SummaryA performer and gambler travels to New York City to raise the $25,000 he needs to marry his fiancée, only to become entangled with a beautiful aspiring dancer.
Directed By:George Stevens
Written By:Howard Lindsay, Allan Scott, Erwin Gelsey, Ben Holmes, Rian James, Anthony Veiller, Dorothy Yost
Swing Time
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
91
User score
Generally Favorable
6.4
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
91
100% Positive
16 Reviews
16 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
100
When Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers go into their dance, everything else fades into insignificance. The pair made 10 films together, and, with sequences like Pick Yourself Up and Never Gonna Dance, this is the consensus pick for their best. [03 Apr 2020, p.E1]
100
Top Hat may be more energetic and glossy, but Swing Time is arguably the most magical of the ten films Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers made together. Their dancing and acting rapport are at a peak and director George Stevens shows more finesse than Mark Sandrich in lending the couple's rocky romance a genuinely heartfelt quality.
100
What Fred and Ginger had together, and what no other team has ever had in the same way, was a joy of performance. They were so good, and they knew they were so good, that they danced in celebration of their gifts.
90
Arguably the best movie of the Astaire-Rogers series, Swing Time is the most consistently entertaining, most imaginatively plotted of their films. [25 Jun 1987, p.B7]
88
Arlene Croce has called it a movie about the myth of Astaire and Rogers and the world they lived in, and that's about as good a description as any.
75
It's not quite as charming as Top Hat or Shall We Dance, and the plotting drags heavily in spots, but whenever it gets free from the demands of farce, it's a dizzy delight.
70
The plot is never permitted to weigh upon the shoulders of the cast; of comedy there is a generous portion; of romance the lightest sprinkling; of dancing, in solo, duet and ensemble, a brisk and debonair allotment.
User score
Generally Favorable
6.4
50% Positive
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
43% Mixed
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
7% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
Jul 8, 2026
6
I know my mom loves Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers, this film is clearly only a vehicle for them to shine together. Astaire has an unfortunate, extended blackface sequence that's completely out of place with the rest of the movie.
Feb 23, 2025
4
Es uno de los peores musicales que he visto. No tiene nada de gracia, un romance totalmente plano y sin sentido alguno, y eso sumado a que, en tema de performance, es bastante simple y sin gusto. Ya he visto musicales bastante malos, pero que a nivel de escenografía y coreografía son grandiosos de ver, obras de arte. Lastimosamente, este no es así. Realmente hay muy pocas cosas rescatables, tal vez la única es la escena en la que cantan jazz en el barco. De ahí en más, no tiene chiste. Es demasiado tap. En un momento era algo increíble y diferente, pero después de ver varias así, ya uno se hastía.
Production Company:
- RKO Radio Pictures
Release Date:Aug 28, 1936
Duration:1 h 43 m
Rating:TV-G
Tagline:A Tune Swept Show of Love on the Go!
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Photoplay Awards
• 3 Wins & 3 Nominations
Satellite Awards
• 2 Nominations
