The Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly Collection


Anchors Aweigh (1945)          On the Town (1949)


Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949)

 

Titles

 

 

 

Anchors Aweigh (1945) Something of a precursor to On the Town, with Kelly and Sinatra as sailors rushing round town (in this case Hollywood) and anxious to score with women. Thunderously patriotic (the navy is wonderful) and sentimental (kids are wonderful), it's heavily dependent on Kelly's charm and Sinatra's supposed little-boy appeal, the combination of which fuels the running gags and almost saves the scenes with Grayson. The best item is Kelly's dance with Jerry, of 'Tom and Jerry'; otherwise, in a so-so score, Kelly has his first number with a child, and Sinatra sings 'I Fall in Love Too Easily' like he means it.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE 


On the Town (1949): In 1948, Jules Dassin used New York as one big location for The Naked City. The following year, to Louis B Mayer's incredulity, producer Arthur Freed turned the city into a sound stage for the movie of the Broadway musical of the Leonard Bernstein/Jerome Robbins ballet Fancy Free. Taking as its premise 'New York, New York, it's a wonderful town', the show looses three 'gobs' on the women (including the imperishable Alice Pearce), the sights, and the nightlife of the town. The most cinematic of film musicals and the one most given to dance, On the Town is exhilarating, brash spectacle, all rip-snorting, wisecracking attack, and maybe just a teensy bit unlikeable.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE 

 

Take me Out To the Ball Game (1949): More like a Donen/Kelly musical than a Busby Berkeley (not a chorine in sight), which is hardly surprising since they staged and filmed the numbers, while Berkeley left after doing the dialogue scenes. With Kelly, Sinatra and Munshin teaming up for the brilliant vaudeville-baseball routine of a number like 'O'Brien to Ryan to Goldberg', it often looks like a run-in for On the Town. Less 'integrated', perhaps, but enormously enjoyable. The plot is an airy something with a non-swimming Esther Williams becoming the new owner of a turn-of-the-century baseball team, and charming the boys out of their chauvinist scowls. But what matters is the stylish ebullience, and the excellent score by Roger Edens, Adolph Green and Betty Comden.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Releases: Various from 1945 - 1949

  DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Warner Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:
Distribution Warner Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC

Also on May 13th Warner are releasing Frank Sinatra - The Golden Years Collection (Some Came Running / The Man with the Golden Arm / The Tender Trap / None but the Brave / Marriage on the Rocks), Frank Sinatra - The Early Years Collection (It Happened in Brooklyn / Step Lively / The Kissing Bandit / Double Dynamite / Higher and Higher) and Rat Pack Ultimate Collector's Edition (Ocean's 11, Robin And The 7 Hoods, 4 For Texas and Sergeants 3).
Video 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.63, 5.71, 5.20 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s 
Time: respectively 2:19:10, 1:37:39 and 1:32:51
Bitrate:

 Anchors Aweigh

Bitrate:

On the Town
Bitrate:

 Take Me Out To The Ball Game
Audio

Anchors Aweigh has English (original mono), DUB French (original mono)

On the Town has English (original mono), DUB French (original mono)

Take Me Out to the Ball Game has English (original mono)
Subtitles English (CC), French, None
Features

Release Information:
Studio: Warner Home Video

Aspect Ratio:
All Original Aspect Ratios - 1.33 

Edition Details:

Anchors Aweigh (1945) - Single-layered
• Hanna Barbera on the Making of 'The Worry Song' from 'When the Lion Roars'
• Cast and Crew
 • Trailers

On the Town (1949) Single-layered
 • Theatrical Trailer

Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949) - Dual-layered
 • Two Deleted Song Numbers
• Cast and Crew
• Trailers

DVD Release Date: May 13th, 2008
3 standard keep cases inside a cardboard box
Chapters: various

 

Comments:

NOTE: The 3 features of this boxset are housed in individual keep cases (see images above and below) and have been sold separately for a number of years. It is fairly disappointing that these are the exact same discs from 2000. The VOB files on the DVDs support this conclusion. So nothing new excepting that these are no longer in 'snap cases' and have been upgraded to standard amaray keep cases.

Technical specifications of the discs: Take Me Out to The Ball Game is dual-layered and the other two are single. All are progressive in the original 1.33:1 aspect ratio and coded for region 1 in the NTSC standard. Each offer optional English (CC) and French subtitles and mono audio. Anchors Aweigh and On the Town offer a French DUB.   

Image: On the Town looks very weak and suffers because of its single layering. It is rife with noise/artifacts and colors are dull. A shade better Anchors Aweigh is nothing overly exceptional with colors occasionally looking kind of wonky and only the dual-layered Take Me Out to the Ball Game is really acceptable. It is kind of shameful that this package does not support upgrades in image quality from 7 years ago. I'm a little surprised at Warner.

Audio - All original (monaural) and are as comparative to the image quality. Dialogue was always clear and consistent. Warner can boast strength in this area - they rarely issue DVDs with substantial audio deficiencies. I noted no excessive gaps, pops or hisses just remember how old these films are (around 60 years!). The dialogue is supported by subtitles (English CC and French) in a clean, readable font. 

Extras - Again, NOTHING dramatically new at all to my knowledge excepting a brief flyer enclosed in the box. Anchors Aweigh has an archival interview with William Hanna and Joseph Barbera on the making of 'The Worry Song' from 'When the Lion Roars' and Take Me Out to the Ball Game has two deleted song numbers ('Baby Doll' and 'Boys and Girls Like You and Me'). Other than that just trailers and text bio screens.

Overall impression: What the heck Warner? It's unlike you guys to simply repackage older (much older) material without benefit of some sort of upgrade (aside from the case) but you seem to be doing it with greater frequency of late (Bette Davis and Gangster sets). Hopefully the other Sinatra packages have some new stuff. As for this - it does have one benefit - the price is fairly good considering what you are getting and I concur with Amazon's description: "Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra teamed up for three musical comedies in this frothy confection of sailors on leave in Hollywood, with gawky, shy young Sinatra tagging along with his worldly buddy Kelly, who promises to show him the ropes... more than a little sentimental, but full of first-rate entertainment."

Gary W. Tooze


DVD Menus


 

 

New Keep Case Cover

 

 

 

Director: George Sidney


Starring Frank Sinatra, Kathryn Grayson, Gene Kelly, José Iturbi and Dean Stockwell

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 

New Keep Case Cover

 

 

 

Directors: Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly

Starring Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Betty Garrett and Ann Miller

 

Screen Captures

 

 

 

 

New Keep Case Cover

 

 

Director: Busby Berkeley

Starring Frank Sinatra, Esther Williams, Gene Kelly, Betty Garrett and Edward Arnold

 

Screen Captures

 

 
DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:
Distribution Warner Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC

Also on May 13th Warner are releasing Frank Sinatra - The Golden Years Collection (Some Came Running / The Man with the Golden Arm / The Tender Trap / None but the Brave / Marriage on the Rocks), Frank Sinatra - The Early Years Collection (It Happened in Brooklyn / Step Lively / The Kissing Bandit / Double Dynamite / Higher and Higher) and Rat Pack Ultimate Collector's Edition (Ocean's 11, Robin And The 7 Hoods, 4 For Texas and Sergeants 3).




 

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