I went through the AFI Top 100 list back in 2018, and one of the movies on there that I’d never seen before and felt hadn’t aged very well was The Philadelphia Story. It was fine enough in many ways, but it had some jokes that, in the era of #MeToo, didn’t feel right, particularly a lecherous old man who likes to pinch women’s butts. The movie did have its charms, but its issues outweighed them for me. But that was in 1940, so a certain amount of allowances can be expected.
However, there was a musical remake that popped up 16 years later, so maybe some of the issues with The Philadelphia Story won’t be an issue with High Society.
After an opening scene where Louis Armstrong and his band (playing themselves) sing a song that more or less summarizes the backstory, we learn that C.K. Dexter Haven (Bing Crosby), a successful jazz musician from a wealthy background, is looking to win back his ex-wife Tracy Samantha Lord (Grace Kelly, no relation). She’s set to remarry, this time to uptight George Kittredge (John Lund). Soon enough, a pair of reporters from Spy magazine, Mike and Liz (Frank Sinatra and Celeste Holm) pop in to cover the festivities, and romantic escapades ensue, complete with drunken declarations of love. Much like the original, it’s the sort of movie where everything will more or less work out romantically for everyone without anyone having any serious cases of a broken heart. It’s just this version has a lot more singing, sometimes taking time away from the plot so Crosby can sing with Armstrong and his band as back-up.
Now, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the original version of this movie, mostly due to jokes that didn’t age well and a general distaste for romantic comedies that make things too easily. It’s a little more forgivable with a musical because those are inherently less realistic. It also helps that the George character is a little less likable this time around, and unless I missed something, Uncle Willie’s shenanigans were limited to drunken flirting. Yes, it did seem odd that the family would stop the bachelor party–which was really just a big party before the wedding and not the sort that Sinatra’s Mike says usually involves girls popping out of cakes–to let the bride’s ex-husband sing a song, but then again, it seems odd that the society magazine would ask for the bride to pose for photos with both her ex-husband and her new one at the same time. Was that something that happened? Because if my own ex-wife ever decides to get remarried, I don’t expect to even get an invitation, let alone be asked to pose for wedding photos, and we had an amicable divorce, unlike what it looks like given how Tracy reacts to everything Dexter does.
By the by, I will never get over how often Sinatra is played as being a figure of lesser desire to women than whatever male co-stars he has in these musicals. I’ve seen enough Looney Tunes to have an idea in my head as to think of Sinatra as the sort of guy young women fainted over. True, that’s a cartoon, but it does clash a bit with how he appears in the old musicals.
All that said, I can’t say I cared much for this one. There’s nothing really wrong with it. It’s just too familiar. It doesn’t change much from the original movie, making it basically the same story, only this time in color with less screwball and more singing. It didn’t work for me much the first time, and combining two genres I don’t generally care for (romantic comedies and musicals) doesn’t mean I’m going to go for it all that much. There’s nothing here that seemed bad or wrong. It just isn’t my cup of tea. And, quite frankly, I prefer my remakes to be a bit less going through the motions.
That said, Louis Armstrong and his band were a lot of fun to listen to.
Grade: B-
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