and Miller shows off her award winning tap skills, and her legs, and in 1949, both of those were impressive.
What keeps On the Town in the also-ran category is the music. A musical is only as good as its songs, and here they rate as OK. Only four of Leonard Bernstein’s tunes from the stage show made it into the film, and only one is memorable. The new songs were written by Roger Edens, who isn’t likely to be mentioned with Porter or Berlin. Things start strong with New York, New York and never gets close to that level again. Several dances are top notch, particularly a fantasy ballet—a Kelly trademark—but it would have been nice if there was something hummable to go with the leaps and twirls.
On the Town is a lot of fun and is very silly. Kelly, Sinatra, Miller, and Vera-Ellen all have far better work on their Résumés, but if you are in the mood for a pulse-pounding musical, this one will keep you smiling.
My other reviews of Gene Kelly films: Cover Girl (1944), Anchors Aweigh (1945), Ziegfeld Follies (1946), The Pirate (1948), Words and Music (1948), Summer Stock (1950), An American in Paris (1951), Brigadoon (1954), It’s Always Fair Weather (1955), Les Girls (1957), The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967).