Product: The Court Jester [VHS] (1956)
Rating: 5.0
Sylvia does Fine as usual
I like Danny Kaye all right, but I'm a Sylvia Fine fan as well, and she shines here, not only in the very clever title sequence and even cleverer "Maladjusted Jester", but all the way through. I especially like the lullaby Kaye sings early in the film. Add first-rate songs to first-rate writing, spot-on performances, lush art direction and brilliant editing, and you've got one of the best comedies ever made for the screen. The swordfight, impeccably choreographed, is even better than the ones in "Princess Bride"; "Maladjusted Jester" is a delight you'll want to see over and over; the knighthood scene is a howler, and of course "the vessel with the pestle" is a classic of American culture. When they start considering film as literature in the schools, this classic should be in the basic overview. And kids, generations removed from its making, still love it.Personal note: I introduced my daughter to this when she was in her teens, when "Murder She Wrote" was her only exposure to Angela Lansbury. She sat up and shouted, "Mom! Mom! Angela Lansbury was a BABE!!!"