In 1956, the life of Benny Goodman was brought to the big screen with the musical biographical film "The Benny Goodman Story", starring Steve Allen and Donna Reed. Now Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has released this film on Blu-ray.
Synopsis: The music of Benny Goodman comes to life in this wonderful musical biography of the famed King of Swing. Featuring all the outstanding songs and instrumental made famous by the immortal clarinetist, the story follows the innovative musician from his childhood in Chicago to his historic concert at Carnegie Hall in 1938.
As a huge fan of classic Hollywood biopics, The Benny Goodman Story is a wonderful tale of the musician's life. Now, like with all Hollywood biopics, there is a lot of creative license used, but the main points of his life are all there.
The film was directed by Valentine Davies, best known for writing the story of Miracle on 34th Street and the screenplay for The Glenn Miller Story. he wheeked and dealed his way into directing this film, and to be honest, this is not the best job in the world. Perhaps this is why he never directed another film.
Steve Allen had just really got his entertainment legs under him by hosting The Tonight Show, when he got this role. And I think he does a tremendous job. Then there is the lovely Donna Reed, who makes a great love interest for Steve Allen's Benny Goodman. Benny Goodman himself adds the music for this picture, absolutely a bonus. Even with its faults, I really enjoyed this biopic.
Universal Pictures has transferred The Benny Goodman Story to Blu-ray in 1080p and is presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The audio track is an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. There is the option for English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
The Technicolor picture of this film really looks amazing in HD! The colors pop, and the picture is crisp with no signs of damage to this print. The audio track is clean and really serves the music well.
The only disappointing part of this Blu-ray release is the bonus features. There are no bonuses found on this disc. There is not even a trailer. That is a shame. I would have loved to see some additional material. For me, this is the main thing that makes physical media better than streaming.
In the end, The Benny Goodman Story is a Hollywood biopic, but it is filled with heart. Anchored by the music of Benny Goodman himself, the film takes you back to an era when big bands ruled the airwaves and jazz reshaped American culture.
If you love biographical films, The Benny Goodman Story is a must-add to your home video library. Head over to MovieZyng or Amazon and order your copy of the Blu-ray today!
Out of 4 Film Reels (4 being the best) the Blu-ray of the Benny Goodman Story receives......
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