Monday 27 March 2017

Musical Monday #128

So to round off this month's 'MOTHERS' theme, here is a musical number that always makes me cry, ever since I was a tiny amoeba person (although not for the song, but the images/what is going on in the story).

Baby Mine from Dumbo
Performed by Betty Noyes
Written by Frank Churchill and Ned Washington

Dumbo might be short and contain a random drug trip sequence, but it's the only good thing to come out of Disney during the war years.  A baby is abused for being different, his mother is locked up unjustly for protecting him, he is ostracized, eventually discovering that what makes him different is what makes him special and strong and he takes revenge on those who have abused him.  All we need now is for all the animals in that circus to take revenge on their human abusers and escape... but maybe in the remake.

So, what I have learned from the Mothers theme this month, (apart from that mothers are disturbingly underrepresented in films/musicals because for some reason everyone is obsessed with their fathers instead) is that mothers of females are evil, controlling monsters and mothers of males are loving, nurturing angels.  So... Freud is alive and well in Hollywood.

What theme shall I use next month?

Monday 20 March 2017

Musical Monday #127

Worst. Mother. Ever.

Rose's Turn from Gypsy
Performed by Rosalind Russell (acting) and Lisa Kirk (singing)
Written by Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim.

Well, okay, maybe not worst.  But a bad one anyway.

Monday 13 March 2017

Musical Monday #126

'Mothers' is actually a surprisingly difficult theme when looking for musical numbers.  I can find a dozen about fathers, but films very rarely focus on mothers.  Which is odd, what with mothers being such a major thing in the real world.  Literally everyone had a mother at one point and everyone must have an opinion on theirs, so why are they considered so much less interesting than fathers by Hollywood?  Well, I already know the answer to that one.

I can think of one musical though in which a character is absolutely obsessed with his mother.  Too obsessed, in fact.

Blue Skies from The Jazz Singer
Performed by Al Jolson
Written by Irving Berlin

I still think it's a big cheat that this is referred to as the first 'talkie'.  More like the most noisy silent movie.

Monday 6 March 2017

Musical Monday #125

Since March ends with Mother's Day (Mothers' Day?  Mothers Day? Mothering Sunday...), I thought this month the musical numbers could reflect that most loving and/or challenging of relationships, motherhood.

Where's The Bathroom? from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, episode 'My Mom, Greg's Mom and Josh's Sweet Dance Moves!'
Performed by Tovah Feldshuh.
 Written by Rachel Bloom, Adam Schlesinger and Jack Dolgen.