The Great Ziegfeld (1936)
57 %
Reviews Counted: 21 Fresh: 12 Rotten:9 Average Rating: 5.9/10
Consensus:
This biopic is undeniably stylish, but loses points for excessive length, an overreliance on clichés, and historical inaccuracies.
Runtime: 3 hrs 10 mins
Synopsis: This movie still sets the standard for what musicals should be. The larger-than-life career of stage genius Florenz Ziegfeld is aptly celebrated in this marvelous musical biography. As if the big story and all-star cast weren't enough, they threw in such unforgettable tunes as "If You Knew... [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Fanny Brice, Luise Rainer, Frank Morgan
Director: Robert Z. Leonard
Producer: Hunt Stromberg
Screenwriter: William Anthony McGuire
Composer: Arthur Lange
Producer: Hunt Stromberg
Screenwriter: William Anthony McGuire
Composer: Arthur Lange
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Reviews
This Oscar winner for Best Picture is only great in its tediousness, length and its budget.
Comment
03/11/08
Considering the recent screen standards in book musicals with five numbers for 100 to 110 minutes of running time this Metro Santaclausing of numbers becomes virtually a double-feature filmusical.
01/28/08
Top Critic
As directed by Leonard, this Oscar-winner is weak in every respect, as biopic, as musical (production numbers are mediocre), and as acting vehicle, though viewers in 1936 had good time spotting real-life Ziegfeld stars like Fanny Brice and Ray Bolger.
08/18/07
Mildly entertaining when in biopic mode, The Great Ziegfeld fails to realize that its musical numbers are more a distraction than a beauty.
10/10/06
Contrary to the most famous nugget of showbiz wisdom, the movie leaves us wanting considerably less than we're given.
08/09/06
Unless you were in an air conditioned movie house in Topeka, Kansas in 1936, I can’t see why anyone would want to sit through all three hours of this.
08/23/04
It's huge, overbudget, dazzling, and entertaining, but you'd be hard-pressed to remember more than one or two of the characters or specific events.
07/25/04
Like most biopics, the movie isn't entirely factual, but it does hit key points in a wonderfully entertaining manner.
06/03/04
Here's a textbook case of how a film can lose its appeal over the years.
01/08/04
If the picture overcrowds its screen, at least we must admit it is an impressive kaleidoscope; and probably nothing short of that could reflect the gaudy career of America's foremost showman.
05/20/03
Top Critic
A bit overwhelming and overblown, it's one thing to say that this movie is great for historical purposes, but it's hard for me to imagine that anyone likes to sit through a three hour tedious musical like this.
06/29/02
It's amazingly dull, even with William Powell in the lead and guest appearances by the likes of Ray Bolger and Fanny Brice, so of course it won the Best Picture Oscar for 1936.
01/01/00
Top Critic
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