There may have been better songs and even better performances in other musicals, but for effervescent energy nothing has yet come close to the joyous, influential On The Town.
The pep, enthusiasm and apparent fun the makers of On the Town had in putting it together comes through to the audience and gives the picture its best asset.
For all its silliness, the musical also taps into something existential, thanks to its ticking-clock structure. As the hours slip away and impending separation looms over every note, On the Town becomes a bittersweet reminder that all our days are numbered.
70
Time Out
Time Out
The most cinematic of film musicals and the one most given to dance, On the Town is exhilarating, brash spectacle, all rip-snorting, wisecracking attack, and maybe just a teensy bit unlikeable.
40
The New YorkerPauline Kael
The New YorkerPauline Kael
Its exuberant love of New York seems forced, and most of the numbers are hearty and uninspired.