VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Sabah Hensley This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Andy Howlett We've been fans of MGM musicals for many years, but somehow we never got around to watching this. I'm afraid we were left wondering what went wrong, as it is a long way from MGM's best. The first half hour contains a far-too-long (and not very good) dance sequence and a lot of poor dialogue. Then the film sinks into a rather sour flavour and the second-rate song and dance routines do little to lift the mood. The stand-out segment (sadly much too short) is Kelly's 'I like Myself' on roller skates, which is a classic warm & happy MGM number with glorious, flowing music and lush orchestration. There is a happy ending, but not before a rather depressing TV show scene. I think this story would have been far better as a non-musical drama, as the bitter taste and social comment does not lend itself to the classic MGM musical style. It pains me to give MGM such a low score, but it's a 4 from me.

writers_reign This is reminiscent of early Woody Allen; three half-decent numbers punctuated by a puerile storyline. Dolores Gray owns the best pipes in the movie by a country mile but never gets anything worthy of them. Comden and Green are highly over-rated lyricists even at their best and when they're mediocre as here one longs for a Cole Porter or Larry Hart to show them how the big boys do it. The dustbin lid routine is not too hard to take but Kelly's dance on roller skates has been oversold and those who do so seem to forget that Fred did it first, with Ginger yet, back in the depression. As for the plot - three GIs celebrate their discharge in 1945, make a vow to meet on the same day in 1955 to prove to a bartender that they will remain friends - this in itself is a dodgy premise because why would three guys who have bonded in four years of war go their separate ways for ten years; at worst they would meet annually, at best once a month. Inevitably when they do meet in ten years it's a bust. Clearly the movie can't end there so they have to regain their old camaraderie but this is contrived so ineptly it's embarrassing.It's okay but no more than that.

moonspinner55 Audiences in the 1950s probably didn't appreciate this song-and-dance offering from MGM in 1955, which is darker in tone than the studio's cheery perennials and harbors an embittered streak (likely a reflection of the times, but not exactly musical escapism). Writers Betty Comden and Adolph Green came up with an intriguing story of WWII buddies meeting 10 years after V-J Day, only to find they have nothing in common but the war. Solid production is more an interesting mix of downcast drama and dance rather than a successful one, though co-directors Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly clearly relished the opportunity to do something a little headier (with the accent on character). Unfortunately, Donen and Kelly throw everything out the window for a slapstick finish, an unfunny free-for-all that nearly cripples the film. For years, this big studio misfire was but a cinematic footnote in Kelly's career; the film has since attained a new legion of admirers willing to overlook its weaknesses. Certainly a curiosity piece, and the cast is uniformly excellent. **1/2 from ****

finchy9-976-77969 It's Always Fair Weather is kind of a cheesy film. I wasn't much of a fan of it just because it was so absurd. I mean the whole first scene where they have just returned from the army and all of a sudden they break out in song and eventually they are tap dancing with trash can lids. And given this is supposed to be a musical, I get that, but at least make the musical somewhat realistic. Don't have the characters just returning from war break out into some cheerful song. War has the exact opposite effect on people, most people are psychologically disturbed from the events that have occurred during their time. I know they are happy to be home, but I do not think anybody is that happy on any regular day. Probably the most significant thing about this film is the fact that, at the time, the film industry was trying to fight it's battle with television. With televisions in homes all over America, the film industry was losing business, because all the citizens had to do was wait until the film was broadcast on television to actually see the films. Nobody wanted to pay money to go to the theater to see a film. So the film industry responded by creating the anamorphic widescreen picture, which could only be shown in the movie theaters and on a big screen, it would cut off part of the picture if it was shown on a television. This sort of revolutionized the way films were made. Filmmakers were able to bring more elements that might be vital to the artwork of the film into the picture. And while the overall story of this film is unbelievable and jut not very good. I think the way the film was shot and how they were able to bring tons of people into one scene really spoke a lot about the revolution of the film industry.