The Great Ziegfeld (1936)
From now on, I want to have a fair distribution of films on my blog. Lord knows I don't have the proper mind to analyze and review films professionally, but it's at least worth a shot. For some reason, I had the urge to publicly pour out my every thought on a particular film that is, The Great Ziegfeld (1936). I first saw this three-hour epic when I was a freshman in high school (I'm pretty sure). I didn't know as much about the life of Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. and his famous Follies then as I do now, but one thing I remember very well was that it had some of the most beautiful, dreamy, and upscale musical numbers I had ever seen. One can only imagine what it would have been like to see one of Ziegfeld's shows live in the theatre back then.
One thing I considered later on was the film's credibility -- since most Hollywood biopics were highly fictionalized then. This one, however, stays true to Florenz Ziegfeld's story for the most part, I'd say. I will point out some of the errors in another part of the entry.
Yesterday, I watched it again and do note that I hadn't seen this film in over a year so it was needed for me to refresh my memory. This was only my third time seeing it, but oh. my. gosh. I don't remember it being so magical the two times I saw it before. What was I missing then? Well, for one thing, my Ziegfeld Follies fascination didn't really progress until about a year ago. Crazy how much my knowledge has expanded since then. Nonetheless, this was the best experience I had watching it. I mean I was just mesmerized with everything. By the time I got to the part where Flo sees Billie for the first time and becomes bedazzled by her, relentlessly pursuing her, I had tears in my eyes. And when Flo tricked the system into getting a dance with Billie over and over again, the tears were rolling down my face. It was so cute. I admired his nerve. Not to mention, Florenz Ziegfeld and Billie Burke were played by none other than William Powell and Myrna Loy, one of the best pairs on the silver screen. They undeniably had the best chemistry. Bill's wit and charisma are a perfect balance with Myrna's slight cheekiness and vivacity. It's not just their chemistry here that's outstanding as always, but they were actually fit for the roles. Bill Powell resembles Florenz Ziegfeld physically and can take on the role of a womanizer exceedingly well in a gentle manner. You can tell he's a ladies' man and has some personal weaknesses, but is a dashing gentleman at heart. His charisma and confidence match the real Ziegfeld too well. As for Myrna, it's truly a coincidence that her screen persona fit Billie's energetic personality perfectly. A spunky, gorgeous red-head with a lively personality, yet, always a lady who is true to herself and values at heart. Their ability to embody their roles so marvelously had me speechless.
Billie and Flo's relationship is purely based on bliss in the film. Not only because Hollywood was so romantic, but if some of the real-life couples' flaws were included, it would probably hurt the film even though it was a tiny bit implied in there. And obviously, Billie, who worked as a supervisor for the film, would most definitely not approve of any of her marital distresses with Ziegfeld being displayed. She originally wanted to play herself but wasn't allowed to because she was "too old." In real life, Ziegfeld was a notorious womanizer who was rumored to have had flings with many of his female stars -- not all of them were true, but a few of them have been confirmed to say the least. Billie knew about his affairs but learned to live with and accept his nature, although, she would give him a hard time about it. When you're married to that man, you have to tolerate his infidelity like you would the dirty dishes in the sink. I think the biggest thing that held that marriage together for so long was their daughter Patricia. Marilyn Miller once said of Billie: "She waves that child in his face like George M. Cohan waves that flag." But deep down, it was Billie and his little girl Patricia that Flo had really loved more than anyone. He just couldn't help but fall for those other beautiful chorus girls.
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| William Powell and Myrna Loy in their respective roles as Florenz Ziegfeld and Billie Burke. |
The other main character and woman in Flo's life (before Billie) was Anna Held, played by Luise Rainer. While there isn't any physical resemblance between the two women (Anna had a large bust with a cinched waist while Luise was very slim with no curves), I think Luise embodied the role exceptionally well. She even won the Academy Award for Best Actress, followed again a year later for The Good Earth -- this is one of those rare moments in history. What makes me really grateful is the fact they cast a European actress to play Anna, who was Polish-French, and not an American actress in a phony accent! Luise was a natural. Her role was dramatic and sympathetic, yet complex. She gave a very memorable and commendable performance. I also thought her voice was adorable although I'm not sure if it was dubbed or not.
Pictured above: Luise Rainer as Anna Held next to the real-life Anna Held.
One particular actor who really stood out to me was Ray Bolger. The biggest robbery was that he had barely enough screen time — there should have been a little more of him. His absence from films in the 30s was truly a disappointment, but not that he didn't make any films then. Generally speaking, he didn't make a whole lot of films throughout his decades-long career since his activity was mostly on Broadway. Sadly enough, he was normally cast in supporting roles, with his most memorable role being The Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz (1939). I will never forgive those who ignored his talent. He had an extraordinary talent and I believe if he was given a chance to take on a range of different roles, he could've been a great star. One of the best parts of the film in my opinion is his You Gotta Pull Strings number.
Fanny Brice, a fellow Follies girl, played herself in the film, but Lillian Lorraine threatened legal action if they dared to even mention her name, so she was renamed as Audrey Dane (played by Virginia Bruce.) Ziegfeld and Lillian Lorraine had an ongoing affair, which was said to have been the root of his ends with Anna. In his eyes, Lillian was the most beautiful woman in the world and he remained in love with her all his life despite her shortcomings, which infuriated Billie and Anna the most. In the film, however, their relationship was lowered down to only a flirtation/slight fling.
The one actor MGM could not get was Marilyn Miller. She was offered to play herself, but she refused unless she got top billing and at least a 50,000 dollar paycheck, which MGM rejected. But since they did not have her consent to be played by another actress, she too was renamed as Sally Manners, played by Rosina Lawrence (somehow uncredited), who actually bore a resemblance to Marilyn. You can kind of hint that she is supposed to be Marilyn since her name is Sally, the name of Marilyn's most popular play and role. The biggest downfall is we didn’t get to see Will Rogers play himself. He originally was supposed to, but he died in a plane crash. Eddie Cantor, on the other hand, turned down the opportunity to play himself, with the consent that Buddy Doyle would portray him respectively. I think that was another bummer. Oh, and I don't think I mentioned that Ray Bolger's character is a reference to Jack Donahue, which is funny because thirteen years later he played Jack in the biographical film about Marilyn, Look For The Silver Lining (1949). The only other Follies star who played themself was Hariet Hoctor, the ballerina.
The Great Ziegfeld was a clean portrayal of Mr. Ziegfeld's life and career, with some additional changes made. Many things were left out but overall, it pretty much covers the essential story of the great Ziegfeld. One of the big factual errors in the film was that Ziegfeld and Anna Held were married. Although they lived together under a common-law marriage, technically they were never married. After they split their ways, they remained estranged in reality until Anna's death. Anna had reportedly claimed that Ziegfeld "ruined her life" -- which was not depicted in the film. The other was that Flo died in New York from a supposed heart attack? If I remember correctly, that was how he died in the film, but in real life he actually died in Hollywood from a lung disease, after being in failing health for a little while. Truthfully speaking, I think the fictional ending was a better, more dramatic way to end the movie. I really liked the ending.
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| Ziegfeld and his women. I think his eyes are set on Billie. |
All in all, this film about Ziegfeld might not be the most accurate, but it's still a whimsical musical, and a moderately respectable portrait of the amazing work of Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. -- the man who brought memories of the finest things ever done on the stage. That was my favorite quote. :) I think if it were to be re-made into a modern version it would be interesting to see and hopefully more accurate, but I bet they'd put Zendaya as Lillian Lorraine, Margot Robbie as Marilyn Miller, and Leonardo DiCaprio as Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. Oh God, wouldn't that be a waste. Not to mention, it would probably be around five and a half hours long and way too oversexualized like Babylon, aka complete rubbish. However, I'm really glad it was made into an old Hollywood movie during the 1930s, the decade when musicals were the most sensational and magical in my opinion. The perfect cast was another bonus.
Two other films about Ziegfeld were made in the forties (or should I say inspired by). Ziegfeld Girl (1941) and Ziegfeld Follies (1946), in which William Powell is featured again. Both musicals are delightful, but I personally enjoyed this one much more since it's an in-depth portrait of his spellbinding career. The others are just tater tots. ZF is more like a series of sketches, and a few of them stinked actually.
The Ziegfeld Follies have a special place in my heart so that's my excuse as to why I'm partly obsessed with this film. The Follies were magical and the stars were victorious. I would give anything, absolutely anything to be able to time travel and watch one of his shows.
