Post by Rob W. Case on Jun 10, 2022 20:32:57 GMT -6
Iconic movie star Judy Garland was born Frances Ethel Gumm on June 10, 1922 to Ethel and Frank Gumm, 100 years ago today. The tragic side of this is that she died at age 47 in 1969, living a relatively short life. The film Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows brilliantly portrays her life story, her triumphs, her tragedies, and her challenges. And so, I thought it fitting to write about it in this piece.
The Story:
The film starts out where Ethel (Marsha Mason) is playing the piano for a Christmas recital in Grand Rapids Minnesota in 1924. At this recital, baby Frances Gumm (Carley Alves) runs on the stage, ringing a bell and singing “Jingle Bells”. The audience loves her. Fast forward to 1935, where France’s father Frank (Aidan Devine) sets Frances (Tammy Blanchard) up with an audition to sing for Metro Goldwin Mayer (MGM). There she meets famed producer and co-founder of MGM, Louis B. Mayer (Al Waxman) and he hears her sing. The meeting goes awry until Frances is able to sing his favorite opera song. From there, Frances is offered a contract with MGM, under her stage name Judy Garland.
Life is not all glitz and glamour for the little girl from Minnesota. Her mother and the studio control her weight, her looks, and her social life. When her father ends up on his deathbed from a lethal ear infection, she is not allowed out of her radio gig. She has to perform. The studio puts her on pills to control her appetite, make her sleep, and keep her awake. In MGM’s effort to raise her to stardom, they pair her up with famous child star Mickey Rooney (Dwayne Adams) and introduce her in his “Andy Hardy” movie series. At her 16th birthday, L.B. Mayer reveals in his gift to her, a role that he thinks she would be perfect for; L. Frank Baum’s classic book “The Wizard of Oz.” After promising her the role, the New York office insists on Shirley Temple, so they walk back their promise until things fall through with her. Judy Garland is now in the clear to play Dorothy, the meek child from Kansas who is whisked away into a magical world through a tornado. This movie makes Judy a big star, and the notoriety that it gives her sets out a career path that will affect the rest of her life.
As Judy’s star rises, she is given big budget movie roles that are assured to assemble audiences in movie houses across America. In her project “Meet Me in St. Louis”, Judy Garland (Judy Davis) strikes up a relationship with the film’s director, Vincente Minnelli (Hugh Laurie). The two hit it off, and eventually, at L.B. Mayer’s prompting, the two get married, but a lot of drama ensues that he’s not sure he will be able to handle. Judy becomes more dependent on pills to keep her on top of her game, and Vincente is not sure he can fulfill the need to keep her happy. But she is always needy, and when something comes up that works against her, she takes drastic measures to get her way (even if that includes a suicide attempt). The burden proves too heavy for Vincente to bear, and added to the stresses of his job alone, his marriage significantly wears him down. The studio puts Judy on suspension because her “maintenance” cost them so much money.
When everything in her career and marriage seems to be deteriorating for Judy, she meets a man by the name of Sidney Luft (Victor Garber), a prominent showbusiness figure who works to keep Judy Garland working. As he works to keep her busy, like performing live concerts, and getting her a gig at The Palace Theater, Luft gets her a job with Warner Bros. to produce a remake of the film “A Star is Born”. As her star rises once again, she has to bear the weight of newfound success, along with staying fresh and active. On top of that, she has to deal with all her vices, addictions, motherhood- having two children (Lorna and Joey) with Sidney, and along with a host of other issues, dealing with the grim financial challenges that befall her. This poses significant strains on her marriage with Sid, and her kids are left having to bear too much of the heavy lifting in helping her maintain both her personal health and her star status. She pursues offers, but can’t handle rejection. She uses her star status to make money, but it is easily dissolved by staying in elaborate hotels. This eventually lands her in a crisis situation that will land her a gig in London, of which she can get back on her feet….. if she shows up for work (her time in London is chronicled in far more detail in the movie Judy starring Rene Zellweger).. This is a story of a woman who simply wants what everybody wants - to be loved, adored, and appreciated, carrying the weight of being a famous movie star, the image that goes with it, and the very tools that she uses to keep it going, though it is wearing too heavy on her personal health.
My Take:
Back in February of 2001, this movie aired as a two-night event on the ABC Television Network. I heard about it from a co-worker who was looking forward to watching it, and told me about it knowing that I love movies in general and classic films with iconic movie stars. I saw it listed in TVGUIDE, read about it, and got ready to tape it in case I liked it. I found the movie to be very interesting, intriguing, and very well done. It’s production values, especially for a TV movie, greatly exceeded my expectations. The casting was also nothing short of remarkable. Tammy Blanchard who plays the younger Judy Garland not only looked a lot like the real Judy Garland, but she sounded just like her too. Judy Davis looked so much like the older Judy Garland, and had her voice and mannerisms down to such a science, that I nearly forgot that I was watching a movie ABOUT Judy Garland. In other words, she basically BECAME Judy Garland.
Apart from all these things that impressed me about the movie, I think the thing that impressed me the most was the fact that the film was not only based on the book “Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows” by Judy Garland’s daughter Lorna Luft, but Lorna also served as an executive producer of the project, and narrated the story in a voice-over fashion. This added an edge of credibility and weight to the story that other depictions of famous people do not always have. What happened to Judy Garland in her life affected and controlled the career and life paths of her offspring as well, and you see it as a sort of memoir that not only told a story, but it celebrated the spirit to overcome every obstacle that comes your way. It was a powerful piece that is nice to watch again from time to time.
To view TV trailer 1 for the film, please click on the “Play” button below.
To view TV trailer 2 for the film, please click on the “Play” button below.
Trailer montage:
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is available on DVD, VHS, and is right now available to watch on YouTube.
The Story:
The film starts out where Ethel (Marsha Mason) is playing the piano for a Christmas recital in Grand Rapids Minnesota in 1924. At this recital, baby Frances Gumm (Carley Alves) runs on the stage, ringing a bell and singing “Jingle Bells”. The audience loves her. Fast forward to 1935, where France’s father Frank (Aidan Devine) sets Frances (Tammy Blanchard) up with an audition to sing for Metro Goldwin Mayer (MGM). There she meets famed producer and co-founder of MGM, Louis B. Mayer (Al Waxman) and he hears her sing. The meeting goes awry until Frances is able to sing his favorite opera song. From there, Frances is offered a contract with MGM, under her stage name Judy Garland.
Life is not all glitz and glamour for the little girl from Minnesota. Her mother and the studio control her weight, her looks, and her social life. When her father ends up on his deathbed from a lethal ear infection, she is not allowed out of her radio gig. She has to perform. The studio puts her on pills to control her appetite, make her sleep, and keep her awake. In MGM’s effort to raise her to stardom, they pair her up with famous child star Mickey Rooney (Dwayne Adams) and introduce her in his “Andy Hardy” movie series. At her 16th birthday, L.B. Mayer reveals in his gift to her, a role that he thinks she would be perfect for; L. Frank Baum’s classic book “The Wizard of Oz.” After promising her the role, the New York office insists on Shirley Temple, so they walk back their promise until things fall through with her. Judy Garland is now in the clear to play Dorothy, the meek child from Kansas who is whisked away into a magical world through a tornado. This movie makes Judy a big star, and the notoriety that it gives her sets out a career path that will affect the rest of her life.
As Judy’s star rises, she is given big budget movie roles that are assured to assemble audiences in movie houses across America. In her project “Meet Me in St. Louis”, Judy Garland (Judy Davis) strikes up a relationship with the film’s director, Vincente Minnelli (Hugh Laurie). The two hit it off, and eventually, at L.B. Mayer’s prompting, the two get married, but a lot of drama ensues that he’s not sure he will be able to handle. Judy becomes more dependent on pills to keep her on top of her game, and Vincente is not sure he can fulfill the need to keep her happy. But she is always needy, and when something comes up that works against her, she takes drastic measures to get her way (even if that includes a suicide attempt). The burden proves too heavy for Vincente to bear, and added to the stresses of his job alone, his marriage significantly wears him down. The studio puts Judy on suspension because her “maintenance” cost them so much money.
When everything in her career and marriage seems to be deteriorating for Judy, she meets a man by the name of Sidney Luft (Victor Garber), a prominent showbusiness figure who works to keep Judy Garland working. As he works to keep her busy, like performing live concerts, and getting her a gig at The Palace Theater, Luft gets her a job with Warner Bros. to produce a remake of the film “A Star is Born”. As her star rises once again, she has to bear the weight of newfound success, along with staying fresh and active. On top of that, she has to deal with all her vices, addictions, motherhood- having two children (Lorna and Joey) with Sidney, and along with a host of other issues, dealing with the grim financial challenges that befall her. This poses significant strains on her marriage with Sid, and her kids are left having to bear too much of the heavy lifting in helping her maintain both her personal health and her star status. She pursues offers, but can’t handle rejection. She uses her star status to make money, but it is easily dissolved by staying in elaborate hotels. This eventually lands her in a crisis situation that will land her a gig in London, of which she can get back on her feet….. if she shows up for work (her time in London is chronicled in far more detail in the movie Judy starring Rene Zellweger).. This is a story of a woman who simply wants what everybody wants - to be loved, adored, and appreciated, carrying the weight of being a famous movie star, the image that goes with it, and the very tools that she uses to keep it going, though it is wearing too heavy on her personal health.
My Take:
Back in February of 2001, this movie aired as a two-night event on the ABC Television Network. I heard about it from a co-worker who was looking forward to watching it, and told me about it knowing that I love movies in general and classic films with iconic movie stars. I saw it listed in TVGUIDE, read about it, and got ready to tape it in case I liked it. I found the movie to be very interesting, intriguing, and very well done. It’s production values, especially for a TV movie, greatly exceeded my expectations. The casting was also nothing short of remarkable. Tammy Blanchard who plays the younger Judy Garland not only looked a lot like the real Judy Garland, but she sounded just like her too. Judy Davis looked so much like the older Judy Garland, and had her voice and mannerisms down to such a science, that I nearly forgot that I was watching a movie ABOUT Judy Garland. In other words, she basically BECAME Judy Garland.
Apart from all these things that impressed me about the movie, I think the thing that impressed me the most was the fact that the film was not only based on the book “Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows” by Judy Garland’s daughter Lorna Luft, but Lorna also served as an executive producer of the project, and narrated the story in a voice-over fashion. This added an edge of credibility and weight to the story that other depictions of famous people do not always have. What happened to Judy Garland in her life affected and controlled the career and life paths of her offspring as well, and you see it as a sort of memoir that not only told a story, but it celebrated the spirit to overcome every obstacle that comes your way. It was a powerful piece that is nice to watch again from time to time.
To view TV trailer 1 for the film, please click on the “Play” button below.
To view TV trailer 2 for the film, please click on the “Play” button below.
Trailer montage:
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is available on DVD, VHS, and is right now available to watch on YouTube.
