Technically, this is a very well-made and slick movie. MGM certainly put a lot of energy into making this a top movie. However, the movie falls prey to what OFTEN happened with Hollywood bio-pics of the 1930s and 1940s--they don't let truth get into the way of a good story. The true story of Ziegfeld just doesn't come through in this picture--just a sanitized approximation of the man. This is alluded to somewhat in the movie, but the real life Ziegfeld was a rather selfish womanizer who left his poor wife with hardly a dime at his death. Billie Burke was the last Mrs. Ziegfeld and she returned to the stage due to these financial woes--hence, she probably never would have ended up in the Wizard of Oz or the Topper series if it wasn't out of necessity. It would have possibly been more interesting if the portrayal had focused on this aspect of him as well.
Review of The Great Ziegfeld
