Summer Stock (1950)

By 1950, the "let's put on a show in a barn" idea had been done to death, so it's something of a surprise that Summer Stock is actually an entertaining flick. It's also a reminder of how one single moment in a film can stick in an audience's memory and make them forgive and forget the film's flaws. In this case, that moment is the legendary "Get Happy" number. Performed by Judy Garland in a black tuxedo jacket and rakishly angled fedora, and accompanied by a chorus of men in black, the sequence is simplicity itself -- a fairly bare stage, energetic but not stunning choreography, and Garland in peak vocal form selling the number in a manner that is both commanding and relaxed. There are other highlights as well, such as Gene Kelly's wonderful dance with a newspaper upon an empty (and somewhat squeaky) stage, and Garland's quiet and lovely "Friendly Star" and rousing "If You feel Like Singing." Both stars are in top condition, offering lessons in how to play even hackneyed situations with total conviction and how to put across a number with total ease yet never lose that all-important sense of urgency. The overly familiar plot keeps the film as a whole from greatness, but isolated moments are pure magic. Kelly would move on to the memorable An American in Paris the next year, but it would be four more years before Garland turned up onscreen again -- although, since her return vehicle was A Star Is Born, it was worth the wait. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide