Color, NR (some mature topics), 146 min., DVD only $24.99
DVD: no extras
Available now
First Run: PBS, Jan. 2002
Directors: George C. Wolfe, Rob Bowman
IMAGE
Elaine Stritch is something of a show-biz legend, known not only as an actress on Broadway and occasionally in film, but also as a musical-comedy star and cabaret singer who has been performing for a half-century. This one-woman show, taped at London's Old Vic theater, includes innumerable anecdotes about her former co-workers (which include Noel Coward, Marlon Brando, Rock Hudson, Ethel Merman and Woody Allen, to name just a few) and raspy renditions of 19 songs she has performed on stage over the years in such legendary shows as Pal Joey, Follies and Company. At 2½ hours, At Liberty is a bit too long, although you'd never know it from the reactions of the Old Vic audience. (That's the difference between attending a live performance and sitting through it in your living room on a 27-inch TV.) Stritch is such an iconic show-biz figure that New York critics are loathe to criticize, but the simple fact is that she's well past her prime. And her appeal beyond major metropolitan areas and urban sophisticates is just about nil. You'll need to be certain there's a demand for this program in your area before buying. --Ed Hulse