Swing Kids

In 1939 Hamburg, Germany, a group of teenagers express their rebellion against Adolph Hitler's Nazi regime through their affection for American swing music, British fashion, and Harlem slang. American and British big-band jazz records are among those banned by the Fuhrer, but the young men secretly ...more

After starring in the critically dismissed musical Newsies in 1992, Christian Bale tried the genre again the next year with similar results in Swing Kids. Produced by Disney, this production presents a glossy version of Nazi Germany and positions the defiant teenagers rebelling against Hitler Youth as a bunch of good-looking hipster kids. That said, the production design is stunning and the swing-era dance numbers are well-choreographed and entertaining. The rousing dance sequences are helped by ...more