IMDb RATING
6.8/10
5.9K
YOUR RATING
Contemporary version of the Bizet opera, with new lyrics and an African-American cast.Contemporary version of the Bizet opera, with new lyrics and an African-American cast.Contemporary version of the Bizet opera, with new lyrics and an African-American cast.
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 5 wins & 8 nominations total
Brock Peters
- Sergeant Brown
- (as Broc Peters)
LeVern Hutcherson
- Joe
- (voice)
- (as Le Vern Hutcherson)
Marilyn Horne
- Carmen Jones
- (voice)
- (as Marilynn Horne)
Marvin Hayes
- Husky Miller
- (voice)
Alvin Ailey
- Dance Soloist
- (uncredited)
DeForest Covan
- Trainer
- (uncredited)
Joseph E. Crawford
- Dink Franklin
- (singing voice)
- (uncredited)
Carmen De Lavallade
- Dance Soloist
- (uncredited)
Bernie Hamilton
- Reporter
- (uncredited)
Margaret Lancaster
- Singing Voice
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Oscar Hammerstein II
- Harry Kleiner
- Prosper Mérimée(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis film contains just 169 shots in 103 minutes of action. This equates to an average shot length of about 36 seconds, which is very high, given the 8 - 10 seconds standard of most Hollywood films made during the 1950s.
- GoofsThe story takes place circa 1944, but all of the women's fashions and hairstyles are strictly 1954; when Carmen and Frankie are talking outside the Chicago Pawn Shop, 1950s-era automobiles passing by can clearly be seen reflected in the showcase window.
- Quotes
Carmen Jones: I always did want to see the big town.
Frankie: You got your wish, honey. Somethin' tells me Chicago's gonna be real good for you.
Myrt: Somethin' tells me you gonna be real *bad* for Chicago.
- Crazy creditsThe opening credits and end title are set around a flaming rose.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Small Steps, Big Strides: The Black Experience in Hollywood (1998)
Featured review
Dandridge and Bizet!
Some greatness here. Dandridge's performance is riveting, and Pearl Bailey is a wonderful addition. Bizet's music is as appealing as always. The singers are excellent. The dancers at Billy Pastor's are another high point.
Too many slips for me to rate it a 10. It's lip-synced -- like every other movie musical, and (despite what one other reviewer said), one of the best lip-sync jobs I've seen. Only My Fair Lady does better (of those I've seen). Dandridge, Belafonte, and Bailey are particularly good; Olga James much less so. But I always find lip-syncing painfully obvious and distracting and will probably never have a chance to top-rate a movie musical as a result. It's also quite distracting when Joe breaks into song, because LeVern Hutcherson's voice is so different from Harry Belafonte's. It's a real shame that experienced singers like Dandridge and Belafonte weren't allowed to sing. Marilyn Horne, wow -- but I like the voice to match the face.
The acting is uneven. Some is excellent, led by Dandridge, and others do well too. But some of the acting is stiff.
Then there's the re-setting. Oh, moving the place is fine. It's funny that a couple of reviewers have referred to "how the Spaniards do it" and "Spanish opera". Hey, Carmen is set in Seville and Bizet attempted to use some Spanish musical idioms, but Carmen is a French opera through and through. Bizet was French, Prosper Merimee was French, the libretto is in French. But Carmen Jones only uses the top arias from Carmen, and ends up adding a lot of dialog to fill in the time. The story is true to the original, but Bizet told more in music and Hammerstein tells more in words. Oscar should have trusted Georges more.
I notice that Alvin Ailey is uncredited as a dancer. I found a couple of photos of him on the web -- it's hard, because his dance company has been so much more famous than the man, but I found a couple. I *think* I figured out which one he is -- some slo-mo work there -- but most of the dancers' faces don't come into focus for long enough to know for sure. It would be mostly a curiosity to know, since the movie doesn't show enough of the dance to see any personal style.
Too many slips for me to rate it a 10. It's lip-synced -- like every other movie musical, and (despite what one other reviewer said), one of the best lip-sync jobs I've seen. Only My Fair Lady does better (of those I've seen). Dandridge, Belafonte, and Bailey are particularly good; Olga James much less so. But I always find lip-syncing painfully obvious and distracting and will probably never have a chance to top-rate a movie musical as a result. It's also quite distracting when Joe breaks into song, because LeVern Hutcherson's voice is so different from Harry Belafonte's. It's a real shame that experienced singers like Dandridge and Belafonte weren't allowed to sing. Marilyn Horne, wow -- but I like the voice to match the face.
The acting is uneven. Some is excellent, led by Dandridge, and others do well too. But some of the acting is stiff.
Then there's the re-setting. Oh, moving the place is fine. It's funny that a couple of reviewers have referred to "how the Spaniards do it" and "Spanish opera". Hey, Carmen is set in Seville and Bizet attempted to use some Spanish musical idioms, but Carmen is a French opera through and through. Bizet was French, Prosper Merimee was French, the libretto is in French. But Carmen Jones only uses the top arias from Carmen, and ends up adding a lot of dialog to fill in the time. The story is true to the original, but Bizet told more in music and Hammerstein tells more in words. Oscar should have trusted Georges more.
I notice that Alvin Ailey is uncredited as a dancer. I found a couple of photos of him on the web -- it's hard, because his dance company has been so much more famous than the man, but I found a couple. I *think* I figured out which one he is -- some slo-mo work there -- but most of the dancers' faces don't come into focus for long enough to know for sure. It would be mostly a curiosity to know, since the movie doesn't show enough of the dance to see any personal style.
helpful•297
- paleolith
- Jan 10, 2005
- How long is Carmen Jones?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Oscar Hammerstein's Carmen Jones
- Filming locations
- Southern Pacific railroad crossing at 8746 E Los Angeles Avenue, aka California Highway 118, Moorpark, California, USA(scene where Carmen attempts escape from the Jeep)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $750,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 45 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.55 : 1
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![Dorothy Dandridge in Carmen Jones (1954)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTFmNTc0NDgtYTgwNi00MDQwLWE0ZGEtZWVlZDU0ZDEyZWMwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxMTY0OTQ@._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,2,90,133_.jpg)