VividSimon Simply Perfect

Rio Hayward All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Kirandeep Yoder The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

robert-temple-1 This film is worth seeing by anybody with any interest at all in music, for the spectacular scene where Louis Armstrong has a 'music duel' with fellow musicians in a Paris jazz club. The film is excellently directed by Martin Ritt. It is based on a novel by Harold Flender (1924-1975), a television writer, and this was his only novel to be made into a feature film. Flender was the grandfather of youthful actor Timothee Chalamet, who played the 15 year-old Tom in INTERSTELLAR (2014). This film has the irresistible combination of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, his wife. They had already made two films together, THE LONG HOT SUMMER (1958), also directed by Ritt, and FROM THE TERRACE (1960). Woodward had also been directed previously by Ritt in NO DOWN PAYMENT (1957), a film which is not commercially available on DVD today. Much of this film was shot on location in Paris and therefore has a great deal of authenticity, though only one French character features in the story, a singer played by Barbara Laage (who delivers an excellent performance in her supporting role). The story concerns two American expatriate jazz musicians, played by Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier. There is a strong performance also by Serge Reggiani as 'Gypsy', the jazz guitarist who is hopelessly addicted to cocaine. One day, Joanne Woodward and Diahann Carroll turn up as tourists from America and they become involved with Newman and Poitier. Newman plays a coarse and unsympathetic character, so that it is difficult to be too concerned about the problems of his love life. Both Newman and Poitier however fall in love with the two girls, whose demands that they return to America and become homebodies and husbands shakes the two men. Will they 'go home' and find true love or will they stay in Paris? Louis Armstrong appears in one acting scene in the film and then the spectacular musical scene already mentioned. This is a first rate film which deserves to be better known today. Duke Ellington wrote the original music for the film. There was once a time when no one would miss a Newman and Woodward film, as they were such a star couple, but now few remember them, just as fewer and fewer people remain who know what the magic words 'Burton and Taylor' used to mean in terms of box office appeal. Time moves on and people fade, even the ones who seemed at the time to have lasting fame.

The_Movie_Cat Handsomely shot on location in Paris, Sidney Poitier appears as second player to Paul Newman's tense jazz musician Ram Bowen. Like a jazz piece, the film meanders at times, content to get where it's going without overt dramatic flourish, something which both helps and harms the film. Containing relatively sophisticated themes for Hollywood cinema, it nevertheless falls into the trap of being a serviceable film rather than a great one, a string of incidents in need of a more rigid plot.The tagline for the film promised "A love-spectacular so exciting you feel it's personally happening to you", whereas the reality is, you'll probably just think it's happening to Newman and Poitier, who both had more significant and historically lasting films that same year. (The Hustler/A Raisin In the Sun). All this said, the cinematography by Christian Matras is beautiful, Louis Armstrong adds fun playing Louis Armstrong (called "Wild Man Moore") and Newman-Poitier is a pretty good screen pairing, even if Sidney does tower over the film's top billed star by five inches. Amusement can be gleaned by the film's conclusion, which sees both dump their girlfriends to be with each other.

mmunier Grabbing a bite at lunch time I clicked the remote control to my digital TV (our last kitchen appliance!) the TV was on "gem" channel 90, one of the recent channels added to Australia free to air TV that more or less has grown from 5 to may be 15 such channels... Ah yes Paris Blue! So the TV splashed a black and white movie... Oh well, but then there was that Trombone player with such a familiar face, Paul Newman! One of my favourite actor and one I can't think has done any lousy movie. Then what? at the other end of that shinny saxo, Sydney Potier, and a glimpse of Louis Armstrong! I'd swear I also seen JC Vandam pushing a cart in the market scene. Thank you IMDb for being the vehicle to remind me J Woodward was P Newman real wife, I had forgotten. I'm not a jazz aficionado but enjoy it just the same, I love romance and take racial discrimination at heart. I also found the dilemma career vs love a worthwhile exploration. But being born in Paris and having lived 27 years there, that I really took for granted, gave me a different outlook on what other people see in it.Movies can be criticised to kingdom come for their artistic and professional quality, but often I think they should be evaluated to what they have to offer an audience. In this film I was in the company of elements I liked a lot. Paris, good actors, enjoyable music, I don't know about you but this was good for me!

MARIO GAUCI Interesting drama with jazz interest (music by Duke Ellington – whose contribution even garnered an Oscar nod – and the appearance of Louis Armstrong) filmed on location (by Christian Matras, cinematographer for Jean Renoir, Max Ophuls and Luis Bunuel, no less).These two elements prove the film’s mainstay, offsetting the plot’s inherent heaviness (including the perennial struggle between Commerce and Art – popular American trombonist Paul Newman wants to branch out into composition – and its destructive impact on his relationship with tourist/divorcée-with-kids Joanne Woodward, racial intolerance – the reason behind Sidney Poitier’s relocation to Europe, which puts a strain on his affair with Woodward’s companion Diahann Carroll – and drug abuse, which is ruining the career of guitarist Serge Reggiani); two of the film’s best sequences are those in which Newman and Reggiani come across a junkie erratically strumming on his guitar in the marketplace – a man whom Reggiani previously idolized, and the eventual falling-out in public between the two over Reggiani’s continuing intake of drugs. Incidentally, it was amusing to note the epithet “introducing” before the latter’s name during the opening credits since he had already been well established in his native land for about 15 years (with even a couple of moderate profile English-speaking films in his resume')! I’d say that the film – Newman’s fourth with spouse Woodward and second with frequent director Ritt – is very underrated within the actor’s filmography and is also notable for being the sole collaboration between the late star and fellow Method actor Marlon Brando (this was co-produced by the latter’s company, Pennebaker). Similarly, Newman’s teaming with Poitier here would have ‘repercussions’ two years later when both found themselves competing for the Best Actor Oscar (though the former was the hands-down favorite for one of his best roles in Ritt’s own HUD [1963], it was the latter who emerged the winner with LILIES OF THE FIELD [1963]); this ironic turn-of-events would occur three more times throughout Newman’s long career: he appeared with David Niven in LADY L (1965) – the latter won for SEPARATE TABLES in 1958 when Newman was nominated for CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, he appeared with (and directed) Henry Fonda in SOMETIMES A GREAT NOTION (1971) – the latter won for ON GOLDEN POND in 1981 when Newman was nominated for ABSENCE OF MALICE (1981) and, finally, he appeared with Tom Hanks in ROAD TO PERDITION (2002) – the latter won for FORREST GUMP in 1994 when Newman was nominated for NOBODY’S FOOL!!