An American in Paris

France again as the repository of civilisation, albeit in a distinctly brighter musical narrative about a painter (Gene Kelly) trying to make a go of it in the capital, and negotiating the attentions of a rich patroness while falling for Leslie Caron. Paris here really is a state of mind, as is most clearly in evidence during the climatic ballet sequence performed to backdrops inspired by Dufy, Toulouse-Lautrec, Manet, Van Gogh, Renoir et al. The Gershwin score is packed with gems, and the dancing is a dream.