Jazz in the movies

Bird

The director of this picture is Clint Eastwood, an old fan of jazz. The film is a biography and career of the legendary Charlie Parker, nicknamed the Bird. The film received the Golden Globe, as well as the Academy Award for music. Speaking of it, there is plenty of jazz here, and this is not surprising, since the director decided to show a real study of the life of a famous saxophonist in the spirit of impressionism. These are vivid pictures-scenes dedicated to different periods of Charlie Parker's creative journey, but the most attention is focused on the period 1946-1955. - the prime of his talent. Perhaps, if Clint Eastwood had not devoted so much to the problem of a musician with drugs and alcohol, then "The Bird" would have become the best film about jazz.

Obsession

This is not just a film, but a real drama telling about the life of a freshman, a gifted drummer Andrew Niemann, who fell into the hands of a real tyrant. His teacher, conductor Terence Fletcher, is confident that only psychological stress can truly reveal the talent of a genius. He represented him on a par with such venerable jazzmen as Louis Armstrong and Charlie Parker, but everything went wrong. The interesting plot of the film keeps the viewer in suspense, and the music is fascinating! Beautiful jazz compositions fill the entire film, even in the final we hear the famous "Caravan" by Duke Ellington performed by the protagonist.

In jazz only girls

This is a world cinema for all generations. Adventures, dangers, charm, flirting and all this under the sauce of jazz music, performed by the female orchestra and the wonderful singing of Marilyn Monroe. The picture was published in March 1959 and is still popular, this is its special uniqueness. She is included in the list of the best comedies in the history of cinema and has received high Oscar and Golden Globe awards. In the process of filming, the actors Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis had to learn to play musical instruments, and Matty Malnek, the performer and arranger of the filmstrip, helped them with this. The basis of the film was the traditional compositions performed in the style of Dixieland.

Sun Valley Serenade

This film, released in 1941, is a real musical comedy. Jazz music gives it a special charm. How could it be otherwise, because the main character Sonya Henie is a member of the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Interestingly, at first it was an idea for a commercial of a ski resort, but director H. Bruce Humberstone decided not to stop and turned it into a real masterpiece of world cinema. The special atmosphere of the film is created by the wonderful compositions of the legendary Glenn Miller. By the way, this is his first work of such a plan in film and the first role as an actor. All music is performed by the orchestra under the direction of Miller, but not all compositions belong to him, some are written by Harry Warren. You just listen to the sounds of the "Serenade of the Sun Valley", are you familiar? The Soviet audience can easily guess this melody, because it sounds in the second series of the cult TV series "Seventeen Moments of Spring."

Glenn Miller Story

This is not just a film that tells the biography and shows the work of the legendary jazzman Glenn Miller. This is a meeting with jazz in its true guise, which brings love and the brightest feelings. The film is kind and even sometimes sentimental and tells of Glenn Miller's love for his wife Helen Berger and for jazz music. You will not meet here insidious villains and any negative characters, the rapid chase, filled with shootouts and other things. All that awaits you is the glorious history of Glenn Miller, a meeting with the legendary musicians performing at the time and jazz music.

We are from jazz

In our country there are also enough films devoted to jazz. The brightest of them is “We are from Jazz,” directed by Karen Shakhnazarov, which was released in 1983. It shows a difficult time when a new style, which came to our country from the West, was banned. We are witnessing attempts by a jazz band to break through this indestructible wall and achieve recognition. Meanwhile, this is a musical comedy that is filled with sparkling humor and beautiful jazz music. Here and ragtime, which sounds at the very beginning and charming blues. All music was performed by the Sovremennik orchestra, and under the direction of Anatoly Kroll, archival recordings from the 1920s were also used to help recreate the spirit of the era.

Funny boys

Directed by Grigory Alexandrov, impressed with the lush Hollywood musicals, he decides to create his own musical film called “Merry Guys”. The picture was released in 1934, abroad it was known as "Moscow laughs". It presents the adventures of a shepherd musician who is accidentally mistaken for a foreign guest performer. The music of the film captures and impresses from the very first bars; here you will also hear F. Liszt’s classical compositions and I. Dunaevsky’s songs, which have become real hits and, of course, jazz.