Watch Show Boat For Free

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

I had heard about this film maybe once or twice, I knew it was musical, but that's about it, I was looking forward to a colourful film with recognisable songs, based on the stage musical by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II (of Rodgers and Hammerstein), directed by George Sidney (Anchors Aweigh, Annie Get You Gun, Kiss Me Kate). Basically show boat the "Cotton Blossom", owned by Cap'n Andy Hawks (Some Like It Hot's Joe E. Brown), arrives in a Mississippi town for a performance. Its leading man Steve Baker (Robert Sterling) has a fistfight with boat engineer Pete (Leif Erickson), as he was making passes at Steve's wife, leading lady Julie La Verne (Ava Gardner). Cap'n Andy pretends to the gathered crowd that the fight was a preview for a melodrama performance, but Pete goes to the police to report a dark secret about Julie. Riverboat gambler Gaylord Ravenal (Howard Keel) has gambled away a boat ticket, so he boards the Cotton Blossom pretending to be an actor, but he is rejected a passage, however he and the captain's daughter Magnolia (Kathryn Grayson) meet, they are instantly smitten with each other. That night, during a vaudeville performance on the show boat, Pete shows up with Sheriff Ike Vallon (Regis Toomey), Julie, a black woman is married to a Steve, a white man, this is illegal, Julie admits that she is half-black, and Steve convinces the sheriff he is also half- black, Pete is fired by Cap'n Andy, but Julie and Steve are also forced to leave. Magnolia tearfully says goodbye to Julie, her best friend, she and Steve leave the company, Cap'n Andy takes on Ravenal who offers to help, he becomes the new leading man, and Magnolia becomes the new leading lady, despite the strong objections of Cap'n Andy's wife Parthy (Agnes Moorehead), also Magnolia's mother. Within a few weeks, Magnolia and Ravenal become a hit on the river, and have fallen in love, they become engaged and are married, moving to Chicago, living off Ravenal's gambling winnings. A year later, Ravenal loses all his money gambling, when he becomes broke Magnolia tells him off for his obsession for gambling, feeling guilty after Magnolia's outburst, Ravenal walks out on her. The dance team on the show boat, Ellie May Shipley (Marge Champion) and Frank Schultz (Gower Champion), suddenly show up in Chicago, they take Magnolia to nightclub the Trocadero to audition, but the club already has a singer, it is Julie, who has become a hopeless alcoholic since Steve left her. Julie overhears Magnolia's audition from her dressing room, she learns that Ravenal has deserted her, Julie quits to make sure Magnolia will be hired, Cap'n Andy arrives and watched Magnolia's debut, and gives her support when she experiences stage fright. Magnolia tells her what happened with Ravenal, and reveals that she is pregnant with Ravenal's child, she did not tell Ravenal due to their financial situation, she returns to the show boat with Cap'n Andy, where she gives birth to a daughter, Kim. Five years pass, Ravenal is gambling on a packet boat, he finds a drunken Julie trying to sing, he punches her escort for slapping her, she finds out Magnolia is married to Ravenal, but she did not realise he knew nothing about Magnolia's pregnancy, she tells him off. Ravenal overcome with guilt returns to the show boat, there he meets his little daughter Kim (Sheila Clark) for the first time, he and Magnolia reconcile, stevedore Joe (William Warfield) sings as the boat prepares to leave, Cap'n Andy and Parthy embrace, and Julie emerges on the dock to blow Magnolia a kiss as the ship sails away. Also starring Adele Jergens as Cameo McQueen and Leif Erickson as Pete. Gardner gives a good performance as the downtrodden singer, Keel is a good charmer with a great voice, and Grayson has a fantastic voice and looks pretty, it is a simply enough story about show business and love, many of the songs work well, the best is definitely "Ol' Man River", the dance sequences have superb choreography, and the use of colour for the costumes and scenery is magnificent, overall it is an enjoyable musical. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Cinematography and Best Music for Adolph Deutsch and Conrad Salinger. Very good!

First saw this movie in the 50s and loved it as a boy. Everyone in the cast is perfectly cast. The singing is really wonderful, and all the songs are great. I like the storyline as well. The unconditional love between Julie and Nole is what really stands out. Need some of that today! I have probably seen this movie 50 times, and I still tear up at the last 15 minutes of the film. BTW if you can find the soundtrack album it includes Ava Garners signing of the songs that were dubbed for the movie. Both versions are great! I think Frank Sinatra was correct. And speaking of Ava Gardner, she certainly deserved an Oscar for this performance. And she is so beautiful in her closeups, wow!I have now seen other versions of this film, and though they are also very well done, the music and emotional impact of this version really are a triumph. If they could make musicals like this one and Sound of Music again, they might make a comeback!!! See it if you have not!!

I get goose bumps just thinking of the larger than life opening of this film... Kathryn Grayson was one of the favorite stars of screen musicals during their heyday in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Kathryn Grayson was a visually and vocally striking singer and actress who graced some of the most popular films of the postwar era, including "Anchors Aweigh" (1947) and "Kiss Me Kate" (1953). Blessed with a coloratura soprano from an early age, she was discovered by MGM chief Louis B. Mayer while a teenager, and was signed to a contract without the benefit of a screen test or drama lessons. In this version of Show Boat, Ms. Grayson, plays Magnolia Hawks, the captain's innocent daughter, who falls for the handsome gambler Gaylord Ravenal (Howard Keel). Show Boat is widely considered one of the most influential works of the American musical theatre. As the first true American "musical play", it marked a significant departure from operettas, light musical comedies of the 1890s and early 20th century and the "Follies"-type musical revues that had defined Broadway.According to The Complete Book of Light Opera, "Here we come to a completely new genre – the musical play as distinguished from musical comedy. Now... the play was the thing, and everything else was subservient to that play. Now... came complete integration of song, humor and production numbers into a single and inextricable artistic entity. The third and (to date) last film version of the Edna Ferber/Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein II musical. (1929, 1936, 1951) One of the few titles I can think of where every version is good! I.B. TECHNICOLOR. Almost a novelty when it was introduced to film in the early 1920's, Technicolor reached its zenith in the 1940's and 50's, when classics like WIZARD OF OZ, THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD, SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON, SNOW WHITE and GONE WITH THE WIND were released using the brilliant, deeply-saturated hues of dye-transfer Technicolor. I.B. (or "imbibition") Technicolor prints are becoming increasingly scarce treasures since Technicolor stopped U.S. production of them in 1974. So tonight's print may be a worn print with some scratches and splices, but the color can not be matched even with today's technology. Finally, Ava Gardner is stunningly beautiful in this film and turns in a tender and heartbreaking performance. Last year on a film run I was able to visit the Ava Gardner Museum in Smithfield, North Carloina, and it was amazing. Well worth the 4 ½ hour drive from Culpeper. And Marge Champion is the only one of the stars from this film that is still alive today at age 90. She plays Ellie May Shipley, the dancer in the red & white striped dress & umbrella. Now sit back and enjoy this old fashioned cruise back in time on MGM's Show Boat!

I had only recently settled down to watching this one which has just been issued on DVD in France. In a frustrating sense, this film shows that perfection is unattainable ! It has perfect lighting, perfect costumes, perfect music, perfect acting but oh, the plot is just so dull and lacking in substance ! But because of the rest I give it a high-ish rating. It's true, though, the plot is really lacking in spice and substance but this is to a large extent compensated for by a mixture of fantastic sets and great musical performances. Indeed, I am very impressed by the particular attention given to lighting by the cameraman ! It seems they avoided filming at midday and always used early morning or early evening sunlight with long, sharp and distinct shadows with yellowish tones. This plus the splendid technicolor is a feast for the eyes. I would be curious to have known exactly where it was filmed. Was it really the Mississippi river ? I also enjoyed those scenes in the cotton plantations. Musically of course, the film is a masterpiece and though my favourite tune is "Make Believe", I was extremely impressed by the version of Ol Man River sung by the actor William Warfield who must have had one of the most brilliant voices I have ever heard ! I confess to never having heard of this gentleman prior to seeing the film and had imagined the singer to be Paul Robeson. So I checked out WW on the internet and it appears he was a very respected and educated gentleman. To cut a long story short, I was impressed by his mellow voice and by his towering physique. Ava Gardner was too very beautiful and I also enjoyed seeing dear old Agnes Moorhead whom I have always appreciated in films. So despite a weak plot which sometimes failed to keep my attention, this film is a genuine masterpiece on most other levels and deserves viewing at least once, if only for William Warfield's performance of Ol'Man River.