Watch A Song Is Born For Free

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Saw this a couple of times when I was a kid in the late 70'ies and then again recently... it still holds up very well - mainly because of the fantastic display of all the jazz greats... but it is also downright sexy at times. People who complain that this is a remake doesn't get it. It is a totally different movie when it is about music instead of slang. Actually I am somewhat baffled that this has not been remade again with various rock musicians instead of the jazz displayed in this one. It would be a cheap hit movie I guarantee it... - but you have to pick some musicians who can tone down the "rock" ego. Lets see: Tom Hanks as the professor, Scarlett Johansson as the girl. One of the other professors should be a guitarist proficient in both classical, jazz and rock guitar such as Vai, Sattriani or Malmsten.

Danny Kaye is funny in this as he always is. The plot is mediocre, even trite. The relationship between Danny Kaye and Virginia Mayo is pretty much what we have seen before.What makes this movie a ten is that it has some of the best ever big band/jazz musicians of its era. Every musical number is unique and entertaining. For that alone this film is well worth your time.This may be a spoiler. Usually the practice for musical movies is to prerecord the musical numbers and then synchronize the action to the movie when filming. I think with this movie the performances were filmed and recorded at the same time. How could you keep Louis Armstrong from improvising? If you like big band/jazz you will want to see this film.

Where else can you see a jam session with Louie Armstrong on trumpet, Charlie Barnet on saxophone, Benny Goodman on clarinet, and Tommy Dorsey on trombone? Four major swing band leaders jamming out, and they do it more than once on this film. The movie is sufficiently entertaining to watch, but the real treat is the music jam sessions. Some of you may not know Charlie Barnet. Barnet was from a wealthy family, and his bands were more freewheeling than most traditional swing bands. He was the first white band leader to integrate his bands, and he gave Lena Horne her first gig with a major orchestra.The true big band aficionado will recognize some of the other musicians, but I will not list them here as I might spoil someone's fun.

I grew up with Danny Kaye as a sort of Jim Carrey fella. Into mugging, being obvious etc. The diff with Carrey? Parents loved Danny, I suppose because of the Disney connection (Hans Christian Andersen etc).Just saw this flick on TCM. What a revelation! The late 40s were full of movies practicing the party line of mindless entertainment while putting in gotchas that were almost subliminal. Film Noir is the obvious genre here, but Westerns and comedies and musicals all did the same. Multiple levels of meaning.This movie conveys the message of joy, at a time when doors were shutting, McCarthy was looming, the bomb was on the horizon. It makes fun (nice fun) of those intellectuals who (in different fields) brought us the bomb.One stereotype down. Then it makes fun of women "bombshells". Virginia Mayo is to die for, and yes the professors want to study her. In more ways than one.To do this film justice intellectually would take a lot more words.But then you also get the most amazing clarinet transformation on film, musical interludes that make it clear why music has always been so dazzling until recently, pictures of various real musicians at the height of their powers, and an obvious love story that is eternal!!! Whoee....