Show Boat

Released Jul 13, 1951

1 hr. 47 min.

Musical

List

83%

12 Reviews

Tomatometer

70%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

When it comes to music on the Mississippi river, the Cotton Blossom show boat is the place to go. When musical main attraction Julie Laverne (Ava Gardner) and her husband are suddenly forced to leave the show, Cotton Blossom owner Andy Hawks' (Joe E. Brown) own daughter, Magnolia (Kathryn Grayson), takes center stage. She soon falls madly in love with roguish gambler Gaylord Ravenal (Howard Keel), and the two leave the Cotton Blossom on a honeymoon -- only to enter into a tumultuous marriage.

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Joel H

Show Boat isn't much of a showstopper. Almost all the musical numbers in this movie are sleepy, slow songs. Ava Gardner, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, and William Warfield all have beautiful singing voices, and the dancing is enjoyable to watch, but this movie is lacking in energy. The plot is also fairly bland, with no real character arcs and no big surprises. The story just kind of meanders along, like a paddleboat drifting down the river. Watching Show Boat isn't an unpleasant experience, it's just not as impressive as it could have been. And yet it's the second highest-grossing movie of 1951.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

11/03/23

Full Review

steve d

really dull musical.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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david f

While the talent behind this movie and the production values are top-notch, I found the plot, characters, and music to be very dated and not very entertaining.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

So much better than what could be done today -- hence, a good rating -- but there are many flaws here. The William Warfield rendition of "Old Man River" is the only redeeming virtue of the needed black influence MGM edited out. But the show still works, although never approaching the brilliance of the 1936 version.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Well shot, but dated.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

MGM's loving, lovely Technicolor adaptation of the groundbreaking stage musical retains most of Jerome Kern's music and strengthens the role of Julie, poignantly played by Ava Gardner; William Warfield also does well singing "Ol' Man River."

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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George Sidney

Director

Kathryn Grayson

Magnolia Hawks

Howard Keel

Gaylord Ravenal

Ava Gardner

Julie LaVerne

Joe E. Brown

Cap'n Andy Hawks

Gower Champion

Frank Schultz

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B.R. Crisler

Christian Science Monitor

Above all, Show Boat represents the fine, artificial flower of America's golden age of professional competence in the popular arts.

Aug 16, 2022

Full Review

Mattie Lucas

From the Front Row

It piles on the Technicolor spectacle, with each number feeling like a finale, making for an experience that feels bloated and over-stuffed, full of flash and visual pizazz but lacking any real stakes or sense of emotion.

Rated: 2/4

Mar 25, 2021

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

A showcase for some eye-popping Technicolor dreams.

Rated: 3/4

Feb 26, 2021

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

A much weaker Show Boat version than the 1936 one by James Whale.

Rated: C

Feb 2, 2006

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 3/5

Jul 15, 2005

Full Review

Philip Martin

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Rated: 3/5

Feb 11, 2005

Full Review

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Synopsis

When it comes to music on the Mississippi river, the Cotton Blossom show boat is the place to go. When musical main attraction Julie Laverne (Ava Gardner) and her husband are suddenly forced to leave the show, Cotton Blossom owner Andy Hawks' (Joe E. Brown) own daughter, Magnolia (Kathryn Grayson), takes center stage. She soon falls madly in love with roguish gambler Gaylord Ravenal (Howard Keel), and the two leave the Cotton Blossom on a honeymoon -- only to enter into a tumultuous marriage.

Director: George Sidney
Screenwriter: Edna Ferber, John Lee Mahin
Distributor: Warner Home Vídeo, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp.
Production Co: Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Loew's Inc.
Genre: Musical
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 13, 1951, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 1, 2009

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