OVP: Bells are Ringing (1960)

Film: Bells are Ringing (1960)
Stars: Judy Holliday, Dean Martin, Fred Clark, Eddie Foy, Jr., Jean Stapleton
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Oscar History: 1 nomination (Best Scoring)
Snap Judgment Ranking: 4/5 stars

I see a lot of movies (clearly), and write about a lot of movies (again, clearly), but in writing those reviews, I sometimes run into trouble when I try and rate the pictures.  Take Bells are Ringing, a movie I saw recently for the first time which was the end of producer Arthur Freed's long run with both MGM and Vincente Minnelli (13 of Minnelli's directorial efforts were produced by Freed, including absolute classics like Meet Me in St. Louis and An American in Paris).  The movie itself is so much fun, a real blast of a musical the kind of which they don't make anymore, but sadly at the time was so passé that the movie was a flop when it came out.  But the real revelation here is Judy Holliday, who of course shouldn't be a revelation at this point (Holliday is always terrific), but I feel like this is an entirely different level of performance from what we know of her.  So come along as I decide whether one performance can elevate an entire film's score.

(Spoilers Ahead) The movie is about Ella Peterson (Holliday), a phone switch operator at an answering service who takes on multiple different personalities, but not her own, while trying to solve the problems of the customers of Susanswerphone (it's fun to say).  She is in love with a playwright who calls in named Jeffrey Moss (Martin).  After being chastised for being too involved in her customers lives by her boss Sue (Stapleton, who is divine in a supporting role that leans into her natural comedic gifts), Ella sneaks over to Jeffrey's house to ensure he doesn't botch an interview.  She uses a fake name & doesn't tell him that she's the woman from the answering service, and of course they fall in love, even though they come from completely different worlds.  The film ends with them getting together, of course, but first Ella learns that she needs to love herself first-and-foremost, and be there for Ella.

The movie is a little bit heavier than you'd think for a movie featuring Dean Martin and directed by Minnelli, especially during this era of his career.  The Ella self-growth is real, and it's entirely driven by bravura work from Holliday.  This is a stupendous performance, with Holliday acing the musical numbers and bringing some solid comedic acting chops to her performance, with just a hint of sadness.  She makes Ella incredibly modern for a woman whose job is so antiquated most younger audiences wouldn't even know it once existed.  I love the way that while Martin's Jeffrey is who she ends up with in the end, really her ending is all about her-a woman who suddenly feels okay in her own skin-which is a great message for a musical comedy, a genre that frequently saw "a man" as the only answer to what a woman wants.

The film's musical numbers are all delightful, even if they're so loquacious (like "Drop That Name") that they'd be hard to sing along to.  My favorite song in the Bells are Ringing score has always been "Perfect Relationship," which is a triumph as sung by Holliday, and richly felt.  It's a bit of a pity that not only was this movie a flop (enough to ensure Freed never made another musical), but it also ended Holliday's very brief career in the movies, as this was her final picture.  She was already supposedly ill while filming it, but while she'd live another five years, they were challenging ones-she'd die at the age of 43 after a long battle with breast cancer.  If you haven't already seen her in this, do yourself a favor.  I'm giving it 4 stars (some of Martin's character work isn't as clean as it should be), but Holliday is giving a 5-star performance and a great sendoff to a unique actress.