De-Lovely (2004)

Thanks for the memories!

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

To be honest, while all the criticisms are very understandable, and I actually agree with them, I was expecting something worse than how De-Lovely turned out. It is a long way from a great film, or even a good film, but to me it wasn't terrible.De-Lovely does have a good deal of good things. The film looks fabulous, the period clothes are just exquisite, there was evidently a great deal of care and attention to detail in the scenery and settings and the cinematography sparkles. The ageing make-up is very well done as well. Cole Porter's songs are wonderful, the best of them gold standard classics and while some of the songs deserved better treatment than they got others are very well performed, the best being John Barrowman's Night and Day, Natalie Cole's beautiful Every Time We Say Goodbye, Alanis Morissette's Let's Do It, Let's Fall in Love and Kevin Kline's sublime So in Love. The first half is suitably witty and sophisticated, the aftermath of the riding accident is movingly done(an improvement over how it was depicted in Night and Day with Cary Grant, which I found superior actually despite its flaws) and Porter and Linda's relationship is well-depicted. Ashley Judd plays Linda with dignity and Jonathan Pryce enjoys himself but other than the production values the best thing about the film was Kevin Kline's brilliant performance as Porter, a witty, charming and moving performance.Unfortunately, De-Lovely takes a nose-dive in the second half, feeling like a different film altogether, the pacing becomes leaden and the narrative becomes very jumpy with some ideas touched upon and not explored enough. Due to the gross number of inaccuracies and the change in chronological order of the songs and events makes the storytelling hard to follow. There is some really sloppy editing, and in general Irwin Winkler's very stylised direction becomes increasingly self-indulgent and manages to be hectic and ponderous. In the second half the wit and sophistication the first half had is completely lost with a lot of the writing becoming incredibly trite and awkward, Porter's sexuality is much too overt(the opposite effect of the glossed over effect Night and Day had) and the film overall is lacking in emotional connection narratively and stylistically. Too many of the song renditions don't work, Elvis Costello's singing style is ill-suited to Let's Misbehave(he also does little with the wit of the lyrics), Lemar is completely out of place and worst of all Begin the Beguine is execrably arranged and performed to the point of being unrecognisable, with tuneless and emotionless singing from Sheryl Crow, sounding like she isn't even listening to the music.In conclusion, not that bad but should have been much better. 5/10 Bethany Cox

When oh when are the Hollywood studios going to make decent and factual bio's of their countries songwriters from the 20's, 30's and 40s ???????Most of these songwriters were Jewish immigrant's, Cole Porter wasn't, but this isn't the point.De Lovely is crammed with Cole Porters songs, but with todays singers singing them and I cringed.The greatest singers to sing the songs that were crafted by masterful songwriters and lyricist have all but left us, albeit Tony Bennett is still around at 80 plus.Today's singers think more about their own careers and therefore themselves than they do the song they are singing that were written for an adult audience fresh from WW2.I loathed De-Lovely, I loathed Kevin Cline as Cole Porter.The Great American songwriters left a huge legacy, but I bet if I walked the streets of New York, and asked one person if he or she could tell me the songwriter behind just one song standard, that person would have no idea, and this is a double crime.We haven't got the caliber of songwriters today, its all about money. Beat has replaced melody. Songs today are written for a young audience, and uncultured adults.George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Harry Warren, Richard Rodgers, Frank Loesser, to name just a few composers from the 30's and 40's were geniuses.I could spend a week writing this because I feel strongly about it.Its about time Hollywood played factual tribute to the men and woman of the 20's 30's and 40's who contributed so much to the studio's and American musical culture.

Words to Cole Porter's "Begin the Beguine": What moments divine, what raptures serene, Till clouds came along to disperse the joys we had tasted, And now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted, I know but too well what they mean. So don't let them begin the beguine!Why does Cole Porter give up-beat music to lyrics that seem so sad--words about lost chance--lost chance for what?It is dangerous to assume lyrics speak to the soul of the lyricist. But it is equally facile to suggest there is no relationship of words to the soul of the lyricist.What is there about homosexuality--at the early twentieth century--that struck such a discordant note in Cole Porter? As 'De-Lovely' proceeds towards its glum ending, the songs all seem to shift to a minor mode--thoughtful, pensive, tentative.'De-Lovely' ostensibly concerns Cole Porter and Linda Lee Thomas Porter. But is the movie really about Cole Porter and his homosexuality? The movie asks the question: Who does Cole Porter think about when he is writing love songs? Does he think of women or does he think of men? I assume--from a heterosexual orientation--that he has women in mind as he writes a love song. That he was married to the beautiful Linda Thomas for a long time and that the marriage seemed to be one of serious love and commitment, then it suggests that Cole Porter may very well have had only women in mind for his love songs and not men, that he addressed women in his songs, not men.So Sheryl Crow's rendition truly speaks to the core of the matter with Cole Porter. Every other interpretation is wrong--from the up-beat Fred Astaire to Artie Shaw is wrong. So it's not just Sheryl Crow giving a rendition just to be different, she succeeds in interpreting a song consistent with the lyrics.I saw the movie when it came out and thought it excellent. The songs were thoughtfully performed. I have since bought the DVD and the CD with the music. (Before I began my own commentary, I read all 214 comments so devoted to the movie am I.) In general, I don't think Hollywood did well by Cole Porter. The 2nd 'Anything Goes' film with Bing Crosby, Mitzi Gaynor, and Donald O'Connor misses excellence for those silly songs with the children. Somehow 'Kiss Me Kate' film fails to include "Another Opening, Another Show." "High Society" captured "Philadephia Story" despite Frank Sinatra; but it never achieves the sophistication that was "Philadelphia Story."For my money Paul Reuben/aka Peewee Herman might have made a more accurate interpretive of Cole Porter; but that might have made comedy and not gravitas. The DVD commentary addresses the disparity between the homely Cole Porter and the handsome Kevin Kline who could play a piano and sing. And people would actually see a movie with Kevin Kline. And now that I think about it, yes, David Hyde Pierce would make an excellent Cole Porter.'De-Lovely' was a tribute to Cole Porter and Linda Thomas Porter--as well as a thoughtful examination of Cole Porter's homosexuality. Songs in the minor mode give a level of thoughtfulness, gravitas to the question of homosexuality without falling into the humour of "Will and Grace." After all, Porter's Homosexuality was wrought with a price of alcoholism--in the end, sexual orientation is no laughing matter. That gravitas and thoughtfulness is the triumph of the movie 'De-Lovely.'

I love this film.It may not be historically quite accurate, but it works brilliantly.The film is almost structured like a Cole Porter song - and there isn't a much better compliment than that.That's what I wanted to say.What's the problem with brief pithy comments? Is this enough lines? Is IMDb destroying freedom of speech.If I can say what I want to say concisely shouldn't I be praised rather than penalised by having to think up a load of padding? Or don't you agree.I'm getting ****ed off now.I hope this is the last line.