Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Michael_Elliott King of Jazz (1930) *** (out of 4)Once THE JAZZ SINGER was released to extreme box office numbers, every major studio was turning to sound pictures and the Musical was the most popular genre. The revue picture is something that every studio was doing and the likes of MGM and Warner were showing off their biggest stars. Universal went all out with KING OF JAZZ and based all of the vignettes about musician Paul Whiteman.KING OF JAZZ is an extremely uneven film and for the most part I'm not certain that I'd call it a good one. There's no question that there are countless flaws with the film but at the same time you really have to take your hat off to Universal for doing something so over-the-top and rather crazy. The studio threw a lot of money at the production but it turned out to be a pretty big flop at the box office and many think it killed off the revue film.As I said, there are certainly a lot of flaws with the picture including the fact that several of the vignettes just don't work but that's to be expected when you've got a film built like this. We start off with an animated number and from here we get to various musical acts. Out of all of the acts in the picture I'd say John Boles "It Happened in Monterey" was the best and most entertaining as the actor did a good job with the song and we also got some extremely great camerawork during this sequence including some crane shots that look terrific.I should probably mention that the film was shot in 2-strip Technicolor, which is one of the biggest reasons to watch it. The colors really do leap off the screen and this is especially true for the terrific costumes that are seen in the film. There are so many different costumes and there's not a single one that doesn't look fantastic. The same could be said about the sets, which are quite large and beautiful to see and this is especially true for the final act.Again, there are certainly flaws in the picture as not every act works and I'd also argue that Whiteman wasn't the most entertaining Jazz figure that I've seen from these older films. The music numbers are also hit and miss but with all of that being said, the main reason to watch this is for the Technicolor as well as the wonderful costumes and sets.

earlytalkie What true film buff would not love "King of Jazz"? This film was really quite advanced for an early talkie. The photographic effects are marvelous, from Paul Whiteman's band coming out of a small suitcase to the shadow effect in the "Voodoo Drum Dance" to the Melting Pot montage, there was some real imagination at work here. It is so pleasant to see one of the few remaining two-color Technicolor features. It is fun to see Bing Crosby in his first feature film appearance. The "Rhapsody in Blue" sequence is also impressive. It is a shame that Universal has not seen fit to give this film a proper release on DVD, but I managed to locate a very good quality DVD at a decent price. A beautiful film revue from the early days of sound film with Oscar-winning sets and wonderful music. The tagline for this film reads: "Once in a lifetime...a show like this!"

drednm Paul Whiteman was a huge star in the 20s with his terrific jazz band. He might have been the original star band leader. In "The King of Jazz" he also shows himself to be a decent comic actor as well. He's best remembered for his recording of Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue," which is featured in this early revue film."King of Jazz" is solid entertainment with some lavish and grand-scale production numbers that boast Bing Crosby, John Boles, Laura LaPlante, the Brox Sisters, Jeanie Lang, and of course Whiteman's band.Best songs are "Happy Feet," "A Bench in the Park," "The Song of the Dawn," and a jazzy "Bluebirds and Blackbirds" number with Crosby as one of the Rhythm Boys (with Harry Barris and Al Rinker).Al Norman does an amazing dance number to "Happy Feet." Jeanette Loff is rather bland in the "bridal veil" number. The Sisters G in their Louise Brooks hairdos are OK in their dance numbers. And there's a lot of short comedy bits that feature Walter Brennan, Slim Summerville, Grace Hayes, Merna Kennedy, William Kent, and others.Although I still prefer "The Hollywood Revue of 1929" this revue is also excellent in its use of lavish production numbers, color, and special effects. For fans of early musicals this one is not to be missed.Whiteman, Crosby, and Boles are all great.

bkoganbing Today's audiences could not possibly have any idea of how big in every way Paul Whiteman was during the 1920s. Radio was in its infancy and Paul Whiteman's band was the first orchestra to achieve popularity through that medium. Whiteman records were the biggest sellers of their time. And The King of Jazz was his auspicious debut in motion pictures.The King of Jazz was also how Whiteman billed himself. He was maybe taking a bit much on to himself with that one, he surely didn't have anything to do with the development of jazz as an art form. But he did help a great deal to popularize it with a wider {white} audience. That was primarily done with that famous jazz concert that Whiteman gave in the mid twenties where George Gershwin's Rhapsody In Blue made its debut. And Rhapsody is reprised here in the movie.Whiteman's greatest contribution may have been the training of the greatest group of musicians ever. At one time or other, the Dorsey Brothers, Benny Goodman, Bix Biederbecke and so many others were members of the Whiteman orchestra. And of course he was the very first band to hire a vocalist specifically for that role. Previously singers were just musicians who just stopped playing and sang a chorus or two. Whiteman hired a trio, the Rhythm Boys whose lead singer was Bing Crosby. They are prominent in the film and in fact Bing Crosby made his singing film debut here over the opening credits as he sang Music Hath Charms. He was Whiteman's biggest discovery.The film is just a musical review done in the style of some of the great musical reviews of the time like the Ziegfeld Follies, Earl Carroll's Vanities, George White's Scandals. Some of the acts are better than others, but's The King of Jazz encapsulates a great era in show business.The biggest song from the film was It Happened in Monterey sung by John Boles who was Universal's biggest musical star at that point. Boles also got to do the film's finale, The Song of the Dawn, when Crosby who was guzzling a little too much bathtub gin got himself arrested and missed doing the finale which he was scheduled for.Shortly after recording some of the songs from The King of Jazz the Rhythm Boys left Whiteman and broke up soon after that. Bing Crosby would be heard from again.For a wonderful piece of nostalgia and filmed in early technicolor at that as an added treat, you can't beat The King of Jazz.