Very disappointing...

Best movie of this year hands down!

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

The only thing this really has in common with the hit 1934 Broadway musical is the title, a few of the songs, and its main setting on a ship. But gone is the main story, replaced with the type of "Let's put on a show!" movie musical that audiences have seen over and over again. Other than the abbreviated 1954 Colgate Comedy Hour version of the show, there has not really been a remotely faithful record of this, the 1936 film altered to make Ethel Merman's character more of a sidekick than leading lady.This appears to have been influenced by the success of "White Christmas", made just two years prior in VistaVision, and a huge success in spite of its mediocrity. Both are excuses for the catalog of songs from Broadway greats Irving Berlin and Cole Porter, and both fall on their faces because of flat stories and weak structures. Instead of Danny Kaye, comic man Donald O'Connor comes in, paired with Bing Crosby as part of a song and dance team on the look-out for the star of their next big show. O'Connor instantly goes after perky Mitzi Gaynor (a definite Vera-Ellen look-alike) while Crosby sets his eyes on the French Zizi Jeanmaire, fresh from appearing on Broadway in the short-lived "The Girl in Pink Tights". Both promise the leading role to their discovery without realizing that the other has done the same thing. And that's the plot in a nutshell, boys.If some lesser Irving Berlin songs were spruced up for Danny Kaye to perform to comic effect in "White Christmas" weren't obnoxious enough, here we get the outlandishly corny "Ya Gotta Give The People Hoke", not even a Cole Porter song, written by Paramount regulars Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn. The title alone sums up how crushingly bad it is. O'Connor gets something called " You Can Bounce Right Back" which is a bit better, resembling his Irving Berlin solo "What Chance Have I With Love?" from "Call Me Madam" and Debbie Reynolds and Bobby Van's balloon dance from "Small Town Girl" in its execution and staging. The dance numbers here seem to go out of their way to prove the lyrics for "Choreography" from "White Christmas" and these numbers end up being just as outrageously pretentious as that disappointed number was.As for the few Cole Porter songs left, they are mostly from the original "Anything Goes", but are mostly utilized as big production numbers rather than songs with plot point. Zizi sings "I Get A Kick Out Of You" partially in French, the staging of which left me totally cold, while Mitzi Gaynor gets a rather badly staged version of the title song. Fortunately, her overblown performance here didn't stop her from getting her greatest triumph, playing Nellie in the movie version of "South Pacific". All four have duets with "You're the Top", and that too isn't as memorable as versions of that song as seen on stage. The finale of "Blow, Gabriel, Blow!" tries to make up for the mediocrity that preceded it, but like the others, it lacks the heart, making the entire proceedings a major let-down.For a bit of comic relief (and a little drama), there's funny man Phil Harris as Gaynor's father who has a major drinking problem, supposedly supposed to represent the character of Moonface Martin from the original. But intended pathos with him end up becoming a bit forced, and the entire story suffers from the studio's lack of faith in the titled source. Maybe with the return of the movie musical in today's film world being attempted a bit more, we'll one day get the ultimate film version of the 80 year old show, and wouldn't that be ironic? It's not to be found in the two films Paramount did with Crosby, and the T.V. version, while very good, is not nearly complete.

The musical Anything Goes was a superb Cole Porter Broadway show when it opened in the 1930s. Since its 1934 debut at the Neil Simon Theatre (at the time known as the Alvin) on Broadway, the musical has been revived several times in the United States and Britain and has been filmed twice. The musical had a tryout in Boston, before opening on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre on November 21, 1934. It ran for 420 performances, becoming the fourth longest-running musical of the 1930s, despite the impact of the Great Depression on Broadway patrons' disposable income.The movie was first filmed in 1936 with Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman, but it bared little resemblance to the Broadway show. Twenty years later, Bing was ending his contract with Paramount Studios after twenty four years with the studio. His last movie for Paramount would be an updated version of Anything Goes in 1956. Though this film again starred Bing Crosby (whose character was once more renamed), Donald O'Connor, and comedian Phil Harris in a cameo, the new film almost completely excised the rest of the characters in favor of a totally new plot. The film features almost no similarities to the play or 1936 film, apart from some songs and the title.I have always enjoyed this 1956 swan song Bing made for Paramount. However, this movie could have been a great movie and not just a good or fair movie. I think my biggest problem with the film was Bing's co-star Zizi Jeanmaire. She was a popular French ballet dancer, who was married to the choreographer of the movie Roland Petit. Whether she got him his job on the film or visa versa, I don't know. However, she was totally wrong as Bing's love interest. Bing and Jeanmaire just did not have the chemistry. She was a fine dancer, but the Cole Porter song "I Get A Kick Out Of You" was wasted on her limited vocal ability.Speaking of the Cole Porter score, Paramount did a grave injustice by tearing apart the great Broadway score. The primary musical numbers ("Anything Goes", "You're the Top", "I Get a Kick Out of You", "It's De-Lovely" and "Blow, Gabriel, Blow") with updated arrangements appear in the film, while the lesser-known Porter songs were cut completely, and new songs, written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn, were substituted. I enjoy the music of Cahn and Van Heusen, and they wrote some of the great songs in Frank Sinatra's songbook. However, when they wrote for Bing in the 1950s, the songs sounded tired and corny. The two songs they wrote for Bing were "Ya Gotta Give the People Hoke" and "A Second Hand Turbin". Bing deserved better songs than this.One more thing I would have done differently with the film is the use of Phil Harris. Harris not only was a great personality and singer but also a personal friend of Bing. In the movie he played the father of Mitzi Gaynor. He had a good role in the film, but Harris did not have much interaction with Bing. I think that was a wasted opportunity for a musical number between the two. It would have made for some great cinema.Again, while the 1956 version of Anything Goes is no Singin' In The Rain, it is not a bad movie. It was one of the first Bing movies I remember watching and despite what I would change, I think the pairing of Bing and Donald O'Connor was great. Also the finale of "Blow Gabriel Blow" is a fitting end to Bing's association with Paramount. He helped to save the studio from bankruptcy in 1932, and Bing was one of the studio's biggest stars for the next two decades...

Sorry, we are watching this one on TCM Thanksgiving evening. Both of us have played in the pit orchestra of the stage play. Sadly, this is so far removed from the original that it should definitely NOT be called "Anything Goes." This "new" story with some of the original songs plugged in with other non-Porter songs added, is a pretty lame rehash of the worn out "Let's put on a show" theme. There are some entertaining moments but don't expect the Broadway Show. We say "Arf-Arf." Especially the crystal ball routine is more like the Three (two) Stooges! There are some of the original Cole Porter songs from the musical but they are taken out of their original context. The vocal performances also don't have the high level of Broadway intensity one expects from better film adaptations. Some of the dance routines are fun, but, again, this is NOT Cole Porter's "Anything Goes!"

This movie is just plain great. That's all there is to it. Just great! When you put together Cole Porter's songs, Paramount's filmmaking, and the spectacular cast, you are bound to get something great. And you do! I don't know why people dislike this movie. They say it has a clunky plot and wooden acting. Not true! I think the plot is quite fascinating. But it isn't at all like the stage show. That might be why so many people dislike it. And the acting is not at all wooden. It's great! My personal favorites are Donald O'Connor and Mitzi Gaynor. I had seen them in "There's No Business Like Show Business" (1954) together as brother and sister (I also highly recommend that film).Let's start with the few negative remarks and get them out of the way. Zizi Jeanmarie is French. She has a heavy accent. Occasionally, it's a bit hard to understand what she's saying. You need to listen close. But most of the time, you can understand her well. There are also a few moments that younger children shouldn't see. Nothing is shown. But the content of it shouldn't be expressed towards littler kids. In one scene, Jeanmarie is seen changing behind a changing screen with O'Connor in the room. But O'Connor is extremely respectful when talking to her and shows no perversion whatsoever. I personally don't mind those things. As long as they don't show anything. Also, in one scene, O'Connor walks into his bedroom and, without warning, takes off his pants. He is in boxer shorts, though. So that doesn't bother me. But children may not be mature enough for it. There are also a few sexual references, mostly from Jeanmarie. But I found nothing else about it that I didn't like. And I didn't even dislike the other things I referred to. But they were the only things not the best.Bing Crosby is a great singer, as always. His acting is pretty good, too. Seeing him and O'Connor together was great. The last time they has been paired was in 1939's "Sing You sinners" when Donald was only 12. Definitely a long time friendship.Jeanmarie is pretty good. She's not my favorite. The spot of favorite girl is saved for Gaynor! Jeanmarie's an impressive dancer and I think she's pretty cute. Her singing isn't great. But maybe it's just because of her accent. I can't put my finger on it.Mitzi Gaynor is amazing. Her dancing, singing, and acting is tremendous. I also think she is highly attractive. She's just great all around. Her and O'Connor were great friends and it definitely shows.Donald O'Connor is my all-time favorite. His singing is also shown in this one. (Watch "Call Me Madam (1953) for more of his singing). I enjoy his voice more than Bing's, personally. His dancing is at it's top. Especially at the finale. I kept rewinding it to watch his part because I liked it so much! He is definitely the whole show in "Anything Goes".I recommend the dances, "You Can Bounce Right Back" and the finale number over them all.