The UPEI Sun, Friday, Oct. 7, l977. Page 6’ 
     
    
   
   
    
     NEMASCOPEfl: 
     
    
   
   
    
     Cl 
     
    
   
   
    
     New York, New York, a 
     
     Martin Scorsese film star- 
     
     ring Liza Minnelli and 
     
     Robert De Niro, is. a movie 
     
     whose great potential has 
     
     been somewhat spoiled in 
     
     the transition from idea to 
     
     actuality. Minnelli plays 
     
     Francine Evans, a popular 
     
     singer of the post-war era 
     
     who somehow falls in love 
     
     with and marries sax-player 
     
     Jimmy Doyle (played by De 
     
    
   
   
    
     present. 
     
    

    
     What went wrong, then? 
     
     flbll, the potential of the 
     
     characters is spoiled by 
     
     the drab performances of 
     
     Minnelli and De Niro, for 
     
     one thing. Francine Evans 
     
     is a dynamic, confident, 
     
     appealing character, but 
     
     Liza Minnelli just doesn't 
     
     get into it right. Only 
     
     when she sings does she 
     
     manage to convey the charm 
     
    
   
   
    
     Jimmy's break-up with 
     
    
   
   
    
     Francine that same day. The- 
     
     scene in which Jimmy visits 
     
    
   
   
    
     Francine backstage and 
     
     asks her out to dinner 
     
     after her exuberant final 
     
     production number is also 
     
     full of real reeling. 
     
     Moments of genuine impact 
     
     such as these occur 
     
     frequently enough to save 
     
     the movie from total 
     
    
   
   
    
     mediocrity, and even manage 
     
    
   
   
    
     Her final number is a big 
     
     performance of the theme 
     
     song, “New York, New York” 
     
     in concert, and she ;' ‘ 
     
     presents herself as a 
     
     grotesque caricature of 
     
     the typical superstar of 
     
     the age. 
     
    

    
     in sum, then, whether 
     
     or not New York, New York 
     
     appeals depends on what 
     
     your priorities are. If 
     
     you go for predictable 
     
    
   
   
    
     to offset the blighting 
     
     effect of Minnelli's big 
     
     production numbers. 
     
    

    
     When Liza Minnelli sings 
     
     as Francine Evans with 
     
     Jimmy Doyle's band at first, 
     
     she is good. As an 
     
     unpretentious jazz singer 
     
     she is sincere and enjoy- 
     
     able to watch and listen 
     
     to. Later, however, when 
     
     she hits the big time, she 
     
     loses most of her 
     
     attractive innovence and 
     
     becomes ridiculously over- 
     
     dramatic when performing. 
     
     Certainly the role of 
     
     (j? Francine Evans requires a 
     
    
   
   
    
     of Francine's personality. 
     
     And as for Robert De Niro, 
     
     well, he only partly 
     
     succeeds in portraying 
     
     Jimmy as the forthright, 
     
     determined, yet sensitive 
     
     character he should be. 
     
     However, the film does have 
     
     its moments. The scene in 
     
     which Jimmy visits Francine 
     
     in hospital after the birth 
     
     of their son is full of 
     
     comic sadness emphasized by 
     
    
   
   
    
     Niro), only to find that 
     
     her partnership with him 
     
     dies when her career sky- 
     
     rockets and his doesn't. A 
     
     familiar story line, but 
     
     one which encourages 
     
     virtually endless variation 
     
     and improvisation. In New 
     
     York, New York, howevefj— 
     
     the classic appeal of 
     
    

    
     “boy meets girl, boy 
     
     marries girl, boy leaves 
     
     girl” plot is only partly 
     
    
   
   
    
     plotlines spiced up with 
     
     emotional interludes,'some 
     
     nice singing, and some 
     
     over-glittery production 
     
     numbers, then New York 
     
    

    
     New York is for you. On 
     
     the other hand, if you 
     
     require characters who 
     
    

    
     are consistently three- 
     
     dimensional, a few 
     
     surprises in the story, 
     
     and if you are turned off 
     
     by overproduced and 
     
     spectacular stage musical 
     
     productions, New York, Nqi 
     
     York might prove a bit "* 
     
     much for you; And, if 
     
     you're like me, you'll 
     
     leave the theatre feeling 
     
     moved, entertained, dis- 
     
     satisfied, and disappointed 
     
     all at the same time. 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
        
     
    
   
   
    
     steady decline into the 
     
     depths of forties and 
     
     fifties tackiness, but 
     
     Minnelli carries it past 
     
     the point of credibility. 
     
    
   
   
    
     FALL 
     
    
   
   
    
     ~ , D A Y 
     
     + M o v I E ,, 
     
     *PHER suzzkb 
     
     a » MIN. ~ 
     
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