Feel Good Film: Hello, Dolly!

Who doesn’t love a musical? The old Hollywood types are the best – big gowns and even bigger tunes, usually demonstrating the vocal capabilities of some soon to be superstar. Hello, Dolly! is one such film and was also the first in the ‘feel good film series’ that I hadn’t seen before. That kind of situation doesn’t happen for me very often. Or at least it didn’t happen much in the past. I’ve moved house three times in two years and each time I move further away from a cinema! Very unfortunate for a self-confessed film geek. So when it comes to watching ‘new’ films (meaning films I haven’t seen before rather than new releases), I rely on recommendations from trusted peers and the old Sky+ box. Thankfully, Yaz recommended Hello, Dolly! when we first discussed this film series and when it appeared on Sky Movies, I hit record in anticipation of a future musicals post. And whaddya know, y’all voted for Babs!

(Image via)

Hello, Dolly! actually reminded me a bit of Jane Austen’s Emma/the classic teen film Clueless, in that it’s about a matchmaker. Barbra Streisand, in only her second feature film, plays the titular Dolly, a widow and professional matchmaker who has set her sights on a cantankerous half-millionaire. The problem is, he intends to propose to a woman in the city who is not entirely suited to him. So Dolly works her magic on a few people and her plan falls magically into place. With a few song and dance numbers in between!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FdI1RKcNhU

Hollywood musicals date so quicky, and titles such as West Side Story and Hello, Dolly! can be quite painful to watch, but Barbra Streisand is so bloody amazing that any of the films flaws (what happened to feminism?!) can easily be overlooked. Sure, it’s sad to remember  a world where women were expected to marry into money, but hey, plenty of women marry for money today. And the film was set in 1890 and released in 1969, so we can forgive it that at least.

“Hello, Dolly! is one of my favourite films. Hands. Down. The cast are fantastic, the costumes are divine, the choreography is outstanding… And Barbra Streisand is in her prime!”
Yaz, aliljoy

One of the great things about old Hollywood is the scripts – they just don’t write ’em like they used to. Fast talking, quick witted, snappy one-liners… It’s hard to beat the back and forth between the likes of Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell in His Girl Friday, but Babs manages this all by herself as Dolly. She’s bloody brilliant!

It’s not my favourite musical, I have to admit. I’ve got a soft spot for Mamma Mia! (such a range of emotions) and Moulin Rouge! is such a feast for the eyes and ears (what is it with all the exclamation marks?!) but I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. No disrespect to Yaz’s taste in movies, but initially it didn’t sound that appealing. Every second Barbra Streisand is on screen, and wittering on about reading palms and spreading money like manure, your heart feels that bit lighter and the corners of your mouth turn up that little bit more. If that isn’t the sign of a feel good film, I don’t know what is!

Now for next week’s title. By the time the next post goes up, Halloween will have been and gone, so enjoy it while it lasts and indulge in one of our childhood faves: Hocus Pocus! I’m so excited to have an excuse to watch this again! Be sure to tweet me your thoughts during the week @EmsLF.

We haven’t had any world cinema yet, so we’re gonna up the film geek ante for the next vote. I’m a sucker for an Audrey Tautou film but have managed to restrict myself to just two of her films for the purpose of this selection. Take your pick and remember to share some of your feel good titles in the comments below.

See ya next week, same Bat time, same Bat channel.

Tags: Barbra Streisand feel good film of the week Film Review Hello Dolly musicals

Categories: a little piece of joy Feel Good Film of the Week