Swing Time

“Of all the places the movies have created, one of the most magical and enduring is the universe of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. The best of their films is their fifth, Swing Time.” —Roger Ebert, Great Movies

"The "Never Gonna Dance" dance number might have been the best Fred & Ginger ever did." —Dennis Schwartz, Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Selected by Steven Krams

Dance number for dance number, this may be Fred and Ginger’s finest hour. The pair rarely performed with such ebullience as in the “Pick Yourself Up” tap polka; with such virtuosity as in the “Waltz in Swing Time”; and with such tenderness as in the “Never Gonna Dance” closer. Director George Stevens keeps the story — in which gambling man Fred goes to New York seeking fortune and instead finds “a fine romance” with working girl Ginger — sailing along elegantly. Add to that Astaire crooning “The Way You Look Tonight” and a Big White Set to rule them all, and you have one of the screen’s most perfect partnerships’ highest peaks.

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