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April Love (1957) is a sweet-natured romantic musical. The film features the beautiful title song (which was nominated for an Oscar) and it was directed by Henry Levin (Journey to the Center of the Earth). It stars Pat Boone and Shirley Jones. The musical should appeal to fans of beautifully mounted productions. The story of the film
focuses on Nick Conover (Pat Boone). He comes to live with
relatives on a farm following terms made for him following his
involvement in a car robbery with those he knew from his
city-life. Now living in a small farm environment with Aunt
Henrietta (Jeanette Nolan) and Uncle Jed (Arthur O'Connell)
looking after him, Conover soon comes to learn about the nice
qualities of a small-town life. Nick falls for a local girl
named Liz Templeton (Shirley Jones) who is their next-door
neighbor. Liz, a good girl, helps Nick to find a new passion as he
starts to race a trotting horse. Can Nick and Liz's romance
blossom and will Nick become a star racer in the horse races? The performances are enjoyable throughout. The performances by Jeanette Nolan and Arthur O'Connell add dramatic heft and comedic brilliance to these characters. Pat Boone is highly likeable as a performer and has a superb signing voice. Shirley Jones is charismatic, likeable, and engaging in her performance. Boone and Jones are excellent together in this production. The combination of the acting and the songs makes this a enjoyable musical. On the production side of things, the cinematography by Wilfred M. Cline (The Big Valley, Calamity Jane) looks gorgeous. Shot in 35mm CinemaScope, April Love has a genuinely beautiful cinematography quality. The beautiful outdoors scenery and lighting makes it a absolutely stunning experience.
The Blu-ray:
Video: This will go down as one
of the best looking catalog discs of 2015. The MPEG-4 AVC 1080p
high definition present looks marvelous. It is presented in the
original 2.35:1 widescreen. The presentation stuns with a clean
image that is free of dirt, specks of dust, and damage. Audio: With a terrific
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound presentation (which seems
to work as an expanded stereo audio mix) listeners will find
this to be a satisfactory lossless audio mix. This audio
presentation sounds remarkable. The audio is crisp, clean, and
well-defined. Dialogue reproduction is
excellent. The 24 bit quality is terrific sounding and provides
the music with a definite clarity and depth that will be
appreciable for enthusiasts. Extras: This Twilight Time
Limited Edition Blu-ray release includes a booklet featuring
essay by film critic Julie Kirgo. The release includes
an isolated score track presented in DTS-HD Master Audio stereo,
an Audio Commentary track with actress Shirley Jones and film
historian Nick Redman, and the Original Theatrical Trailer. Final Thoughts: April Love is a sweet and
enjoyable Hollywood musical. Those who enjoy these types of
musicals will be pleased with this effort. This is a nice
experience that has a lot of quality production merits to it. Twilight Time has
done a terrific job with the Limited Edition Blu-ray release.
The image and sound quality are superb. This is going to be
considered amongst the best catalog-title presentations of 2015. Highly
Recommended. Neil Lumbard is a lifelong
fan of cinema, and a student who aspires to make movies. He loves
writing, and currently does in Texas. |