Genre:
Comedy
Release Date: 02/19/2002
Dubbed: English
Run Time: 91 Minutes
Flags: Suitable for Children
Distributor/Studio: Alpha Video
Two real-life events were incorporated into the plot of the 1951
MGM musical Royal Wedding. One, the marriage of
Fred Astaire's sister Adele to a British nobleman had occurred years earlier; the other, the wedding of England's
Princess Elizabeth and
Prince Philip was only four years in the past.
MGM would probably have gotten
Royal Wedding out closer to the
Elizabeth-
Philip nuptials, but the picture had leading-lady problems; every girl who was cast either became pregnant, ill, or otherwise unavailable. Finally,
Jane Powell was cast as the sister and partner of American-entertainer
Fred Astaire. The plot has
Astaire and
Powell heading to Merrie Olde England to perform at the palace. Once they've arrived,
Powell breaks up the act when she falls in love with blueblooded
Peter Lawford.
Astaire himself finds romance in the form of
Sarah Churchill (daughter of
Sir Winston), and the four happy campers gleefully attend the titular Windsor Castle wedding. Also in the cast is
Albert Sharpe, fresh from his Broadway triumph in
Finian's Rainbow, and
Keenan Wynn, hilarious as twin cousins. The plot is so light that it threatens to float away at times, but
Royal Wedding sticks in the memory thanks to its first-rate
musical numbers. The
Astaire/
Powell duets are entertaining enough; the real magic, however, occurs in
Astaire's two solos: the hat-rack duet and the now-legendary tap-dance on the ceiling (even knowing how this cinematic legerdemain was accomplished does not detract from its brilliance and virtuosity). Because it has slipped into public domain,
Royal Wedding is one of the most easily accessible of all the
Fred Astaire musicals.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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