Elaine Stritch at Liberty (2004)

I love this movie so much

To me, this movie is perfection.

One of my all time favorites.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

I was lucky enough to see this show at The Old Vic in London (where, albeit not on the night, this live recording was shot) so I was pre-disposed to like the DVD (the clue is in that word 'lucky') and if anything it eclipses the show if only because the camera can do what I couldn't from my mid-stall seat, namely close in on the eyes which is where it is all happening. What we have is a great blend of reminiscence, anecdotes and vocals and I for one would have been happy with twice the two-and-a-half hours she delivers. Okay, nobody is going to accuse her of being a great vocalist, least of all herself, but no one accused Mabel Mercer of being a great vocalist but no one gave a big rat's ass because Mercer, like Stritch, had a lot more going for her, the ability to 'live' a song and act it out to a fare-thee-well. As a rule my taste in female vocalists favors the 'cool' i.e. June Christy, Peggy Lee; the 'warm', Dinah Shore, Ella, and the vulnerable, Judy, for the brash, belter, Merman, Bassy, who think subtlety is to come down to high C. I have no time at all. Stritch can and does on occasion, belt with the best, but, like the finest vocalist working today, Marlene VerPlanck, she can also do wistful, a word that Merman and Bassy were incapable of comprehending. So, here we get Broadway Baby, I'm Still Here, Ladies Who Lunch, but we also get the ultra wistful I Must Have Done Something Good. You sure did, Elaine, you did something VERY good. In spades.

I know, I know - Elaine Stritch is a "legend" - she makes sure you know it, believe me... Maybe I'm the only one in the universe who felt like smacking her, but I did feel like smacking her. She does have some interesting stories about Old Hollywood, however the rest seems like a never ending, self-congratulatory vanity piece. I got the feeling that she's been practicing these "naked" little soliloquies for her audience of one, in front of the mirror, for years. Maybe that is the point of the show, I don't know. Perhaps some think she should be humored because she's 80, but crikey, I just found most of it insufferable. Sorry Elaine...

Elaine Stritch is one of the survivors of Broadway, a tough old broad with a voice if, not exactly melodic, is of the stuff great stage singers are made of. Think Ethel Merman after hundreds of cigarettes. This show, which ran on Broadway and then in the West End, was well worth seeing and this recording is a good standby if you missed the live event.In between memories of her start in showbiz, her time as an understudy, her first big break (in Pal Joey singing 'Zip'), her time in Hollywood, her stage career, her sitcoms, and her alcoholism, Ms Stritch finds time to sing a range of songs including 'Zip', 'The Ladies Who Lunch', 'Broadway Baby', 'Why Do The Wrong People Travel', and, best of all, 'I'm Still Here'. With minimal staging it really is the case that the star is the thing, and her she reigns supreme.Fabulous.

Saw this on tv in New York City and couldn't take my eyes off this old broad. Tougher than hell. Looks like she eats nails for breakfast, but she does deliver the goods. Last of the old time troupers. I really appreciated that the filmmaker followed Stritch through the whole rehearsal process and right up to opening night. I saw a similar piece on 60 minutes, but it was way lighter and had less edge, information or bite.