Gene Kelly was a talent so rare and so masterful it amazes a great deal lot of people to this day how his simple yet effective, beautiful yet smart pictures have made an impact on the world of cinema, musicals and even ballet I believe no other actor or actress was able to even come close since.
Naturally, after twelve years on and off camera, doing the same old things one might get a little carried away of what to do next to be even bigger and better, not to repeat oneself and not to fail commercially - well, Gene succeeded in the first two with his first lone directorial debut "Invitation to the dance" in 1956 and it had to become the beginning of the end for this fantastic performer eventually.
I can understand why this movie flopped so big back then (I couldn't even get my hands on the copy of it for a while because of how difficult it was to find it) as it was not a movie per se but rather an anthology ballet in three acts with no words spoken in them. People going to see a Gene Kelly movie were not expecting that and left theaters in disappointment; it is truly saddening to see your ambitious dream project, the one you so carefully constructed and put your soul into, going up in flames and fading away in time and being forgotten and overlooked ever since, and I want to put an end to that, for Mr Kelly's sake and for the world of cinema as well.
The film consists of supremely well done, choreographed and musically arranged sequences which tell the stories of unrequited love in the style of classic ballet and circus, unfaithfulness in the style of a jazzed-up cabaret, and a reimagining of "1001 nights" in the style of Middle Eastern fairytale and an animated cartoon (brought to life by the great duo of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera). "Invitation to the dance" is one of a kind piece of art that's not for everybody by definition and I love it for exactly what it is - a fine masterpiece.
Naturally, after twelve years on and off camera, doing the same old things one might get a little carried away of what to do next to be even bigger and better, not to repeat oneself and not to fail commercially - well, Gene succeeded in the first two with his first lone directorial debut "Invitation to the dance" in 1956 and it had to become the beginning of the end for this fantastic performer eventually.
I can understand why this movie flopped so big back then (I couldn't even get my hands on the copy of it for a while because of how difficult it was to find it) as it was not a movie per se but rather an anthology ballet in three acts with no words spoken in them. People going to see a Gene Kelly movie were not expecting that and left theaters in disappointment; it is truly saddening to see your ambitious dream project, the one you so carefully constructed and put your soul into, going up in flames and fading away in time and being forgotten and overlooked ever since, and I want to put an end to that, for Mr Kelly's sake and for the world of cinema as well.
The film consists of supremely well done, choreographed and musically arranged sequences which tell the stories of unrequited love in the style of classic ballet and circus, unfaithfulness in the style of a jazzed-up cabaret, and a reimagining of "1001 nights" in the style of Middle Eastern fairytale and an animated cartoon (brought to life by the great duo of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera). "Invitation to the dance" is one of a kind piece of art that's not for everybody by definition and I love it for exactly what it is - a fine masterpiece.