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Stormy Weather

Play trailer Poster for Stormy Weather 1943 1h 17m Musical Play Trailer Watchlist
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95% Tomatometer 42 Reviews 80% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Bill Williamson (Bill Robinson), a struggling performer, meets a beautiful vocalist named Selina Rogers (Lena Horne). Bill promises her that they will be together after he becomes a success. However, he and Selina both skyrocket to fame and lose contact. Fortunately, Bill just might get one more chance to woo Selina at a huge musical stage show. Popular entertainers of the 1940s, including Fats Waller and Cab Calloway, perform as themselves in the film.
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Stormy Weather

Stormy Weather

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Critics Consensus

Stormy Weather's depiction of the Black community is disappointingly facile, but its delightful musical numbers drown out any missed narrative notes.

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Critics Reviews

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Mildred Martin Philadelphia Inquirer 01/28/2021
Plot doesn't matter a hoot in this lively, likable picture. Go to Full Review
Wanda Hale New York Daily News 01/28/2021
3.5/4
The hottest thing in town. Go to Full Review
John W. Riley Boston Globe 01/28/2021
Really, the only thing to do is to sit back and enjoy yourself. The cast of Stormy Weather will see to that. Go to Full Review
Calum Baker Radio Times 09/29/2022
4/5
Although some of the images are outdated and outright offensive, this movie is all about the performances: Go to Full Review
Evelena D. Jackson Baltimore Afro-American 01/28/2021
The acting, costumes, and scenery are superb. Go to Full Review
Herman Hill Pittsburgh Courier 01/28/2021
All in all, [Stormy Weather] is excellent entertainment, and calculated to chase the war blues away. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Scott R @ScottR Dec 5 NYT 1000 films. Some great performances and music, but the plot left much to be desired. A historically significant film nonetheless. Saw on YouTube. See more Eye C May 5 The protagonist couldn’t be the best singer or dancer, BUT everyone else they are, and that last dance wow superb performance. See more John S 10/05/2023 The songs were lovely for the most part. The tap dancing brothers were a highlight. It's not a movie with much cohesive story though, and the dance number featuring the "black face" bonnets were very sad reminders of the time of which this film is a product. I was a little speechless. It's not a great film, but it's significant on a few levels. See more Emmett H 08/10/2023 It''s filled with good music and good dancing. Culturally unique. See more 04/28/2022 Absolute dynamite, zazz, razzmatazz, and more talent per minute than any other movie I can think of. Fats Waller live in performance in a choreographed musical! Lena Horne in three big sets you could watch with either the sound off or the video off and still rave about! The Nicholas brothers in a sequence that Fred Astaire himself called the greatest movie musical number he had ever seen! And that's not even mentioning Bill "Mr. Bojangles" Robinson, Cab Calloway - heck, everybody in the picture stacks talent on top of craftsmanship all the way up to the ceiling. You only have to compare "Stormy Weather" to some musicals - good ones - like "Gypsy" or "Pal Joey" to wonder how many movies this picture's 77 minutes would have been spread across if the performers had not all been been "colored." The flimsiness of the plot is mitigated by its brevity, the tightness of the budget is well-concealed, and the Jim Crow-era production is neither obtrusive nor opaque enough to conceal from any sane viewer just how awesome these people are. No need to hold your nose or avert your eyes - you aren't watching the producers or the sometimes questionable costumes, you're watching a whole lot of the greatest American dancers and musicians ever, at the top of their game. See more 05/12/2020 77 years ago "Stormy Weather" was filmed starring an all-black cast with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Lena Horne and an array of talented black musicians, singers and dancers. The Nicholas Brothers combined tap, jazz, ballet and acrobatics. The acrobatic tap duo's iconic scene from the 1943 musical "Stormy Weather is considered one of the greatest dance sequences ever, and it was unrehearsed and filmed in just one take. As the years pass I believe we appreciate more than ever the talent of this cast. Dance numbers and musical performances still make you want to get up and dance, move your body to the rhythm or just drum your fingers on the arm of your recliner and tap your feet. All dancers of the past 40 years should see this movie and learn we didn't create the dance moves in recent decades. See more Read all reviews
Stormy Weather

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Movie Info

Synopsis Bill Williamson (Bill Robinson), a struggling performer, meets a beautiful vocalist named Selina Rogers (Lena Horne). Bill promises her that they will be together after he becomes a success. However, he and Selina both skyrocket to fame and lose contact. Fortunately, Bill just might get one more chance to woo Selina at a huge musical stage show. Popular entertainers of the 1940s, including Fats Waller and Cab Calloway, perform as themselves in the film.
Director
Andrew L. Stone
Producer
William LeBaron
Screenwriter
Jerry Horwin, Frederick J. Jackson, Ted Koehler, H.S. Kraft, Seymour B. Robinson
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
20th Century Fox
Genre
Musical
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 17, 1943, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 1, 2013
Runtime
1h 17m
Sound Mix
Mono
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