Snak's Intermittent Movie Review - "De Lovely"

"De Lovely" starring Kevin Kline and Ashley Judd is a wonderful movie about the life of the irrefutable jazz composer, Cole Porter.

As Cole Porter never met a piano he didn't like, he never met person he didn't like sexually. He was bi-sexual playboy. Sometimes he would swing one way for many weeks, then come back to his wife, played beautifully by Ashley Judd. She knew about his exploits and tolerated it. They got married on that condition. But eventually, it would take its toll on her. They loved each other dearly.

But Cole's pursuit for "what is this thing called love" is emphasized in this story. He loved being loved ... by anyone. The underground gay scene is aptly shown, thankfully without taking things too far.

The story is uniquely told from the point of view where Cole as an old man is dying and his life is flashing before his eyes. He sits in a theatre where another man, indirectly referred to as Gabriel the Archangel, takes Cole through his life after college through to the end. They both sit and watch how wonderful his life really was.

Cole Porter's music is fun, romantic, and sexy. Throughout the movie, his songs are portrayed at all the shows he produced in his career, and it's topped off by guest vocal appearances from Sheryl Crow, Elvis Costello, Diana Krall, Natalie Cole, and many other familiar faces. (Sheryl's singing was by far the best).

The movie drags on near the end, but you get pulled into the lifeless state Cole's life became in his old age. There's a lot of cigarette smoking, which although probably accurate, got annoying to watch. Cole and his wife probably had fits of rage in argument, but this wasn't shown, and really would have made the movie spectacular. Just when you thought it would finally end, the last scene goes out with a bang number "Blow, Gabriel, Blow". And as they say, "Never open a show with a ballad. Never close a show with a ballad."

The makeup on the actor's faces to make them look old is so very well done as time moves forward, it's seemless.

I recommend this movie if you like Cole Porter's music, which I do, thoroughly. The acting is excellent, direction from Irwin Winkler second to none, and the era clothing, so perfectly done by Georgio Armani himself tops it off.

Snak gives "De Lovely" 3.91 fists out of 5.